Will McDonald IV 2023 NFL Draft profile: Scout report for the Iowa State EDGE
Will McDonald IV, a top 1,000 recruit in 2018, only saw action in three games as an Iowa State true freshman before putting up six tackles for loss and sacks each as a rotational second-year player.
McDonald became a key cog for the Cyclones D, and over the following two years, he put up basically identical numbers, with 26 combined tackles for loss and 23 sacks combined along with seven forced fumbles, making him a first-team All-Big 12 selection in both.
Last season, he dropped down to 7.5 TFLs and five sacks, along with a fumble forced and recovered, as well as a career-high four passes batted down. Understanding that his impact goes beyond the numbers, he repeated first-team all-conference honors.
Will McDonald IV, Iowa State
6-foot-4, 240 pounds; Redshirt senior
Positives
+ Offers more of a lanky build, but was heavily used as a 4i-/5-technique and plays strong for the fact that he constantly gave up size
+ Putting him head up on guards/tackles, McDonald really shoots those hands inside the chest of the guy across from him and is able to stay locked in place, keeping his pads square to the line of scrimmage
+ When he’s able to lock out with those 35-inch arms, there’s not much blockers can do to get into his frame anymore
+ Very active with his hands to work off blocks, force pullers responsible for somebody else to initiate contact with him and just create holdups in the backfield
+ Has the flexibility to reduce his surface area and create issues on slants, being able to flatten down the line and track down the ballcarrier going the other way
+ Shocks pullers trying to kick him out by suddenly jumping inside and dipping the opposite shoulder, to avoid them altogether
+ Not content with being kept away from the action on the backside of run schemes, trying to side-step kickout/seal blocks
+ Regularly corrals quarterbacks into keeping the ball or just kicking into high gear to chase things down, getting involved on way more tackles than he probably should
+ Showed off his explosiveness at the combine, with an 11-foot broad jump (98th percentage)
+ Proactive, versatile pass rusher, who works his speed and features the flexibility to dip underneath tackles as he curves his path
+ When allowed to rush from wide alignments, the ability to bend and turn the corner on guys who think they can just take their normal vertical sets, was able to really shine
+ Off that, he challenges tackles with working cross-face covering good ground laterally and keeping himself free with the high swim move
+ Can also add some hesitation and transition to power in order to make it tough for opponents to judge what is coming
+ His length and ability to run the arc at an angle don’t allow tackles to rest even if they’re slightly past the QB, as you see McDonald circle around and swipe at the ball from behind on multiple occasions (five FFs in ’21)
+ Flashes a super-dynamic spin move, where he clears the hip of tackles in one motion and uses the icepick to land on the back of that guy; plus he understands the depth of the pocket well generally and when to go underneath
+ Won’t stop throwing moves at blockers and features an impressive secondary burst as the quarterback begins to scramble or he just finds a different angle to work his move
+ Was used on some inside stunts where his burst and power to work through one shoulder of guards/centers sliding over his way made him pretty effective
+ How the Cyclones utilized McDonald didn’t really lend itself to big sack production as offenses were able to slide the guard towards him, being aligned shaded inside the tackle
+ Yet he racked up 70 total pressures across 533 pass-rush snaps combined over the past two seasons, with a 92.1 PFF grade in true pass-set situations
Negatives
– At his build, you could certainly define McDonald as a tweener who may not quite have the speed to consistently win around the edge, but with the height/girth combination isn’t a natural fit inside
– Needs to do a better job of keeping his frame clean and the outside arm free as a run-defender
– Undisciplined with his run fits in general, where he may have the freedom to knife inside of blocks, but he then allows the blocker to ride him sideways way off his landmarks
– Seems to predetermine his moves to an extent where he doesn’t take advantage of where tackles leave themselves vulnerable and plays off that
– Could still become more fluid in linking his upper and lower body and transitioning into secondary moves
Overview
McDonald was clearly playing out of position for Iowa State, yet was able to be a major impact player for them across the past three seasons. His combination of length and bend is the best in the class and once he’s allowed to rush from some wider alignments, I believe he can become an even more productive pass rusher because he has several clubs in his bag already.
Pulling them off a little more smoothly and becoming better at tailoring his plan to who he’s facing are the areas he can still get better at, what he really needs to work on, however, is firming up his base and showing he can set a physical edge in the run game, while keeping the outside arm free in order to take care of his contain assignments. Because of that, he may be a rotational pass-rusher early on, but I would have no problem with him being selected with one of final picks of the first round.
Grade: Top-50 overall
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