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Washington Football Team: Three defensive prospects who fit best in 2021

By Damien Bartonek

LOUISVILLE, KY - SEPTEMBER 02: Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah #6 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in action on defense during a game against the Louisville Cardinals at Cardinal Stadium on September 2, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. Notre Dame defeated Louisville 35-17. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KY - SEPTEMBER 02: Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah #6 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in action on defense during a game against the Louisville Cardinals at Cardinal Stadium on September 2, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. Notre Dame defeated Louisville 35-17. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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TAMPA, FLORIDA – OCTOBER 23: Zaven Collins #23 of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane runs in a touchdown after intercepting a pass thrown by Noah Johnson #0 of the South Florida Bulls during the second half at Raymond James Stadium on October 23, 2020 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FLORIDA – OCTOBER 23: Zaven Collins #23 of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane runs in a touchdown after intercepting a pass thrown by Noah Johnson #0 of the South Florida Bulls during the second half at Raymond James Stadium on October 23, 2020 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) /

No. 1 – Zaven Collins, LB, Tulsa

A redshirt junior, only given one Division I offer as a high school senior, Zaven Collins can finally be “the leader in the middle” that Ron Rivera has alluded to needing in the past.

Zaven Collins, winner of the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, an award given to the nation’s best defensive player, has been a workhorse since entering the program in 2018. His play on the field has consistently improved, as he projects to be a surefire first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.

Standing 6’4″, 260 pounds, Collins is built to play linebacker for the Washington Football Team. By linebacker, I mean he can play anywhere and succeed. He’s built best for MIKE, but he has a skill set that matches any prototype at his position. He’s versatile enough to play spurts of Tampa 2 in coverage at MIKE, yet can play the run and force stops like a high-level SAM.

Collins was asked to play coverage as well as stop the run at Tulsa. In 2020, he played 802 of his 2,042 snaps in coverage while playing 1,083 of those snaps as a run defender.

His time at Tulsa proved he can be a solid coverage LB, as he graded according to Pro Football Focus at 81.6 as a coverage linebacker on average for his career. While as a run defender, he graded at an average of 70.5, which proves he can be asked to do multiple things at the position.

Collins forced a total of 116 stops while at Tulsa. In addition to his stout tackling and stopping ability, he forced nine PBU’s while intercepting five passes and holding opposing QBs to a 59.1 NFL adjusted passer rating when targeted.

Linebacker is a position that the Washington Football Team needs a young, solidified upgrade for in the future. Collins played a mix of MIKE and WILL linebacker this past season, but his options are endless in this scheme.

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He’s a chess piece, another versatile defensive player that fits anywhere on this defense. He’s worthy of all first-round consideration, a guy that would be a great fit and a great pick for the Washington Football Team in 2021.

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