Terrell Lewis, DE, Alabama
The Washington D.C native was the Gatorade Player of the Year in 2016 and enrolled at Alabama but he never completely lived up to his 5-star ranking because of the injuries.
In 2017 he missed 10 games due to a upper arm injury, his bad luck with injuries continued in 2018 as he tore his ACL in the summer missing the following season.
The 6-foot-5, 262 pound rusher is a long limed athlete that has room for his body to keep filling out his frame. Lewis plays with burst off the ball and has the athletic ability to bend and flatten around the edge. He has a knack for affecting passing windows by getting his hands up and swatting passes at the line of scrimmage. He is a accurate striker with his hands keeping them inside, extending and attempting to keep blockers off his frame. Against the run he shows the ability to disengage to get to the ball carrier. He is still raw as a rusher and run defender but the baseline traits are there the biggest issues will be his medicals and if he can stay healthy.
Lewis finished his junior year with 31 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, six sacks, and one fumble recovery.
Lewis is another prospect the Cowboys have reportedly been interested in. Lewis would be a good option at pick 51 if they dont address the need in the first round. Lewis could fit as a 4-3 edge or be the designated rusher/Sam linebacker Stephen Jones spoke about on 105.3 The Fan.
What the experts say:
The evaluation requires both projection and a small leap of faith due to durability concerns after he missed most of two full seasons. He needs to fill out his long, athletic build with more girth and muscle to help set stronger edges and hold his ground against downhill rushing attacks. He’s played in just 26 games, so he’s less technically sound than most Alabama defenders at this stage, but he was still productive and showed growth as a player in-season. With more coaching and development as a rusher, he should be able to pair traits with skill to become a future NFL starter, provided his health issues are in the past.
Terrell Lewis is an enticing ball of clay that NFL defensive coordinators will be eager to get their hands on. Injuries have bogged down Lewis’ development and kept him off the field but his blend of first step quickness, length and flashes of penetration provide promise of what can be with more development and reps. Lewis will be a somewhat high risk investment given his injury history and raw skills — best off working into reps slowly while his hand usage and counters are developed.