We have learned over the last few seasons in the NFL that interior pressure against the quarterback is perhaps more important than it’s ever been before. As offenses are throwing more out of quick game concepts — one- and three-step drop passes and RPOs — there are times when, no matter how great the edge defender may be, he simply doesn’t have time to affect the quarterback with his array of moves. So, the closer you are in a straight line to the quarterback, the better chance you have of actually creating problems for that enemy offense.
Last season, Dexter Lawrence of the New York Giants was by far the league’s best true interior pass-rusher. Per Sports Info Solutions, Lawrence totaled five sacks, 12 quarterback hits, and 14 quarterback hurries from the 0-tech (head over the center) and 1-tech (to either shoulder of the center) positions. Jarran Reed of the Seattle Seahawks, Kobie Turner of the Los Angeles Rams, Bryan Bresee of the New Orleans Saints, and Michael Pearce of the Baltimore Ravens also had stellar seasons when asked to create pressure right up the middle.
For the Browns last season, as effective as their defensive fronts were, that up-the-middle pressure was a bit tougher to come by. Dalvin Tomlinson led the team with two quarterback hits and five quarterback hurries in those 0-tech and 1-tech roles; no other Browns defender had more than two total pressures.
Enter Ohio State’s Michael Hall Jr., the 6′ 2¾”, 290-pound defensive tackle selected by the Browns with the 54th overall pick in the second round of the 2024 draft. Last season for the Buckeyes, Hall had two sacks, five quarterback hits, and 22 quarterback hurries in 228 pass-rushing snaps, which is a pretty good pressure rate for a guy who spent 65% of his snaps inside the guards. More importantly for the Browns’ purposes, Hall had one sack, four quarterback hits, and 17 quarterback hurries aligned at either 0- or 1-tech. And he could get those sacks and pressures with technique and raw strength.
Michael Hall Jr.'s stutter/swim move is something no center wants to deal with. pic.twitter.com/37TL8rFOuV
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) July 9, 2024
Michael Hall Jr. can be tricky and technical with his hands and feet, but he's also capable of leveraging a center right back into the pocket. Hall could give the @Browns a level of quick interior pressure they didn't have in 2023. pic.twitter.com/svI6l5EdRP
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) July 9, 2024
“Yeah, pass rush is a premium no matter what,” Browns Director of Player Personnel Dan Saganey said of Hall after Cleveland had secured the player. “I mean, we see the guys that hit the market this year even signed extensions recently at the D tackle position. It’s a highly paid, highly coveted position. And taking a guy like Mike, very good quickness, twitch power, and has really the ideal skill set for what we’re looking for out of a 3-technique, when you see guys like that, they kind of jump off the tape. In college, a lot of college teams play odd fronts or play three guys where it’s, you have more DBs than linebackers on the field. But a guy like Mike really was identified pretty early here as a guy that’s a perfect scheme fit for us and fits what we do. And again, it is something that we’re always looking to add wherever we can.”
It’s interesting that Saganey identified Hall as an ideal 3-tech. He has the traits to disrupt from outside the guards, but based on his college tape, I might err on moving him inside — especially on third down — and letting him hunt. That’s where Hall could fill in one blank on an otherwise dominant defensive line.