What position would you like Striker to play in the NFL??? He's too small to be an edge rusher at the pro level but doesn't play the run well enough to line up inside. I really don't see a fit for him.
That was my impression. His best plays are off the edge. He shows good burst, and some decent dip and hand work. But he's way too small to play OLB in 3-4.
In considering him as one of those ILB tweeners, beside the question of stoutness against the run, there's the 4.8 time in the 40. This is a problem with a lot of these small-stature college LBs, even those who actually played regularly inside. They can look faster than they are. The college game is about defending the spread/option so they use guys who are quick-twitch with 20 yd. sideline-to-sideline speed, but put them on the track and their speed hits the wall after 20 yards.
Further, some college ILBs are playing in 4-3 and are not asked to do much in coverage, what I call 180 degree players. Other than dropping in short zone, they play what's in front of them. You never see them flip and run. You just don't know how versatile they'd be in the passing game, and if they don't have speed to work with there are serious question marks.
In the 3-4, if you're going with one of these smaller guys at nickel and/or dime ILB, you want him to be able to run with TEs and RBs to compensate for lack of stoutness in the run game, a meaningful compromise in the 3-4 where ILBs are counted on to clean up the run.
Consider McCarthy's telling comments regarding his own offense attacking the middle of the field. The rule changes gradually layered in year after year make attacking the middle of the field a priority. The same thinking would apply on the flip side in defending those plays. The old school, big hitting ILB or strong safety intimidating in the pass game is being made obsolete. The NFL wants to put an end to players like Burfict.
If you can't defend the middle with intimidation, you need speed and coverage skills instead. If you look at the hybrid guys playing in the NFL, they're by-in-large SSs. They can sting some in the run game, and have the speed to cover TEs, slots and RBs. They're basically box safeties with some coverage skills.
One alternative is the 4-3 OLB conversion. They've often been asked to cover in college. They're asked to defend the edge, which suggests some stoutness that might transition inside.
I think if you're going to look at one of these small college LBs to play in the middle to defend the pass, you should start with 4.6 speed.
and in the Big 12. They play against the spread every week.
