Ask Farrell: Will Quinnen Williams be in the mix for the No. 1 pick?
MORE ASK FARRELL: Could Jarrett Stidham rise in a weak draft for QBs?
ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper, Jr., said on a conference call last week that three prospects are in the “super elite” category for the upcoming draft and all three happen to be defensive linemen.
“If you really look at the super elite, it would be Josh Allen, Quinnen Williams and Nick Bosa,” Kiper said.
“Quinnen Williams, with the year he had, he’s the closest thing to Aaron Donald that you saw this year in college. He was in that backfield, he was destroying double teams, he was pursuing to the sidelines, he’s a hard-working kid, hustles. He put together an unbelievable year for Alabama. Interior pressure bothers the quarterback more than anything.”
Williams, who was a four-star prospect coming out of Birmingham (Ala.) Wenonah, finished with 70 tackles and seven sacks this season for the Crimson Tide. He led the team with 18.5 tackles for loss and tied for the team lead with Christian Miller at 12 quarterback hurries.
At times throughout the season, Williams was unstoppable up the middle for Alabama and this was against elite competition all year long.
FARRELL'S TAKE:
We ask Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell if he agrees with Kiper’s assessment of Williams being the closest thing to Donald in this draft and if that’s the case, should the Alabama defensive lineman be considered for the No. 1 overall pick or are Bosa or Allen more surefire bets as edge rushers?
“If you could guarantee that Williams will be as dominant as Donald, then you take him No 1 overall but the safer play is one of the edge rushers. Bosa is one of the can't-miss prospects in this draft class and he has a great chance of going No 1 overall. Allen is a freaky hybrid who can do so many things. Taking a defensive tackle No 1 overall is risky to me unless he’s the next Donald or Bruce Smith, so I’d take Bosa ahead of Williams and follow that with Allen.”
