2023 NFL Draft Profile: LB Dorian Williams

Nick has a look at another linebacker prospect, Dorian Williams out of Tulane.

Author:
Nick Falato
Publish date:
Feb 6, 2023 1:00 PM EST

In this story:

Dorian Williams, LB

Height: 6-foot
Weight: 228 lbs.
Class: Senior
School: Tulane
Arm length: 32 ¾”
Wingspan: 80 ½”
Hand size: 10 ¼”

A former three-star recruit from Indian Land High School in Fort Mill, South Carolina. Williams was the 47th South Carolina recruit and the 176th outside linebacker prospect in the 2019 recruiting cycle, according to 247Sports.

Notables

Dorian Williams had a productive senior season with the Green Wave, totaling 132 tackles, 8.5 for a loss, 54 STOPs, and pairs of interceptions and forced fumbles. Williams was also effectively used on the blitz and had 22 pressures and five sacks. He finished his career at Tulane with 316 tackles, 27 for a loss, 9.5 sacks, 44 pressures, eight passes defended, and pairs of interceptions and forced fumbles.

Williams led the AAC in solo tackles in 2022 & 2020, and he led the conference with 64 solo tackles in 2020 and an impressive 15.5 tackles for a loss that season. Williams attended the 2023 Reese’s Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama.

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Strengths

Well put together player with thick extremities - looks the part
A tall 6-foot
Long solid overall athlete with good linear speed
Provides good overall burst and explosiveness downhill or in pursuit
Closes width quickly with good acceleration - attacks low
Does a solid overall job reading and reacting to pulling OL
Solid overall eye discipline in the tackle box against the run
Good lateral agility to scrape over trash, stay square, and fill
Solid overall tackler with a long tackle radius (10.7% collegiate missed tackle rate)
When his hips are flipped early, he can stride and cover good ground to carry TEs up the seam - Memphis Q2 11:05 1st & 10 INC
Solid ball skills within striking range - will challenge receivers through the catch
He covers ground in his zone drops - solid movement in backpedal
He is a solid blitzer who disguises his pressure well
Blitzed from a variety of alignments - was most successful blitzing within the tackle box, stacked behind an IDL
Strong when moving forward - good play strength when bull-rushing
Coaching staffs may attempt to use him on the EDGE in a hybrid manner
Embarrassed a few WRs attempting to block him in space
Not afraid to get his nose dirty - a tough competitor
Flies around the field with a ton of hustle
Special teams experience

Weaknesses

Long strider who isn’t the quickest changing direction when hips need to open
Appeared to be a bit stiff in the lower half - a bit high-hipped
Trigger downhill is adequate and not always instantaneous
Short-area-quickness in a phone booth leaves some to be desired
Shifty players can make him miss in a phone booth
Stack and shed has to improve
Reads pullers well but struggles to quickly discard blocks
Struggles to shed blocks when blockers get into his chest

Bearcats Q2 4:22, 3rd & 3 18 yd run
Houston OT 15:00, 1st & 10 5 yd run
Southern Miss Q4 4:31, 3rd & 11 11yd run

Questions about his man coverage ability are fair
Adequate awareness in zone coverage - not consistently aware of routes behind him
Needs to improve his reaction to screen passes

Summary

Dorian Williams is fast, big, and has upside as a pass-rusher. He had a productive senior season as one of the leaders of an underrated Tulane defense. There’s a reason why Tulane went 12-2 with an impressive Cotton Bowl victory over USC, and players like Williams contribute to that reason. Williams is not a polished linebacker, nor is he an incredible athlete at the position. However, Williams was well-rounded, assignment-sound, and a reliable overall tackler.

I appreciate Williams ability to read & react to run concepts in the box, specifically power/gap plays, but his inability to consistently shed climbing IOL was an issue that will plague him at the next level. He needs to react quicker to leverage his length or develop ways to avoid the contact but not compromise his position; he’s a bit stiff in his lower half, which may hinder the latter proposition.

Williams is adequate as a spot-drop zone defender. Tulane ran a lot of different coverage concepts; he was adequate in matching routes underneath him but wasn’t always aware of route concepts and what lurked behind him. He’s not the most natural at flipping his hips instantaneously, which could be an issue in the NFL against shiftier RBs. He has the necessary linear speed, but the quick change of direction with opening and closing of the hips leaves some to be desired.

Overall, Williams is a developmental special teams asset with some upside as a two-down starter. I don’t necessarily think he’s limited to one type of scheme, albeit he may best fit in as a WILL initially rather than a MIKE or SAM. I’m interested to see how he tests and if he can improve his overall fluidity in space, specifically when he's not square to the line of scrimmage.

His ability to blitz could be something that helps him earn snaps early on passing downs. His competitive nature will draw attention, and he should be an early-impact player on special team with starter upside eventually. Williams has a high ceiling, but there’s some necessary development that must take place.

GRADE: 5.9