2022 NFL Draft Profile: EDGE David Ojabo

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David Ojabo was born in Nigeria and then moved to Aberdeen, Scotland during his youth. Eventually, he moved to the United States and attended Blair Academy in Blairstown, New Jersey for high school. He originally played basketball and was not accustomed to American football until his junior year. Ojabo produced 35 tackles, six sacks and two forced fumbles in seven games that year. Then as a senior, he registered 33 tackles, 8.5 sacks, eight tackles for loss and one forced fumble.

Ojabo was recognized as a member of 2018 Mid-Atlantic Prep League first team all-conference. Entering college football, he was rated as a four-star recruit by 247Sports. He was also ranked as the 18th best strong-side defensive end and as the fourth best prospect coming out of the state of New Jersey.

After joining the Michigan Wolverines program, Ojabo did not play as a freshman in 2019. He appeared in 20 total games for the school over the last two seasons, starting in eight of those. Ojabo had 36 total tackles (25 solo), 12 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, five forced fumbles, three pass deflections and one fumble recovery. He was recognized as a consensus first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2021. To boot, Ojabo received a second-team All-American selection by the Associated Press for 2021.

Strengths

Hand Counters: For being still a raw and inexperienced football player, Ojabo has quite the wide array of pass rush counter moves. His bull rush and swim move may be the most effective of them all currently. As a bull rusher, Ojabo is able to get his weight on top of opposing blockers, in a sense. He will extend his arms and climb up the field with powerful steps. When using the swim move, Ojabo can get at a uniquely low angle and then climbs under the pads and arms of opposing blockers.

There are a few other items to take account of here. When rushing with speed, he still has patience out of the blocks and uses a combination of a slingshot move and a hesitation move. His ability to bend his quite impressive, as we will touch on in a moment. But, Ojabo is quite instinctual and wastes no time in working towards the blocker’s inside shoulder or crossing their face. His rip move is also ahead of the curve, so to speak, and will allow him to battle against nasty, powerful blockers early on during his NFL career.

Flexibility: His ability to dip and bend around the corner is quite impressive for a couple of reasons. Ojabo provides a solid mix of short area burst and change of direction skills. In addition, the Michigan product is able to control both his acceleration and deceleration quite efficiently. There is also some more potential to build off of with that last item. Ojabo has a keen ability to flatten and compact his frame in tight spaces. At the same time, he will be able to provide early resistance, especially against blockers that pose extra length. Some may discount his ability to win with power. However, Ojabo carries that and enforces it rather effectively.

First Step Explosiveness:

You do not see this on every rep, because there is times where he uses an aforementioned hesitancy move. There can occasionally be some false steps or stutter steps as well. Nonetheless, Ojabo wins plenty of reps when turning on the afterburners. He is able to gain depth in the backfield before the blocker is fully out of their stance. As a result, opponents have a difficult time of getting their hands into his chest. Ojabo can reduce rush angles, eat up space and break down pass sets all at a rapid rate. Once again, that is quite astounding, given that he has only played football for roughly five years.

Weaknesses

Run Defending: This is easily the biggest area of improvement for Ojabo entering the NFL. Despite his elite hand counters, the difference in pass rush reps and run defending reps does not allow him to attack the same exact way. Deconstructing from blocks is a work in progress. You see him try to get away with quick, hard jabs, so to speak. Yet, Ojabo is not accustomed to navigating against opposing blockers, especially when blockers are attempting to beat him to a spot. Holding contain and setting a firm edge will also need to be improved during his early transition into the NFL.

Versatility: There is not enough tread on his tires yet to trust him in moving around the defensive formation. You always hear about situations mattering so much for incoming NFL rookies. For Ojabo, there will likely need to be some sort of designed pass rush plans for him. He is not incapable of being a three-down defender at the moment. But in the meantime, do not ask him to consistently react and play sideline-to-sideline. There are also going to be moments where Ojabo is likely best suited to hang as a weak-side only player.

Experience: This is such a cliched or forced answer, to say the least. Nonetheless, Ojabo has only played football for five years. His production in 2021 was extremely impressive. There are reasonable expectations that should be had by whatever team drafts him, however. Teams that blitz the quarterback more often and disguise multiple defensive fronts will likely be better for him. Given where he is currently at, there are plenty of tools within his toolbox to like. Ojabo just needs more seasoning, fine-tuning and a more well-rounded technique, in order to be a consistent three-down defender.

Ideal Role

As we have stated briefly, teams should not hesitate or be scared of only using him as a pass rush specialist early on. The best scheme fit for him will likely be with a defense that uses him as a 3-4 outside linebacker. On top of that, having a defensive coordinator who is not afraid to blitz often will likely be ideal. Ojabo could also benefit by going to a team that will look to consistently get more speed on the field as a whole.

Potential Fits

In a loaded class of edge rushers, it is anyone’s guess as to what order the pass rushers will come off the board. It is not too crazy to envision Ojabo as a top ten pick, though. If he is in that top ten both the New York Giants and the Atlanta Falcons make sense. In the teens, look for the Minnesota Vikings, the Baltimore Ravens and the Philadelphia Eagles to be interested as well.

Be on the lookout for more FPC 2022 NFL draft profiles in the coming weeks. For more great sports and NFL content, stay tuned to Full Press Coverage.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.