Quay Walker

Vs Run

A very good run defender. He diagnoses Zone runs quickly and positions himself quickly both against blockers in space at the second level and against Reach blocks at the line of scrimmage. He can quickly get into and leverage his gap, matching angles with the Offensive Linemen. He then brings his hand usage into play, which is excellent. Against Zone he will leverage his gap with good hand placement and power, playing consistently with a low pad level to maintain leverage. He’s able to shed his blocker using his play strength and tackle the runner in his gap.

He reads Gap blocks equally quickly, deciphering even complex blocking schemes quickly. He positions well with his lateral agility and explosion to avoid Down blocks and pullers, taking good enough angles to deploy his play strength to maximum effect to get to the ball carrier and make a tackle. Due to his processing, he can also make plays outside his assigned area, he quickly identifies the Running Back path and takes great angles to the football. His range is good and he can run most RBs down for modest gains or less. He always plays with high effort and toughness. When lined up as an OLB on the line of scrimmage, he can set the edge with play strength and physicality, and disengage to tackle the RB.

Coverage

Solid in Zone coverage, he can drop in coverage and read the Quarterback at a high level. He processes quickly and gets off his spot but he doesn’t consistently use his peripheral vision to cover WRs in his zone and maintain proper leverage. Consequently when he breaks on the ball, he can be late and allow the completion. But it does take Quarterbacks with very good ball location and processing themselves to win consistently against him in this area. On swing routes/screens, he can take overly aggressive angles to the football.

He can cover all types of receiver in man coverage in short areas due to his explosion, foot speed, processing and play strength. The play strength is the most important tool in his armoury for staying in phase, if the receiver stays close enough that he can get his hands on, even just initially, then they will find it hard to separate from him. If he can use this to even the playing field then he has the athleticism to match even quicker, smarter slot WRs in short spaces and on hard angle routes. He’s patient too and won’t bite on route salesmanship. He can cover Tight Ends and Running Backs to the flat and downfield and stay in phase preventing a target. When his guy is targeted, he shows good ball skills. He tracks the ball well in all situations and gets his hands on the ball with good timing and placement.

SUMMARY
Very good run defender, uses play strength and processing to beat even bigger blockers and make tackles. Some deficiencies in Zone but can cover in Man due to athleticism

PRODUCTION
SR: 2 Sacks, 5 QB Hits, 1 Batted Ball, 66 Total Tackles, 2 PBUs
JR: 1 Sack, 1 QB Hit, 39 Total Tackles
INJURY: None

RAVENS FIT
Athleticism 5
Intelligence 4
Versatility 4
Grit 5
Scheme 5