It’s no secret the Patriots are in the market for adding young edge rushers through the draft. The Patriots have plenty of potential Day 3 options to look at, including Texas A&M’s Daeshon Hall. Hall has experience playing a 5, 7, and 9 technique end position in addition to outside linebacker. At 266 pounds, he ran a 4.76 40 (1.67 10), 4.38 5-10-5 shuttle, and a 7.03 3-cone. Those numbers will likely rise him from middle of Day 3 to the start of Day 3.
Hall played on the opposite end from Consensus Top 3 pick Myles Garrett, who often got extra attention. Hall has plenty of room to add muscle to his 6’5” 266 frame and has experience lining up as an interior rusher. His length inside (35+” arms) and moldable traits could make for a disruptor inside similar to how the Patriots use Trey Flowers and Chandler Jones in the past.
Hall didn’t have a great year of production his senior year in terms of sacks (4.5), but did record 13 TFL and 12 hurries. In the last two seasons, he has 27.5 TFL and 11.5 sacks, so there is a bit more production at the position than just one year as well.
Vs. Tennessee 2016
Vs. Auburn 2016
Patriots Fit: Hall would be most likely red-shirting his first season in New England save for some Special Teams work. He’s still very much unpolished as a prospect compared to Trey Flowers two seasons ago. In Year 2, Hall could take over the strong-side end role and bookend with Flowers. Hall’s length also makes him an appealing option to kick inside on obvious passing situations and has enough bend to stay outside when the Patriots use a 3-man rush.
Pro Comp: Chandler Jones. Hall has similar combine numbers to the former Patriot defensive end and a similar game. Jones came into the draft as a much more polished prospect than Hall. Even with Myles Garrett getting a lot of attention, Hall didn’t put up big numbers, although 50 tackles, 13 TFL, and 4.5 sacks isn’t horrible. A player with 2 years of solid production in the SEC (27.5 TFL, 11.5 sacks) will get him drafted early on Day 3, right around the same range as Flowers two seasons ago. Teams will take a chance on his length. I have him going near the top of the 4th round.