Calijah Kancey

Pos: IDL

School: Pitt

Ht. 6’0″ 

Wt. 280

Games Watched: Virginia, West Virginia, UCLA

One Liner: Undersized defensive lineman who wins with explosiveness, power, and athleticism.

Strengths: 

  • Very good first step/get off. Kancey bursts off the line and has an efficient first step that gains great ground off the snap. Kancey generates great speed and power which he uses as momentum to drive blockers back into the backfield.
  • Very good strength. Kancey plays with great strength for his size. He generates excellent shock and pushback with his arms and has the upperbody frame to absorb blocks and contact and remain in good positioning. 
  • Very good aggression/motor. Kancey plays with violence and urgency from his get off, and has active hands with constant leg drive to be competitive consistently off the snap. He is a high effort player, who’s motor usually is always hot with high intensity. 
  • Very good quickness. Kancey has great short area quickness and twitch for a player his size. He has fluid movements and isn’t choppy with his feet. He plays with good burst and has the twitch to beat players with an inside rush move. 
  • Good rush arsenal. Kancey has a solid rush arsenal in which he flashes a powerful swim move and other finesse moves from time to time. He will obviously need to make this trait more consistent at the next level, but the flashes are a positive sign. 

Weaknesses:

  • Poor frame. Kancey has a tweener frame, and is not nearly fluid enough to be an outside rusher with flattening potential and the power to keep up with taller, stronger tackles. Kancey may be eaten up by combo and zone blocks at the next level against the run, but may be twitchy enough to win as a pass rusher in the pros. 
  • Marginal anchor. Kancey has good upper body strength and is tough and competitive enough to drive his legs consistently against bigger blockers, however his anchor may falter and give up against the run. He should not be asked to be a two gapper where he will have to spend time holding up blocks before attacking, as this will throw off his leverage and neutralize him out of the play.

Overall Assessment:  Calijah Kancey is a high intensity rusher who has extremely high upside traits. However, Kancey’s size is a genuine concern, and will limit him from being a versatile run defender at the next level. Kancey’s current skill set bodes well for a 3t or a 4i pass rusher, but it remains to be seen if he can improve his lower body strength to hold up on plays where his initial get off or first rush move is mirrored and countered by the blocker. Kancey’s tenacity and motor will keep him on the field as a pass rusher, but he possesses a relatively low floor with high ceiling. 

Scheme Fit: One gapping 3t/4i in an even front

Pick Projection: Top 32

Grade: 6.48