A lot of fans want to know why teams are passing on Stanford LB Chase Thomas?
Here’s the deal. Thomas is one of those guys who was a terrific college player, but he just doesn’t project well to the NFL. He was a good 3-4 pass rushing LB for Stanford, but is undersized at 6-3, 244. Most people want a 3-4 OLB to be 260-270 pounds.
Chase ran 4.87 at the Combine, 4.80 at his Pro Day. That’s slow for 244. Eagles OT Lane Johnson is faster. Thomas did 21 reps, which is solid, but not special strength. His 3-cone time of 7.17 is okay. His VJ of 33.5 inches is okay. There is nothing compelling about him athletically.
Watch the Senior Bowl practices and you see Thomas is awkward when he’s playing in a 4-3 offense. He really looks lost if he’s not attacking off the edge. The problem is that he doesn’t have the size or athleticism to project well to being an NFL pass rusher.
I understand Thomas was a really good player at Stanford. We’ve seen many tweener guys over the years that didn’t have a home at DE or LB and couldn’t make it in the NFL. Jason Chorak from Washington is the first guy I remember. He played in the mid-90s. Was dominant in the Shrine Game after a great college career, but failed in the NFL.
Part of Thomas success at Stanford was based on effort and intensity. You cannot count on that in the NFL. There must be the right size/speed/skill combination to project a player to be successful in pro football. I actually think Thomas might be best suited to playing ILB in the 3-4. His size fits there. Still, it is a projection to a new position. I wish Thomas luck, but I wouldn’t bet on him becoming the player that his fans think he can be.
lol, botfail?
In college you’re competing against average athleticism so if you’re an average athlete yourself (like Thomas) you can still compete and have a good run if the circumstances are right.
In NFL every player you face is a superb athlete and if you’re just average then your skills and effort won’t get you far.
Could he be a special teams ace though?