Nazir Stackhouse played 503 snaps. Warren Brinson played 405 snaps. Those snaps on the interior defensive line are now off to the NFL. Christen Miller, the highest-graded returning defensive player, will see his snaps increase. Who's going to consistently be beside him though? Jordan Hall, true freshman Elijah Griffin and others will battle to be that player, but based on last season's snap count and production, one-time South Carolina Gamecock Xzavier McLeod is next up.
Numbers
In part due to injuries, McLeod was able to earn consistent snaps, especially in the latter part of the season. All told, he played in 11 of 14 games and logged 158 snaps. He ended the season with the following PFF grades:
- 74.0 overall grade
- 78.4 run defense grade
- 71.1 tackling grade
- 58.2 pass rush grade
He finished with just three total quarterback pressures on 87 pass rush snaps, with all three coming in the season's final four games.
Strengths
McLeod has shown himself very capable at holding the point of attack, stacking and shedding as a run defender.
In most cases, he's also been stout and hard to move against double teams (two clips below). While he occassionally plays a little too high, he compensates for it with strength and good hand positioning.
Lastly, McLeod will never be accused of loafing. Effort is potentially his biggest strength. He constantly fights, even on reps he doesn't cleanly win (second clip below).
Areas of Improvement
McLeod's biggest area of improvement is his 'get off,' or quickness once the ball is snapped. In the clip above, him being a count late off the ball lead to the offense getting the edge.
As an aside, watching CJ Allen close on the running back in the clip above looks a lot like another linebacker that wore #3.
Can McLeod be an impact rusher on the interior? Not likely unless his hand usage to beat blocks gets signficantly better. But can he consistently push the pocket and be disruptive like the two clips above? Yes, that is what he needs to do at a minimum.
Ceiling
Nazir Stackhouse was a high level, space eating run defender the past three seasons. His run defense grade those years were 86.1, 74.8 and 83.1.
Can McLeod play 400-plus snaps while maintaining the effort level he shows and be that same level run defender? The current evidence says so, and if he develops a little as a rusher that would be the gravy on top.
