Cincinnati Athletics
Alabama Game Week Scouting Report: Cincinnati Defensive End Myjai Sanders
The numbers may not reflect it, but the key player to watch on the Cincinnati defensive front seven is Myjai Sanders.
The senior defensive end stunned a lot of people when he decided to return to Cincinnati last year, instead of leaving early for the NFL.
But his return, along with quarterback Desmond Ridder, were the first important steps toward the Bearcats running the table and making the College Football Playoff. With the leaders on both sides of the ball in tow, five other key players: linebacker Darrian Beavers, defensive tackle Curtis Brooks, defensive tackle Marcus Brown, cornerback Coby Bryant, and linebacker Joel Dublanko elected to use their additional year of eligibility from COVID-19 to return for another season as well.
Did Sanders improve his draft stock? It's tough to tell, especially since teams started to scheme him more. Both are reflected in that his sacks and tackles for a loss have dropped so far. But not his tackles, as he's topped 30 for the third-straight year.
Overall, Sanders has 34 tackles, including 6.5 for a loss and 2.5 sacks, five passes broken up and 10 hurries this season.
His length and impressive hands helped make him a two-time all-conference selection, and a bonafide NFL prospect.
Myjai Sanders
Jersey: No. 21
Position: Defensive end
Height: 6-5
Weight: 255
DOB: 7/12
Draft eligible: 2022
Hometown: Jacksonville, Florida
High School: Camden County
Background
Composite three-star recruit who prepped at Camden County High School for Coach Bob Sphire during his senior season. ESPN.com ranked him among the Top-75 defensive ends in the 2018 class. He earned a spot on the All-Region 1-7A First Team on the defensive line. Sanders was named to the Brunswick News’ Coastal Georgia All-Area Football Team at outside linebacker, where he had 39 tackles, three sacks and seven quarterback hurries. He played two years at Raines High School in Jacksonville, Florida for Coach Deran Wiley. Was tabbed as an All-Gateway Conference selection in 2016. Sanders recorded 40 tackles, five TFL’s and three sacks in just nine games as a junior. Chose Cincinnati from a list of nearly 20 reported offers, including Kentucky, UCF and USF.
Pros
Sanders offers a combination of speed, power, and length to the table on the defensive line. His hands are extremely strong at the line of scrimmage to grab, rip and pull opposing lineman on his path to wrecking a play in the backfield. He is sufficient as a pass rusher and run defender, giving him three-down ability. Because of his effort and hard-working nature on the field, there is no need to take him off the field in any situation. His length and power allow him to extend and gain leverage fairly consistently. Sanders shows a lot of hustle in pursuit to chase guys down from the backside of the play. Because of his length, he has a large tackle radius. Has a lot of success setting up outside to attack the inside of the offensive line with a violent rip or eloquent swim move over the top.
Cons
Sanders definitely lacks some initial explosiveness off the line that hinders his ability to push the pocket. He rarely attacks the outside shoulder in his pass rush plan, may lack the quickness and speed to get around the edge. Struggles at times to finish plays off because of the lack of stop/start ability and changing direction in the backfield. Sanders is still a little too thin to play with his hand in the dirt at the next level for three downs. Against better competition, that fact showed up a little more and more with how his lack of upper body strength was taken advantage of.
Summary
Myjai Sanders has been a prominent player at defensive end for the Cincinnati Bearcats for multiple seasons now. His physical profile is something to be excited about with his length, speed, and power out of the blocks. The most impressive thing in his game is his strong hands to extend and rip off of blocks. His current frame is at a tweener stage where he either needs to bulk up more to develop his strength at the line of scrimmage or add more speed and dynamism to his game to be more of a threat around the edge. Right now, Sanders is a solid all-around player who sets the tone with his toughness.
Grades
Current value 7.7/Potential value 8.1
BamaCentral
We'll start with some perspective. Alabama has two defensive linemen who are the same height as Sanders, 6-5, but they both weigh 285 pounds: LaBryan Ray and Justin Eboigbe. Every other Crimson Tide defensive lineman in the playing rotation is bigger. In a game like this, 30-plus pounds can make a huge difference, especially when it comes to setting edges. Sanders is closer is size to Crimson Tide freshman linebacker Dallas Turner, who has the advantage of being the fourth man when he puts his hand down. Cincinnati likes to go with a 3-3-5 formation, or even a 3-2-6 (which ironically is an area code for Cincinnati), sort of what Ole Miss had this season. But the Rebels couldn't match Alabama physically up front and running back Brian Robinson ran all over them. Yes, Sanders ran a 4.56 40-yard dash last offseason and 4.10 in the shuttle. He also had a 10-2 broad jump and 35-inch vertical. But how's he going to do when having some of the Crimson Tide offensive linemen bearing down on him, especially if it's a tackle like All-American Evan Neal (6-7, 350)?
SEE ALSO: Myjai Sanders Mic'd up at Bearcats Practice
As part of the buildup to the College Football Playoff semifinal, BamaCentral will profile numerous Cincinnati players as the Crimson Tide returns to the Cotton Bowl. Also check out NFL Draft Bible for more evaluations.
