Pitt DT Calijah Kancey Worthy Gamble to Former NFL Executive

Former NFL executive Mike Tannenbaum has some concerns about Pitt Panthers defensive tackle Calijah Kancey, but the production is too much to ignore.

PITTSBURGH -- At this point in the draft process, the concerns about Pitt Panthers defensive tackle have been repeated ad nauseum. He is undersized and short with sub-par arm length compared to other professional defensive tackles. 

Those concerns are real to former NFL executive Mike Tannenbaum, who now works as an NFL Draft analyst for ESPN, and they make finding the right spot in this draft for Kancey difficult. It's easy to make the comparison to another undersized Pitt defensive tackle difficult. 

"Candidly," Tannenbaum said. "I'm glad I don't have to make a decision on him. Because look, he's had incredible production and the comp is always going to be Aaron Donald because of the size, the height, the lack of arm length and the school, but he's not Aaron Donald. Aaron Donald is one of one."

But just because Kancey isn't Donald doesn't mean he'll be a bust, just maybe not the slam-dunk first-rounder that many of Tannenbaum's peers in the draft analyst community believe him to be. Tannenbaum simply sees him as a top-40 player as opposed to a top-32 player. 

Tannenbaum believes the Minnesota Vikings, who pick 23rd overall in the first round, have needs that align with Kancey's skills and one of those teams willing to reach for Kancey in the first round of this week's NFL Draft. 

"I think when it's all said and done, he had too much production at Pitt to ignore," Tannenbaum said. "So I do think he'll be a productive pro but again, his lack of height and arm length is a concern."

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