NFL Draft Film Breakdown: Is Jer'Zhan 'Johnny' Newton a Game Changer on Defense?

Should the Cincinnati Bengals target him with the No. 18 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft?

Author:
Mike Santagata
Publish date:
Feb 8, 2024 8:30 AM EST

In this story:

Jer’Zhan “Johnny” Newton is a top defensive tackle prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft.

He won the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, was named a consensus All-American, and was a team captain for Illinois in 2023. He was also an All-American in his sophomore season, compiling 13 sacks and 23 tackles-for-loss combined over the past two years.

His 18 career sacks ties the school record for a defensive tackle. He tied for the NCAA lead in pressures from the defensive tackle position last season (44). He even blocked four kicks, despite being undersized listed at 6-2, 295 pounds.

His has elite movement ability, hand usage, and play strength. Let's take a closer look at him as a prospect:

Where He Excels

Newton has an explosive get off out of his stance. This is possibly the most important trait to possess as a pass rusher. It showed up in the run game as well because Illinois asked him to penetrate and get upfield more often than some teams. He was disruptive and an issue for opposing offenses because of his explosive get off.

He also has a variety of moves that he can win with—both on the inside or around the outside. His two most common and effective moves to beat his opponent are a swipe and a club combined with a swim move.

What makes him an elite pass rushing prospect is not only the get off and moveset, but his ability to bull rush through the offensive lineman as well. He can win inside, outside, or through the opposing player which is exactly what you’re looking for in terms of a pass rusher.

Not only does he have all of this pass rushing ability, but he also sets himself up for success with shimmies and jab steps to disrupt timing and to get offensive linemen out of position.

Newton has a good feel for when he has lost with his initial move and effortlessly counters with an effective secondary move. Stopping his first move is only part of the battle, as he continues to fight and try to win.

Newton has shown the ability to lock guys out and hold point in the run game. He makes a lot of his tackles-for-losses by going backdoor, but he also showed that he can handle playing in a system that requires him to play slower.

Areas of Concern

He was inconsistent in his ability to take on double teams. More often than not it appeared that he would get moved off of his spot and pushed around when he was doubled in the run game.

Despite being a little bit undersized, his pad level hurts him. He commonly jumps straight up out of his stance which saps his power and makes it harder for his play strength to show.

He is undersized and lacks length. The length issue causes him to get swallowed up or unable to disengage from blocks at times. It's something you most likely just have to live with if you draft him.

Overall Thoughts

Newton looks to be the best pass rushing interior defensive lineman in this draft.

He has the ability to win in all three ways. He can go outside, inside, or through the offensive lineman that he’s facing. This is something every elite pass rusher has. Not only does he have the movement ability and strength to do that, but he has already shown to be pretty good with his moves and counters. He can win with his swipes and club swim combinations at a high clip. He also sets up everything which shows an advanced understanding of how to take down his opposition.

His hand placement and timing can be inconsistent at times on his moves, so there is still room to grow in this area. While he has the play strength for an effective bull rush, his pad level hurts him. He needs to come off of the ball lower so that he can win the leverage battle and drive offensive linemen backward more frequently with his bull rush. Newton appears to have good bend for a 300 pound guy. He's shown the ability to turn the corner. He’s always moving toward the quarterback. His secondary and counter moves will probably help him to come clean late and pick up a few extra sacks every year. There’s a likely chance that he is a plus pass rusher as a rookie, with room to grow.

As a run defender, it’s not as clean. He has shown the ability to beat back blocks with just his get off and should be an effective slant guy because of this as well. He also showed a good feel for when he could go backdoor against zone blocking to make TFLs. The ability to lock out any single block is also impressive upper body strength.

He showed plenty of this at the collegiate level. His ability to take on double teams needs to improve though. As a shorter guy and he can win those reps by dropping to a knee and staying low. At the NFL level, he will be attacked with double teams fairly often. He needs to improve so he is not displaced but also so he can protect his linebackers. The lack of length will show up as he cannot get off of a block. At times he can use his upper body strength when this happens to reset the line of scrimmage and drive his opposition into the backfield, but that is not consistent. His hand placement also hurts him once in a while when he goes to lock a guy out. He can miss high with his hands as he gets high with his pads.

Scheme Fit

Newton fits best into an even front scheme where he can pin his ears back to penetrate and get upfield. If put into an odd front he should be paired with a high end nose tackle. He fits any pass rush whether it’s blitz and slant heavy or a pass rush that relies on winning one-on-one.

Draft Grade

Mid First Round

Pro Comparison

Javon Hargrave

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