Examining What DL McTelvin Agim Brings to Broncos' Run Defense
When the Denver Broncos drafted McTelvin Agim, it was largely due to his ability to generate interior pressure. Agim is quite skilled in that department and with some added development, he could end up being a good interior pass rusher at the next level.
There is one concern to Agim's game and it comes against the run. However, digging through his tape — this time to find specific plays to highlight as a pass rusher — I came upon three plays that jumped out as a run defender. Since that is his concern, join me as I drill down into these three plays to glean his potential in that area.
Play 1: Explosive Get-Off
Agim is lined up as a 1-technique shading the right shoulder of the center. You can see how quickly Agim fires off the snap (his get-off is a major boost to his play as a pass rusher as well). He is so quick that the center can’t get into proper position to shut down Agim’s attack and he just drives through the shoulder, spinning the center to his knees.
The right tackle is pulling to the left and runs into Agim and is faced with two choices; stop and take Agim or follow through with his assignment. Either way, Agim has caused a huge problem for the offense as he is in the backfield before the running back even gets the ball. With no one in his way, Agim closes on the RB and makes the tackle.
One of Agim’s strengths when watching him prior to the draft was his quickness off the snap. It led to a lot of problems for interior offensive linemen as a pass rusher and this play is one that caused all sorts of problems as a run defender.
Play 2: Balance Through Contact
On this play, Agim is a 3-tech lined up against the RG. Both the RG and RT are pulling, and the center is tasked with getting ahead of Agim and shutting him down. The problem for Ole Miss is Agim is much quicker than their center and is in the backfield without barely getting touched by the center. The center does trip Agim up, but he is able to keep his balance and chases down the ball-carrier, making the tackle.
One again, Agim's quickness shows up as a run defender. In the NFL, wins like this won’t come so easily as the majority of the centers have more lateral quickness, but the better trait here is Agim's balance. There are going to be more shots at his legs in the NFL, so Agim keeping his balance is important to build upon for the NFL.
Play 3: More Than Enough Power
Like the last play, Agim is lined up as the 3-tech again facing off against the RG. This play is more difficult for him as the RT is tougher than the center and gets squared up against Agim, thanks to some help from the RG.
Agim gets high with his pad level but uses his strength to get the RT on his heels and drives him back right into the RB. As a result, Agim is able to grab hold of the RB and make the tackle, with the RT still hanging on him.
Strength is important, obviously, for defensive linemen and Agim showed here he has plenty of it. It isn’t easy for linemen to drive blockers back when their pad level is so high. The RT won the leverage battle but still gave up so much ground.
Agim made this a little more difficult and could have kept his pad level lower, but he still showed the power to drive through blockers. He isn’t always going to win with his explosiveness off the snap in the NFL.
The Takeaway
Agim has what it takes as a pass rusher but his run defense was a concern prior to the draft. Not every play in this game was a win for him, but these three reveal traits that can easily help his transition to the NFL — both as a pass rusher and a run defender.
Explosiveness off the snap? Check.
Balance to sustain his chance and get by cut blocks? Check.
Strength to drive through blockers? Check.
The traits are there but development is needed. Undoubtedly, Denver got itself an interior pass rusher with loads of potential.
Follow Erick on Twitter @ErickTrickel and @MileHighHuddle.
