80 Prospects in 80 Days: Tulane DE Cameron Sample

Each day leading up to the 2021 NFL Draft, we will take a look at prospects that should be on the Carolina Panthers' radar. We will look at roughly eleven prospects per round to give a better idea of potential draftees beyond just the first round.

Here's our schedule for the next 80 days:

1st Round: Feb. 8th - Feb. 21st

2nd Round: Feb. 22nd - Mar. 6th

3rd Round: Mar. 7th - Mar. 18th

4th Round: Mar. 19th - Mar. 28th

5th Round: Mar. 29th - Apr. 7th

6th Round: Apr. 8th - Apr. 17th

7th Round: Apr. 18th - Apr. 27th

Prospect No. 49: DE Cameron Sample

College: Tulane

Height: 6'3" Weight: 280 lbs

Draft range: 4th round

Analysis: Sample is a very highly productive player that has a very unique build. When you watch him play, he's got the strength to be able to handle playing inside but he's slightly undersized. The only thing is, I don't think his future is as an edge rusher. Interior pass rusher? Sure. However, I think he'll be more of a situational/rotational guy instead of having a three-down role.

The one area that tends to get overlooked with Sample is his run-stopping ability. He tallied 20.5 tackles for loss during his time at Tulane and made several tackles at the line of scrimmage, helping shut things down quickly. If he can prove that he can help stop the run at the next level, he'll have an opportunity to expand his role.

Analysis from the NFL Draft Bible on Sports Illustrated:

Big and powerful with all sorts of alignment possibilities, Sample is a part of one of the more underrated defensive end duos in all of college football. Sample is a big-bodied edge who boasts a ton of power for the position, showcasing outstanding ability to convert speed to power as a pass rusher. Sample does an outstanding job setting the edge in the run game showing some violent hands and bad intentions on a snap-to-snap basis. With his body type and power, Sample offers a large amount of alignment versatility on obvious passing downs and poses a very tough matchup athletically for opposing offensive linemen. Sample is also scheme diverse, offering inside-outside opportunities in various alignments. He is an aware player who recognizes and diagnoses quickly. Sample is not overly bendy or flexible and could fall victim to the dreaded “tweener” label. He may not offer much chance to stay on the edge on a full-time basis. For a team that values the ability to work inside-out, Sample is the type of versatile defensive lineman who will carve out an important niche as a chess piece along the defensive front.

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