In a weak defensive tackle class there is one player who stands tall amongst the rest. Alabama’s Christian Barmore is an absolute game wrecker from the interior and projects well as a pass rusher at the next level. Barmore has some great rush moves and always seems to end up in the backfield. The last few games of his 2020 tape shows a 10+ sack athlete at the next level but throughout his career he has shown inconsistencies. If Barmore can become a consistently dominant force, then he will immediately become a top five DT and will be spoken of in the same breath as guys like Aaron Donald, Fletcher Cox, and DeForest Buckner.
College: Alabama
Position: 3T Defensive Tackle
Number: #58
Height: 6’5”
Weight: 310 lbs
2019 Stats:11 games played/12 SOLO/26 TOTAL/6 TFL/2 Sacks
2020 Stats: 11 games played/22 SOLO/37 TOTAL/9.5 TFL/8 Sacks
STRENGTHS
1.There are few defensive tackle prospects in the last 5 classes that have as good of a pass rush arsenal as Barmore. His hand counters, chops, rips, pulls, swim moves, club, jab and go, and bull rush, leaves opposing blockers in constant fear of what’s next. He knows every move in the book and has refined his technique to where he can find success with each of them. His pass rush skill set translates perfectly to the NFL and should produce TFLs and sacks early in his career.
2. Barmore shows elite athleticism for a 300 pound lineman. His speed, short area quickness, and flexibility helps him get into the back field on a regular basis. Christian possesses a rare ability to flip his hips and make the TFL time and time again, a trait not many interior defenders are lucky enough to have. His short area quickness also helps him close in on ball carriers and shut the play down faster.
3.Possibly my favorite trait of Barmore’s is his ability to skinny down in a hole. Generally a 300+ pound man knows he is massive and will try to win with power instead of trying to fit his massive frame in a small gap. In a few very rare cases there are interior lineman who can skinny down in a gap and simply slip past a blocker. The only two people I can think of that can also skinny in a gap is DeForest Buckner and Aaron Donald. Getting small in between two blockers is very hard to do at that size and when you combine that with his elite pass rush arsenal and his eye-popping athleticism, that’s a recipe for 10+ sacks annually.
WEAKNESSES
1.The reason Barmore is not being talked about as a top ten prospect is because of his inconsistency. One game he can look like he is going to single handidly wreck a game and the next game he can look like an absolute non-factor. He needs to make his dominant flashes more of a regular occurrence in order to be worth a first round pick. His tape against Arkansas, Notre Dame, and Ohio State is enough to make your mouth water and shows just how dominant this guy can be from the interior.
2.Barmore plays with a high pad level occasionally, and he can sometimes be wiped out when double teamed because of it. If coached correctly in the NFL, he can be taught how to out leverage a double team and continue to blow through gaps in the line. It helps that his size will stack up well with the guards and centers in the NFL so he really just has to be taught leverage and how to play with a lower pad level in the NFL and he’ll do fine.
CONCLUSION
Christian Barmore is an athletic freak who plays with an aggressive penetrating style of defense. When at his best, Barmore is an elite run defender and pass rusher who will single handidly shut down one half of the line. He must show consistency in order to become a star, but regardless, he is bursting at the seams with potential and can become one of the best pass rushers in the league.
Draft Projection: Late First Round
Pro Comparison: DeForest Buckner