Darrell Taylor did a little bit of everything for Tennessee’s defense last season.
Seattle’s first pick of Day 2 of the NFL Draft (No. 48 overall) lined up at right defensive end, left defensive end and outside linebacker, setting the edge, rushing the passer and dropping into coverage from two-and three-point stances.
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“He had a lot of responsibilities,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said.
Taylor’s versatility at 6-foot-4 and 267 pounds is something to behold, but the skill set that compelled the Seahawks to trade up in the second round to take him revolves around just one thing: rushing the passer. Seattle undoubtedly entered this draft with an eye toward selecting a pass rusher or two, and after taking Texas Tech linebacker Jordyn Brooks in the first round Thursday, the Seahawks addressed their biggest need Friday night.
What they got in Taylor (16 1/2 sacks over the past two seasons) is an edge who played in a scheme that didn’t fully use his pass-rushing talents, leaving him somewhat raw in that area. Quite often, rushing the passer wasn’t Taylor’s main objective, even on passing downs. He was asked to hold the edge in the run game and played a lot of pass coverage as a true linebacker (against Kentucky, Taylor covered a running back on a wheel route out of the backfield near the end zone and did it well).
But when Taylor’s assignment involved getting to the quarterback, he would unleash his full arsenal. “He really was effective when you look at him in his third-down rushes when he was really determined,” Carroll said.
When Taylor went up against Georgia tackle Isaiah Wilson, who went 29th overall to Tennessee on Thursday, he spent a lot of the game engaging without being overly aggressive, especially on running downs. For most of the game, Wilson consistently handled Taylor. However, on this play, Taylor got his hand down on the ground and went into full-on pass-rush mode to get after quarterback Jake Fromm.
To set up Wilson, Taylor began by appearing to engage without forcing the issue, as he had done many times previously that night.
At the snap, Taylor went right at Wilson, which caused the tackle to appear to fall into a false sense of security.
But then Taylor made a quick move to the outside, and once Wilson lost leverage, he wasn’t going to catch up.
Taylor was simply too quick around the corner, and Fromm avoided the sack only by wisely getting rid of the football.
While Taylor’s pass-rush skills are what Seattle will bank on to make an immediate impact, his speed allows him to be a threat to run down plays going away from him. On this play, BYU ran a quick pitch sweep to the left, away from Taylor, who was in a two-point stance on the left side of the defensive formation.
BYU’s play concept is fun to watch. The stacked receiver is going to block down on the right defensive end while the left guard and left tackle pull to get outside in front of the running back. The tackle attacks the corner while the guard turns inside to take on a linebacker. The lead receiver goes upfield to block the safety.
On Taylor’s side, the right tackle and right guard block down, leaving nobody to disrupt Taylor at all. That might work against some edge players, but not one of Taylor’s caliber.
At this point, BYU running back Ty’Son Williams has numbers out in front of him. Every defender is accounted for — except, of course, Taylor.
Taylor ends up tracking down Williams before he can break free. However, it must be pointed out that the pulling guard ultimately whiffed on his block of linebacker Henry To’o To’o (No. 11), who got in on the tackle. But that doesn’t discount the speed Taylor displayed by running down a sweep from the other side of the formation.
In Seattle, Taylor will be responsible for less than what he had to contend with at Tennessee. Yes, he could drop into coverage on a zone blitz here and there, but he will be used as a true speed-rushing defensive end at the LEO position formerly manned by Frank Clark and Chris Clemons.
Will Taylor excel the way those two did? Possibly.
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Taylor did not record a sack against top competition such as Alabama, Florida and Georgia. His lone tackle for loss in those three games came against Georgia after two offensive linemen appeared to mix up their assignments. Even though he wasn’t always asked to get after the quarterback, the fact that he had such limited impact in those three games is a bit concerning. Then again, it can be difficult to get into a pass-rushing groove when you have so many other responsibilities, and Taylor played last season with a stress fracture in his leg that required surgery on Jan. 30.
“I think I need to get better at using my hands and being more technical with that,” Taylor said after his selection Friday night. “Being coached up by the guys in Seattle, I think they’ll help me do that and now help me be the best pass rusher that the NFL will see this rookie season.”
Getting back to 100 percent health and focusing primarily on his pass-rushing skills should help Taylor become more of what Seattle needs him to become, and that’s someone who can be an impactful piece in the defensive end rotation before developing into a disruptive force as an every-down player.
(Photo: Randy Sartin / USA Today)