BJ Thompson NFL Draft 2023: Scouting Report for Kansas City Chiefs' EDGE
HEIGHT: 6'5"
WEIGHT: 238
HAND: 10"
ARM: 34.4"
WINGSPAN: 82.5"
40-YARD DASH: TBD
3-CONE: TBD
SHUTTLE: TBD
VERTICAL: TBD
POSITIVES
– Great length and plenty of room for growth on his frame.
– Sets up his pass-rush moves well by getting to square during the stem phase of the rush.
– Has a dirty inside spin move with impressive quickness and agility, and he finishes with a good ice pick to get clean wins. Will win to the inside and outside with it.
– Changes direction well for a solid stick move.
– With his long arms, he can develop a really effective one-arm stab move that can be hard for offensive linemen to defend against if he gets stronger. He had a few reps where he left tackles grasping at air.
– Shown flashes of winning with a rip or dip-rip move—he can add it to his pass-rush arsenal if he gets stronger and more violent with it.
– Really bendy to turn tight corners at the top of the rush. He can win with bend alone against offensive tackles who have poor feet.
– Plenty of speed to close on the quarterback.
– Gets his hands up and has good hand-eye coordination to get batted passes if he doesn't hit home as a pass rusher—another way he puts those long arms to use.
– Against reach blocks, he's shown flashes of using quickness to change the angle on blockers and has a solid rip move to defeat the block.
– Hustle player who takes good angles in pursuit to make tackles down the field.
NEGATIVES
– Needs to add a lot of size, has more of a basketball body right now; tall and lanky.
– Typically late to react to the snap, making it more difficult to win with speed.
– Has to get stronger and more physical at the point of attack as a run defender. He struggles to hold ground against tight ends and offensive tackles and gets little to no extension, often ending up chest-to-chest with blockers.
– Stops his feet on contact.
– Will get collapsed inside against down blocks from tight ends.
– Doesn't keep his hips parallel to the line of scrimmage when trying to set the edge, almost perfectly perpendicular to the line at times.
– Has late hands as a pass rusher, offensive linemen typically make the first significant contact against him.
NOTES
– Baylor transfer, was suspended for undisclosed reasons for the first two games of his last season in Waco
– A 3-Star recruit in the 2017 class, No. 797 overall, No. 58 athlete, per 247Sports' composite rankings
– No. 36 on Bruce Feldman's list of exceptional athletes; 11'3" broad jump, 4.56-second 40-yard dash, 40" vertical, 4.2-second pro agility shuttle
– No major injuries
– 34 career starts
– Baylor stats (two seasons): 18 total tackles (12 solo), 6 TFL, 4 sacks, 2 PD, 3 blocked FGs/PATs
– SFA stats (three seasons): 80 total tackles (43 solo), 20.5 sacks
– 2022 Honors: Third-Team FCS All-American (Stats Perform), First-Team All-WAC
– 2021 Honors: First-Team All-WAC
OVERALL
BJ Thompson was a standout at the East-West Shrine Bowl. He did exactly what he needed to do as an FCS-level prospect by proving himself as a pass rusher against a higher level of competition. He showed off that nasty spin move as well as a couple of counters and the excellent bend he has to turn tight corners at the top of the rush.
However, Thompson's run defense is a major work in progress. He's very lean and isn't strong enough to be an every-down player, so the team that drafts him will have to be patient with him in that regard. After weighing in at 238 pounds in Las Vegas, he still needs to put on at least 10 more pounds before he's ready to play on first and second downs.
The good news is the Lumberjack has plenty of room for growth on his frame, and a couple of SFA staff members told me that he's dedicated himself in the weight room to get his weight up and improve his draft stock to get to this point. So, he has the work ethic and mindset to get the job done.
Schematically, Thompson would be a great late-round option for a team looking for a situational pass rusher. As far as even or odd fronts go, that kind of depends on how much weight/strength he puts on. If he stays in the 250-pound range, he'd probably be best as a standup outside linebacker in odd fronts, but he could play as a hand-in-the-ground defensive end in even fronts if he gets up into the 260s.
GRADE: 5.8 (Backup/Draftable, 6th-7th Round)
OVERALL RANK: 194
POSITION RANK: EDGE24
PRO COMPARISON: Elerson Smith
