Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack continues to dominate; now it seems at a historical level in the NFL.
Despite the Oakland Raiders ranking No. 26 in team defense a season ago, edge rusher Khalil Mack remains a bright spot for a defense seeking improvement.
Mack’s vicious pass rushing and run stuffing capabilities garnered him Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2016. However, last year wasn’t Mack’s first season dominating opposing offensive lines; it’s a trend he has continued since his rookie campaign in 2014.
If Mack’s 30 quarterback sacks in his first three years in the NFL aren’t enough to realize his dominance, our friends at Pro Football Focus have you covered:
Khalil Mack is in uncharted territory through his first three season pic.twitter.com/oPBis80JzN
— PFF (@PFF) July 31, 2017
According to PFF, Mack has registered 232 quarterback pressures, more than any other pass rusher in their first three seasons. Mack currently sits atop stars like Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt with 220 QB pressures and L.A. Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald with 205 QB pressures.
With his steady improvement year-by-year, Khalil Mack could be in store for his best season yet with Silver and Black in 2017.
Looking back at the Raiders’ star scouting report
It all makes sense when you look at the scouting done by Walter Football prior to Mack’s arrival.
For the NFL, Mack looks like a perfect fit as a 3-4 outside linebacker. He is a speedy and powerful edge rusher who should develop into a double-digit sacker. Mack’s strength and toughness will make him an asset in the ground game. He also does a nice job of dropping into pass coverage. Mack covers a lot of ground and can make some plays on the ball. His instincts, intelligence and ability to read his keys quickly puts him in position to make a lot of splash plays. Mack has the ability to take over games and cause other teams to game plan for him.
Mack could fit well in some 4-3 defenses as a run-defender and edge rusher, but some 4-3 systems, like the Tampa 2, don’t consistently use outside linebackers as pass-rushers; Mack obviously isn’t a great fit for those latter schemes. As a pro, he would be best in a 3-4.
With Mack’s phenomenal skill set, work ethic and production, he looks like a lock to be a top five pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.
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