With their third selection of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys decided to take a raw and athletic defensive tackle: Oklahoma’s Neville Gallimore.
While the pick was met with some initial skepticism, largely due to the talent which was left on the board at safety, a study of Gallimore’s film and measureables prove exactly what this third round pick was. A chance at a home run.
Gallimore made waves at the NFL combine, running a 4.79 40 yard dash and a 7.97 three-cone while weighing in at 6’2″ 304 pounds. Insane.
Yet while his testing numbers were off the charts, his production at Oklahoma left much to be desired. Gallimore tallied just 18.5 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks in 52 college games, certainly far from numbers you would get excited about.
But when you watch Gallimore play, the production concerns make more sense. And when you combine the film with his testing, you see why the Cowboys would be ecstatic to land Gallimore 82nd overall.
Let’s start with a productive play. Gallimore is lined up over the center here and gets the pass rush win for a sack. How’d he do it? As usual, we see a strong get off and first step from Gallimore, he then breaks the center’s hands at the point of contact, and gets into a fluid spin move to get by him for the pressure.
This is the type of splash play that Gallimore would make here and there, and would make you think he could have a first round ceiling. Unfortunately – the splash plays are sometimes few and far between.
Despite what happened on that particular snap, Gallimore isn’t technically sound as a pass rusher. He doesn’t have a full range of moves just yet, and will often rely on his athleticism and strength to win at the line of scrimmage. Too often he doesn’t have a plan on pass rushes, and sometimes seems to just throw stuff at the wall and hope it works on that snap.
The good news? This can be taught and fixed. Especially considering the skills that Gallimore does already have.
Gallimore is a violent player, able to rip through blockers and cross face with his first step quickness. He won in college with his motor, which should translate well to the Cowboys defense. Gallimore is a sideline to sideline terror, never giving up on plays and working laterally down the line of scrimmage to make plays against the run.
Here’s an example of that motor in action. Gallimore struggles to create pressure at first, but then gets a second wave and forces the quarterback to scramble out of the pocket. It looks like Gallimore is out of the play, but he keeps fighting and hustling to chase the quarterback down from behind.
And, as football coaches have been saying for ages, Gallimore gets rewarded for his effort here with a forced fumble. Coaches love this kind of play.
Neville Gallimore is yet to become a polished defensive tackle, as evident by his fall to the third round. But when you combine his motor, energy, athleticism, and clear raw pass rushing talent Neville Gallimore has a chance to become a third round steal for the Dallas Cowboys.
Let Gallimore get into the building with former Sooner Gerald McCoy, and the sky could be the limit for this third round selection.
