2023 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Noah Sewell

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Noah Sewell, 6-3/260 Linebacker Oregon

Noah Sewell Scouting Report
By Charlie Campbell

Strengths:

Instinctive

Disciplined

Reads keys well

Maintains gap integrity

Forceful talker

Quick linebacker; flies around the field -in 2021

Burst to close – in 2021

Ability to redirect

Natural in space

Serious athletic ability

Solid run defender

Decent in zone coverage

Good spy linebacker for mobile quarterbacks

Dangerous blitzer

Has athletic flexibility to be a Mike, Will, or Sam

Three-down-starter potential

Weaknesses:

Got too heavy in 2022

Was slow in 2022

Could have problems maintaining a good playing weight

Summary: Penei Sewell was a freshman sensation at left tackle for the Oregon Ducks before dominating as a sophomore and becoming the seventh-overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. He had an excellent rookie season in the NFL showing a big time skill set with tenacity.

It turns out to run in the family as Penei’s younger brother Noah was a force as an underclassman for Oregon in 2020 and 2021. In the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season of only seven games, Sewell jumped out by recording 45 tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble. He was even better in his second freshman season of 2021, he racked up 114 tackles, four sacks, two forced fumbles, an interception and five passes broken up. In 2022, Sewell did not play well, recording 55 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one interception and three pass breakups. He was not the same player over his final college season.

Sewell is a difficult evaluation because his 2022 and 2021 seasons were so different. Team sources say Sewell got way too heavy in 2022, thinking he may have been playing around 270 pounds. Having watched him a year earlier, they think he was significantly lighter in 2021.

If Sewell drops his weight back to 2021 levels, he could be a pass-coverage linebacker in the NFL. Sewell definitely has that ability because he was a very good zone-coverage linebacker in the middle of the field. What stodd out quickly when watching in 2021 Sewell were impressive instincts and vision to get in position to make plays. Sewell looked comfortable in space, showing smooth agility to drop into coverage and cover ground. He displayed serious speed to break on receivers and eat up ground in a hurry.

On top of being steady in zone coverage, Sewell was very dangerous on delayed blitzes in 2021. He did a very good job of reading the play and makes great decisions on when to take off downhill to hunt down the quarterback. This ability makes him an effective quarterback spy and Sewell will be an asset for taking on mobile quarterbacks. Sewell’s instincts and vision illustrate with him showing an impressive ability to stop his rush to leap into the air to bat passes or disrupt throwing lanes. Through a variety of ways Sewell was a good pass-coverage linebacker in 2021.

In the ground game, Sewell was a seek-and-destroy linebacker in 2021, but he looked slow and was late to the ball in 2022. He showed impressive speed to the perimeter for a big backer and he covered a lot of ground. With his size, Sewell would deliver some hard hits and put ball=carriers into the turf with violence. Sewell is generally a reliable tackler, but he is not perfect and will have some misses. In 2022, he was stout, but he just could not run like he did during the previous year.

If Sewell returns to the his 2021 form, he could turn into a good starter at the pro level. In the 2023 NFL Draft, Sewell has the potential to be a second-day pick.



Player Comparison: Dont’a Hightower. Sewell compares well with Hightower (6-3, 260) as both are large heavy linebackers. Hightower wasn’t the same player after sitting out 2020 because he got too heavy, which slowed him down. Sewell looked the like that in 2022. If Sewell drops weight, he could be more like the version of Hightower who went to Pro Bowls in 2016 and 2019.

2023 NFL Draft Player Previews - Choose Player 2023 NFL Draft Player Previews - Home Devon Achane, RB, Texas A&M Adetomiwa Adebawore, DE, Northwestern Jordan Addison, WR, USC Will Anderson, DE, Alabama Felix Anudike-Uzomah, DE, Kansas State Steve Avila, G, TCU Deonte Banks, CB, Maryland Micah Baskerville, LB, LSU Keeanu Benton, DT, Wisconsin Matthew Bergeron, OT, Syracuse Mekhi Blackmon, CB, USC Kayshon Boutte, WR, LSU Brian Branch, S, Alabama Julius Brents, CB, Kansas State Bryan Bresee, DT, Clemson Chase Brown, RB, Illinois Sydney Brown, S, Illinois Jack Campbell, LB, Iowa Jalen Carter, DT, Georgia Zach Charbonnet, RB, UCLA Malik Cunningham, QB, Louisvile Gervon Dexter, DT, Florida Josh Downs, WR, North Carolina Max Duggan, QB, TCU Jaelyn Duncan, OT, Maryland Zach Evans, RB, Ole Miss Zay Flowers, WR, Boston College Emmanuel Forbes, CB, Notre Dame Isaiah Foskey, DE, Notre Dame Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Alabama Christian Gonzalez, CB, Oregon Derick Hall, OLB, Auburn Jaren Hall, QB, BYU Anton Harrison, OT, Oklahoma Daiyan Henley, LB, Washington State Hendon Hooker, QB, Tennessee Jalin Hyatt, WR, Tennessee Siaki Ika, DT, Baylor Antonio Johnson, S, Texas A&M Paris Johnson, OT, Ohio State Quentin Johnston, WR, TCU Broderick Jones, G, Georgia Dawand Jones, OT, Ohio State Calijah Kancey, DT, Pittsburgh Dalton Kincaid, TE, Utah Sam LaPorta, TE, Iowa Will Levis, QB, Kentucky Quan Martin, CB, Illinois Cody Mauch, G, North Dakota State Michael Mayer, TE, Notre Dame Will McDonald, DE, Iowa State Kenny McIntosh, RB, Georgia Tanner McKee, QB, Stanford Kendre Miller, RB, TCU Jonathan Mingo, WR, Ole Miss Cam Mitchell, CB, Northwestern Malachi Moore, S, Alabama Mike Morris, DE, Michigan Wanya Morris, OT, Oklahoma Myles Murphy, DE, Clemson Luke Musgrave, TE, Oregon State Zion Nelson, OT, Miami B.J. Ojulari, OLB, LSU Demarvion Overshown, LB, Texas Owen Pappoe, LB, Auburn Jarrett Patterson, C, Notre Dame Clark Phillips, CB, Utah Joey Porter Jr., CB, Penn State Anthony Richardson, QB, Florida Kelee Ringo, CB, Georgia Bijan Robinson, RB, Texas Chris Rodriguez, RB, Kentucky Drew Sanders, LB, Arkansas Noah Sewell, LB, Oregon Trenton Simpson, LB, Clemson Peter Skoronski, OT, Northwestern Cam Smith, CB, South Carolina Mazi Smith, DT, Michigan Nolan Smith, DE, Georgia Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Ohio State John Michael Schmitz, C, Minnesota Tyler Steen, OT, Alabama Tyrique Stevenson, CB, Miami C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State Cedric Tillman, WR, Tennessee Joe Tippman, C, Wisconsin O'Cyrus Torrence, G, Florida Henry To'oTo'o, LB, Alabama Tuli Tuipulotu, DE, USC D.J. Turner, CB, Michigan Lukas Van Ness, DE, Iowa Deuce Vaughn, RB, Kansas State Tyree Wilson, DE, Texas Tech Darnell Washington, TE, Georgia Keion White, DE, Georgia Tech Devon Witherspoon, CB, Illinois Darnell Wright, OT, Tennessee Bryce Young, QB, Alabama

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