By Charlie Campbell, @draftcampbell
Three years ago, we started a series of articles on why certain prospects went undrafted. In that series, I reach out to sources with NFL teams to find out why their organizations passed on drafting a given player, and/or, what were the reasons for other teams to pass on that prospect. We got a lot of positive reader feedback about the series, so we decided to expand in the genre to investigate why some prospects slid in the draft. A year later, we started the Why Slide? series, and this year, it is back. Feel free to email me requests for “Why the Slide?” and “Why Undrafted?” at [email protected]. I can’t promise to get to all of them, but I will do my best and definitely respond.
Over the past few seasons, Nickerson was a projected draft pick while being a solid starter at California and then at Illinois. Being the son with the same name of a Pro Bowl linebacker for the Steelers and Buccaneers also helped to garner attention for Nickerson. Last year for the Illini, the younger Hardy Nickerson was a tough run defender who played well in the tackle box. Sources from teams said they gave him a late-round draft-able grade, but Nickerson slipped through undrafted.
Sources said that Nickerson could have gone late in the 2017 NFL Draft, but he is a player who just happened to slip through. Nickerson is viewed to have some athletic limitations in pass coverage, and in a passing-driven league, that kind of issue can be problematic for any linebacker prospect. Additionally, the inside/middle linebacker position as a whole has been downgraded for years as teams habe put a greater emphasis on defensive linemen and cornerbacks.
After going undrafted, Nickerson signed with the Cincinnati Bengals, which was a wise decision. The Bengals are an organization that gives undrafted free agents a fair shot to make the roster, and some of those players have become massive successes for them. Veteran middle linebacker Vontaze Burfict is an example of that. The Bengals also have Burfict and Kevin Minter entering free agency after this coming season, so if Nickerson is able to impress enough to make the team, he could put himself in place to get consideration as a competitor to replace one of them if they leave Cincinnati next offseason. The Bengals do have good depth at linebacker, so it won’t be an easy competition for Nickerson. Still, Cincinnati is a good place to start his career as the organization is fair to undrafted free agents and has a long-term need at his position.
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