Mel Kiper breaks down tape of Dallas Turner, Jared Verse entering NFL Draft
Mel Kiper has some interesting thoughts on Dallas Turner and Jared Verse ahead of the NFL Draft. While speaking to reporters on a conference call, the ESPN NFL Draft was asked about his thoughts on the two top pass rushers in the draft class.
For Turner, Kiper said he had a “great year.” Kiper then added that “production matched the talent last year. In 2022, he wasn’t that type of player, and you wanted to see the light go on because he had played really well in 2021 as a freshman. But then he had the workout, which was phenomenal.”
Kiper went on to say that he sees Turner being selected by the Atlanta Falcons at No. 8 overall. “He would be certainly a guy that I think they would look at and target,” Kiper added.
Verse is “interesting,” according to Kiper because “he’s got the physical attributes you want.” Kiper also said that verse is “super strong” and called him a “powerhouse.” But Kiper added that Verse is “tight in the hips” and sees that when he’s “getting after the quarterback.”
“I think he’s a guy that could go anywhere between nine to the Bears unless they trade down. They could still look at him on a trade down to maybe recoup that two that they lost in the Montez Sweat deal. Anywhere between I’d say nine and in that 15, 16 range is where I think Jared Verse will come off the board.”
More on Dallas Turner and Jared Verse
Turner, 21, played for the Alabama Crimson Tide and finished the 2023 season with 53 tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss and 11 sacks. Verse, 23, played for the Florida State Seminoles and finished last year with 41 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and nine sacks. In Kiper’s latest mock draft, he has Turner going to the Falcons at No. 8 and Verse going to the Bears at No. 9.
During the Combine, Verse talked to reporters about the draft class and a chance of being the top edge rusher selected. “I have respect for everyone in this class. All these guys are hardworking guys. I don’t feel like there’s anything athletic that separates me from those other dudes,” Verse said, per AL.com.”There’s dudes out here that are fast. There’s dudes out here that are strong. I think the only thing have over all these guys is that I had to earn was my hard-working ability,” Versee said. “Being at Albany was something that made me get that.
“(Being the first edge drafted would) mean the world. At the end of the day, I was never supposed to be in this position. I wasn’t even supposed to be at Florida State. I was never supposed to be standing here in front of you today.”