By J.T.
Photo Credit- Blue by Ninety
At Draft 412, the NFL draft talk never ends. We will keep you ready for the next set of gridiron stars—from today and all the way until draft night 2024. We will bring you mock drafts, player profiles, individual team needs, and everything else you may need related to the 2024 NFL Draft.
Today’s Spotlight - Michigan, Linebacker, Junior Colson
Name- Junior Colson
Pos- Linebacker
Team- Michigan
HT/WT- 6’3” 235 lbs
Born- 12/6/2002
Home – Mirebalais, Haiti
Junior Colson spent 9 years in Haiti before moving over to the United States. He attended Ravenwood High School in Brentwood, Tennessee where he played football and soccer. He was given a four-star rating by 247Sports and was ranked 95th best overall prospect in the nation. He selected Michigan over a bunch of other offers. He stated that after being adopted and moving to the United States, “The first thing I saw in America was a Michigan hat. That’s what all of my family members were wearing, they’re big Michigan fans.”
As a sophomore in 2022, Colson started all 14 games at linebacker and led the team with 101 tackles. He also had 2 sacks and 6 tackles for a loss and was named second-team All-Big Ten. Heading into the 2023 season he was selected as a preseason second-team All-American by Draft 412.
Colson disengages blockers and finds the ball carrier consistently. He is speedy enough to get to the ball before blockers have a chance to reach him on the second level. He accelerates and finds the open holes to disrupt plays in the backfield and has playmaking instincts in making plays. In man-to-man situations, Colson has the ability to mirror the receiver and is athletic enough to move sideline-to-sideline.
On the downside, Junior Colson does not always wrap up when he tackles and at times will grab and drag the ball carrier. He can get lost in the offensive line during blitzes and scuffles to free himself from a bigger blocker during the play. He has a tendency to overrun the plays and gets beat in the open field at times by cutbacks.
Draft 412 was reminded of 2014 first round draft pick C.J. Mosley when reviewing film on Colson. Both guys are tenacious and can stop the run, and earlier in Mosley’s career he was a quality coverage linebacker.
Strengths
Disengages
Instincts
Athleticism
Pursuit
Weaknesses
Tackling
Over aggressive
Off-balance
Final Analysis
As far as inside linebackers go, Junior Colson is right there in terms of strength and overall play. Another big season can catapult him into first round discussions.
Draft 412 DRAFT PROJECTION - 1st or 2nd round