When you watch Tyler Matakevich, you see him in on every tackle. Whether it’s a pass or run, Matakevich finds his way to the football. He is great at fighting off blocks, moving through traffic, reading plays, and making tackles. Standing 6’1, he has the length to keep blockers from getting into him. He is a solid 235, that helps him to anchor well, and fight off blocks.
Matakevich is a tackling machine. In his career, he has 321 tackles, which include his 83 tackles so far this season. 238 of those 321 tackles were solo tackles. That’s an impressive number by itself. That stat line shows, that when he gets his hands on a ball carrier, they go down. He only has 2 sacks on his career, but he has 20 tackles for a loss. Against the run, Matakevich is a tackling machine. Not many plays get past him on the ground.
He may not have the huge numbers when it comes to pass defense, but he is very solid in coverage. He does have 6 passes defensed in his career. Averaging 2 per year. He doesn’t get beat by RBs and TEs very often, due to his discipline and ability to get his hands on receivers at the LOS. He isn’t very effective when blitzing, with only 2 QB hurries and 2 sacks in his career. He is better off sitting back, and covering receivers underneath.
Tyler Matakevich may not be a big name headed into the draft, but I think as the process goes on, Matakevich will open some eyes. The only thing more impressive than his production, is his game film. Matakevich should fit into any defensive system in the NFL. I think he translates well as a SOLB, MLB, or either inside LB positions in a 3-4. Look for Matakevich to be a day 3 pick.
video courtesy of Draftbreakdown.com
