| Tyler Nielsen Scouting Report |
| Tyler Nielsen - Iowa (HT: 6-3⅜ - WT: 237) |
Positives -- Does surprisingly well in pass coverage, was used to cover slot receivers and did a very nice job for the Hawkeyes... Uses his hands well on bump and run coverage, his size causes problems for the smaller receivers and he has little trouble knocking them off balance when he makes contact...
Does very well at locating the ball in the air and can makes plays on it... Is physical on coverage, but not enough to where it draws flags... Does a very nice job in a zone defense, very good at reading the quarterbacks eyes and getting to the receiver... Takes good angles when pursuing a ball carrier down the field, can chase faster players down... Sound tackler, shows good form while wrapping the player up and driving him to the ground... Can play on special teams, has the straight line speed that could have a nice impact on kick and punt coverage... Very smart player, knows where he is supposed to be at all times... Was a three down linebacker in college.
Negatives -- Does not play the run well, not very good at attacking the ball downhill and has the tendency to run himself out of plays... Doesn't have the lateral agility to go sideline to sideline; his hips get tight which cause his tackling form to become sloppy and he's unable to finish plays... Not physical when it comes to taking on offensive lineman, totally overmatched when trying to shoot gaps and is met by a guard... Really needs to toughen up; sometimes it feels like he doesn't like to hit and that's a big problem, especially for a linebacker... Not a good pass rusher, shows no aggressive arm movement to get a blocker off of him... Suffered a broken vertebra in his neck in 2010, needs to show teams that the injury is behind him and it won't hamper his career down the line.
| |
| Combine Results |
| Height |
› |
6033 |
| Weight |
› |
237 |
| Arm |
› |
31¾ |
| Hand |
› |
9¼ |
| 40-Time |
› |
4.74 |
| Vertical |
› |
|
| Broad |
› |
|
| Bench Press |
› |
21 |
| Shuttle |
› |
4.31 |
| Cone |
› |
7.27 |
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At Iowa -- (Official School Bio) 2011: Started all 12 games in which he played... recorded 34 solo tackles and 39 assists, including four tackles for loss and one QB sack... also had two recovered fumbles, one one forced fumble, one pass break-up and one QB pressure... started at outside linebacker in triple-overtime loss at Iowa State, recording four solo tackles, one assist and a recovered fumble... started at outside linebacker in 31-27 win over Pittsburgh, but saw limited action recording one solo tackle... started at outside linebacker in 45-17 win over Louisiana-Monroe, recording two solo tackles, one assist and a pass break-up as defense allowed just 59 net rushing yards... started at outside linebacker in 13-3 loss at Penn State, recording two solo tackles and one assist... started at middle linebacker in 41-31 win over Northwestern, moving inside from normal OLB position... recorded career-high 12 tackles vs. Northwestern, including five solo stops and seven assists... started at middle linebacker in 22-21 loss at Minnesota, recording two solo tackles and four assists... started at middle linebacker in 24-16 win over 13th-ranked Michigan as defense allowed just 323 yards total offense... recorded career-high 13 tackles vs. Wolverines, including seven solo stops... also had two tackles for loss and a QB sack, causing and recovering a Wolverine fumble that led to an Iowa field goal... started at middle linebacker in 37-21 loss to Michigan State... recorded five tackles vs. MSU, including one tackle for loss... started at middle linebacker in 20-7 loss at Nebraska, recording one solo tackle and career-best 10 assists... started at middle linebacker in Insight Bowl loss to Oklahoma, recording four solo tackles and four assists as defense allowed just 275 yards total offense.
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