AJ Epenesa: 2020 NFL Draft Scouting Report

AJ Epenesa is one of the most beloved Iowa Hawkeyes of the last decade. He was a five-star recruit who actually chose to play at Iowa, which hadn’t happened for 15 years. It helped that his father, the repetitively named Epenesa Epenesa, played at Iowa under Hayden Fry, but it was still incredible to get this level of player in Iowa City. And AJ Epenesa didn’t disappoint. He only got spot duty in his first season, but put up 4.5 sacks. Then, his sophomore year, he split snaps and managed 10.5 sacks before taking over as a full-time starter his junior year and getting 11.5 sacks. I wouldn’t say he quite lived up to the hype because Iowa fans thought he would average two sacks a game, win the Heisman, and cure cancer. But he certainly wasn’t a disappointment, and I can’t imagine any Hawkeye fans having anything but fond memories of his play. I took a look at his games against USC, Nebraska, and Rutgers.

On the athleticism side, the combine was not great for Epenesa. Outside of his length and broad jump, he was unimpressive in the drills. Not worrying at all is a poor bench press, as this guy showed that he is strong as hell and bench press is one of the DUMBEST possible ways to measure football strength. His speed and change of direction was all below average to average which is slightly disappointing. He’s not a guy who was going to blow up the combine, but I think he was expected to have better numbers than that, and I would have expected him to improve on those had pro days still been happening.

But 22 sacks over his final two years, one of which he only played half the snaps, that’s pretty damn impressive. You can’t get those type of numbers without having a whole lot of hustle.

Here, Epenesa initially jams up the middle, but then recognizes the roll out, disengages with the tackle before running by the tight end and causing a pressure on the quarterback who had nowhere to go with the football.

Remember how I told you not to worry about his bench press numbers when it came to his strength. Here’s why.

Epenesa can bull rush just about anybody, because if he gets underneath you, he’s going to get through you. He not only pushes the lineman back, he is able to disengage, leaps to block a pass that never comes and then splashes down on the quarterback. He’s a very busy lineman. My one issue on this play is him dropping his head as that’s a really easy way to get off balance and get thrown to the ground against more experienced linemen.

I really wanted to include the game against USC, since the left tackle, Austin Jackson, is projected to be a first round pick. People have raved about Epenesa for getting 2.5 sacks in that game. Ultimately, it was not as dominant of a performance as I thought it would be. There were multiple times where Jackson seemed a step slow but Epenesa was unable to fully take advantage and Jackson was able to reset without any harm being done. One of Epenesa’s sacks was a miscommunication on the USC offensive line as he went right between Jackson and the left guard with neither guy deciding they were interested in actually blocking him. Still, he had his moments, like this windshield wiper he uses to leave Jackson gasping for air.

That is great handwork by Epenesa as he easily gets the corner against Jackson. Still, there isn’t much bend in Epenesa’s game so Jackson is at least able to keep a hand on him and delay him enough to let his quarterback throw the ball away.

His hand fighting is that counter move when people are expecting the bullrush, and it can be deadly.

He makes a very good prospect look very bad on this play.

He’s solid against the run, but not as special as you would think considering how strong he is. I will say that he completely dominated Nebraska in both pass and run as he annihilated their line all day long. His versatility is a huge asset, and one of the ways that he excels is an interior pass rusher.

Guards have no chance to stop Epenesa’s hands in space, and he consistently wreaked havoc when allowed to rush from inside.

Epenesa has SCARY power.

Imagine if he had touched him with two hands.

Watching Epenesa over these last three years was an absolute treat. Due to a poor combine, there are rumors of falling in the draft to the late first or possibly even the second round. If he falls to either of those points, it is going to be an absolute steal. I have seen this guy take over games. He had great stats at Iowa, and Iowa did not scheme to let him loose and only pursue the quarterback. Iowa defensive ends are often responsible for containment, even on passing plays, so his numbers could have been even more impressive had they just let him pin his ears back and try to kill quarterbacks nonstop. I don't think he's going to set the NFL on fire, but I do think he's going to be a very valuable pro player. He's probably going to have seasons with 8-12 sacks while being a dangerous player that can pop inside on passing downs to cause even more havoc.


Previous Scouting Reports
1. Tua Tagavailoa - Alabama
2. Joe Burrow - LSU
3. Jordan Love - Utah State
4. Justin Herbert - Oregon
5. Nate Stanley - Iowa
6. Tristan Wirfs - Iowa
7. AJ Epenesa - Iowa