A three-time All Big-Ten honoree, it’s time you become acquainted with Rutgers safety, nickel, all-everything roof defender Christian Izien. One of the more unique chess pieces on defense in the upcoming draft, an eye-opening pre-draft circuit has forced evaluators to double-check their notes.

Nice Pro Day thus far for Rutgers SAF Christian Izien.

– 41.5 vert
– 20 bench

Rocked up nickel/safety that deserves more attention. 3x All Big-Ten.

20+ teams in attendance including NE, PHI, NYG, & NYJ.

— Ryan Fowler (@_RyanFowler_) March 21, 2023

Izien is an uber-physical defender whose alignment versatility will offer a team an athlete that doesn’t just wear multiple hats but wears them well. He fits the modern game. While he primarily lived in the slot and inside the box in 2022, there may not be an athlete this spring that has more experience at the line of scrimmage, second level, and at the ceiling—he amassed more than 150 career snaps as a wide-nine rusher, 770 in the box, nearly 1,000 at free safety, and 809 at nickel.

You can throw him in anywhere and expect him to produce. While some defenders have a hard time finding their true niche on Sundays after roaming free at the college level, Izien’s technique and athletic profile highlight an athlete that will provide a jolt to any secondary he joins.

@RFootball safety Christian Izien can FLY.

Unofficial 4.32 40 after jumping 41.5” in the vert. Big day. pic.twitter.com/rXspkUciSc

— Ryan Fowler (@_RyanFowler_) March 21, 2023

While all good athletes aren’t good football players, everything has been earned for the Brooklyn, NY native—his lone Power Five offer out of high school came from the Scarlet Knights.

A standout at the East-West Shrine Bowl in Las Vegas last month, while very little buzz has centered around his game the last few seasons at Rutgers, microscoping his skill set into a defense in need of versatile playmakers could be a match made in heaven. Whether you need someone to cover a running back on a wheel route in man, line up nose-to-nose with a tight end, blitz with effectiveness, blow up a screen play in the flat areas of an offense, or cut his teeth on special teams, Izien could be your guy. He’ll be the type of defender you wish your team took when we look back on the class three years down the line.

While Christian Izien isn’t expected to hear his name called until day three in April, he’s the type of football player that all 32 teams search for in the later rounds that could become a core athlete inside a defensive unit.