Zacch Pickens NFL Draft Scouting Report

IDL, South Carolina Gamecocks

A former 5-star prospect coming out of high school, Zacch Pickens comes into the 2023 NFL Draft having put together a very productive career for the Gamecocks. A majority sharer of snaps since his team debut, Pickens plays all over the interior from a 0-tech to a 3-tech using his combination of size, power, and athleticism. These traits are what initially made Pickens such a tantalizing prospect coming into college, and will continue to drive his buzz come draft time.

Pickens brings a lot to the table as an interior defensive lineman. In the pass game, Pickens demonstrates quick hand speed that allows him to defeat opposing linemen in their initial punch. He combines this ability with serviceable athleticism to stay on his track and not allow linemen to recover. He has the ability to create absolute havoc for the quarterback when he wins so quickly in his pass rush. That being said, when he can’t win with his initial move, he struggles to apply pressure and often gets stood upright. I’d like to see Pickens play more behind his pads and with better leverage and really attack offensive linemen in their sets. 

In the run game, Pickens has the ability to deconstruct a plethora of different blocks. He is dominant against reach blocks as well as one-on-one zone blocks. He uses his power and length to press, read, and shed offensive linemen and can really disrupt at and behind the line of scrimmage. Pickens does struggle to handle double teams, often finding himself displaced and out of the play. This deficiency brings up a concern about his technical ability in the run game but is something that should not outweigh the physical tools he possesses. 

Overall, to put it simply, I would have liked to see Pickens be more dominant in all aspects of his game. He has all the tools in the world to be consistently disruptive at the next level and I project Pickens to be an immediate rotational contributor. I believe that Pickens will quickly work his way into a three-down lineman in the NFL. 

Top Reasons to Buy In:

• Physical traits
• Pass down ability
• Big on big block deconstruction

Top Reasons For Concern

• Not consistently effective
• Struggles on double teams
• Limited secondary pass-rush repertoire

Size (NFL Combine):

Height: 6′ 4”

Weight: 291 lbs

Arm Length: 34 3/8”

Hand Size: 10 3/8”

Athletic Testing (NFL Combine):

40-yard Dash: 4.89s

Vertical Jump: 30.5”

Broad Jump: 9′ 8”

Short-Shuttle: 4.62s

Three-Cone: 7.45s

Bench Reps: 22 reps

Ideal Role: Starter or primary rotational DL

Scheme fit: Scheme versatile

TDN Consensus Grade: 76.00/100 (Third-Round Value)

Exposures: Clemson (2022), Florida (2022), Missouri (2022)

Zacch Pickens NFL Draft Scouting Report. Add him to your big board here.