Zion Young EDGE Missouri

There are some character concerns with Zion Young. He had some assault issue at Michigan and was arrested for drunk driving in 2025. Dude seems like a bit of loose cannon, and I'm not sure that's entirely a bad thing IF he can stay out of trouble off the field. I think the Niners could use a guy or two with an edge and a little rabidness. They lost that when Greenlaw left. You just have to find a way to keep a guy like this out of trouble.


But as a player, he's an interesting prospect. He's got the ideal physical traits you want in a true wide 9 end. He's powerful, disruptive and really strong at the point of attack as a run defender. He's tenacious and plays through the whistle. I think he needs to improve his hands, specifically in run defense with getting off blocks and improving them as a pass rusher to keep himself clean. He's not a guy that's going to burn tackles around the arc with raw speed, so he needs to develop a better pass rush plan and improve his hand technique to really maximize that length and unlock his ability as a pass rusher. He's likely going to be a very good run defender from day 1 while needing to continue develop as a pass rusher. Hmm, that sounds familiar.

Yeah I loved him as a prospect...til I heard about the off the field stuff. Obviously we've seen guys with past issues have stellar careers without a peep of a problem.

But we've also had our own share of great talent - wasted. Let alone seen it across the league.

Have to imagine with this front office getting bit so hard with Reuben Foster they won't make that mistake again in the early rounds.

Originally posted by genus49:
Yeah I loved him as a prospect...til I heard about the off the field stuff. Obviously we've seen guys with past issues have stellar careers without a peep of a problem.

But we've also had our own share of great talent - wasted. Let alone seen it across the league.

Have to imagine with this front office getting bit so hard with Reuben Foster they won't make that mistake again in the early rounds.

Kevin Faulk is the choir boy EDGE pick similar measureables to Young and i think is only 20 years old. I dont think he makes it to us he is already a top 15ish pick and he is going to rocket up in combine because his measurables are insane. He used his own NIL money to pay for tuition for some of his walk on teammates. He is going to test very well especially in raw measurables wouldnt surprise me if he has one of the longest arm lengths in the combine

Originally posted by genus49:
Yeah I loved him as a prospect...til I heard about the off the field stuff. Obviously we've seen guys with past issues have stellar careers without a peep of a problem.

But we've also had our own share of great talent - wasted. Let alone seen it across the league.

Have to imagine with this front office getting bit so hard with Reuben Foster they won't make that mistake again in the early rounds.

With the James Pearce stuff looking really bad, I'm guessing red flag guys drop down the draft boards this year.

Originally posted by genus49:
Yeah I loved him as a prospect...til I heard about the off the field stuff. Obviously we've seen guys with past issues have stellar careers without a peep of a problem.

But we've also had our own share of great talent - wasted. Let alone seen it across the league.

Have to imagine with this front office getting bit so hard with Reuben Foster they won't make that mistake again in the early rounds.

A few years back Lynch admitted as much. They now flag behavior and injuries strict. I recall he said they remove injury guys from the board completely because they've been burned so many time. I am ok with that.

Hard pass. Dude seems like a head case and a lawsuit waiting to happen

I came away impressed by Zion's presser. I was expecting to hear an idiot like a Reuben Foster, but he's surprisingly well spoken for such a 21-year-old guy with concerns about his character.

Man, I really like him as a prospect. The traits are obvious, but I love the intangibles on the field: High-strung; revs super hot; angry; violent; reminds me of like a 90's player. The off-field stuff needs to be taken seriously, but this is the type of talent and energy the 49ers badly need to infuse into their roster. There have been many cases where guys made mistakes that weren't reflective of who they were—ie Navarro Bowman. The fight at MSU doesn't really bother me. It makes sense as the youngest of 11 with his temperament. The driving+alcohol stuff is what's alarming.

I just don't think the 49ers are in a position to play things safe. They need high-end talent immediately. Imagine Seattle taking this dude at 32.

This guy understands the art of rushing the passer. I'm biased towards power, so everything he's saying about power being the foundation is music to my ears. He talks about using speed-2-power as the baseline to set up his hands to soften the edge. He mentions guys oversetting him at the Senior Bowl. That tells me this isn't a guy that's out there just going through the motions(ie Drake Jackson, Eli Harold, etc). He's processing information and reacting accordingly. When you have a guy that understands the art with this type of talent, the sky is the limit for him on the field.



an example of what he referenced. Tackle oversets and Zion takes the easy swim counter inside.

My question would be, where was the production? If you've got this immensely powerful AND cerebral pass rusher, why isnt he producing more? Same questions we had about Shemar Stewart last year, except Stewart was a bit more of an athletic freak to make the gamble on.

Im not saying there isnt a reasonable answer, im just asking what it is.

Originally posted by adrianlesnar:
My question would be, where was the production? If you've got this immensely powerful AND cerebral pass rusher, why isnt he producing more? Same questions we had about Shemar Stewart last year, except Stewart was a bit more of an athletic freak to make the gamble on.

Im not saying there isnt a reasonable answer, im just asking what it is.

That's fair, but he's 21 and very much a projection. For sure, he's not a finished product, and the testing numbers will go a long way in determining how high I'm willing to buy in.

Right now, I see a day-1 base end with NFL-ready size and play strength--a role that that tends to get downplayed by fans but is super vital. The production isn't there yet, but the traits seem to be: length, power, flashes of hand usage, and the kind of functional athleticism that suggests there's more pass-rush upside than the stat sheet shows. If the tools develop, the jump in production could come at the next level.

He reminds me a bit of Frank Clark---another high-strung, tempered guy that didn't post huge numbers at Michigan, had serious red flags, but the tape showed real pass-rush traits and instincts. He turned into a high-impact rusher for the Seahawks during his rookie deal and was a productive piece for the Chiefs. Not saying that's the outcome for Zion, but I see some parallels.

For what its worth, im significantly higher on Zion (off field aside) than I was on Mykel Williams, especially at projected cost.

Originally posted by adrianlesnar:
My question would be, where was the production? If you've got this immensely powerful AND cerebral pass rusher, why isnt he producing more? Same questions we had about Shemar Stewart last year, except Stewart was a bit more of an athletic freak to make the gamble on.

Im not saying there isnt a reasonable answer, im just asking what it is.

His calling card is run defense. 96% run defense grade from PFF.

He's not going to be an elite sack artist if that's the production you are looking for. He has some bend, he has great length, has some burst, but when things dont work hes a power rusher through and through. That being said, his sack rate of .69 per game ranked fourth in the SEC and 19th nationally. He has 37 quarterback hurries and nine QB hits, and his pass rush productivity mark of 10.5 from PFF ranked 13th nationally among edge players. This is a guy that can play 3 downs and will see the field early and often. The Tyree Wilson comparisons are fair and if you can get 4-5 sacks out of him , while also playing early downs stuffing the run, then I think you gladly add that to your rotation.