|
Positives: Has a wide-body frame with massive chest and shoulder thickness, huge bubble, wide waist and hips, thick thighs and calves and an ideal frame to play in a two-gap alignment … Has good quickness and short-area balance for a player of his size and adequate change-of-direction agility to work his way down the line … Shows the functional burst and acceleration needed as a bull rusher and uses his hands decently to gain advantage coming off the snap … Holds his ground firmly vs. the trap blocks and double teams, but is still learning proper hand placement to stave off low blocks … Not a quick learner, but will show urgency to close when he locates the ball … When he keeps his pad level down, he is quick to slip blocks and deliver a strong hand punch to push the blocker back into the pocket … Has the functional strength needed to stop the lead blocker and ball carrier at the line of scrimmage … Uses his hands adequately to disengage when bull rushing … Can stuff and shed when he keeps his hands inside his frame, and has enough short-area burst to close on the quarterback … Has some lateral agility to slip past blocks and has learned how to time his leaps and get his hands up to block the passer's vision at the line (good at deflecting passes) … Stays on his feet working through trash and locks up the ball carrier well once he wraps to secure … Delivers a strong hand punch to prevent blockers from getting into his chest … Still developing hand placement, but when he extends properly, he can maintain separation … Gets more pressure on the bull rush to take down the quarterback, but is used more to occupy multiple blockers and collapse the pocket rather than give chase and close the deal.
Negatives: Has had weight issues in the past and needs to keep his bulk down, as he does tire late in games … Not always alert for angle blocks and traps, but is a load to bring down when he moves to the ball (will get washed, but only when he gets too tall or narrows his base) … Will get washed out of plays when he fails to keep his pads down, as his base gets too narrow when he is stood up at the line of scrimmage … Has good power in his lower body (despite being knock-kneed), but runs upright and lacks the change-of-direction agility in pursuit (more suited for a straight-ahead charge) … Late to react coming off the snap, showing only adequate ability to locate the ball instantly (lacks valid instincts) … Has the arm strength, but will struggle to break through the containment when he short arms … Lacks ideal pass rush moves, but is good at squeezing the pocket rather than sealing the deal … Lacks good plant-and-drive agility, needing to gather before redirecting … Keeps his arms too close to the body rather than extending to jolt (has a strong punch, but does not use it consistently) … Character issues arise, as he was suspended from postseason action for team rules violation … Typical junior college player who has yet to learn what kind of work it is going to take to succeed (does what is asked in training, nothing more) … More comfortable diagnosing run plays, as he is very slow to locate the passer in his pursuit … More effective playing in the box, as he tends to lose balance and get cut often working in space … His girth and previous experience as an offensive guard could see him develop quicker on that side of the ball … Is susceptible to being drawn offside, as he lacks a feel for the pre-snap.
Compares To: Isaac Sopoaga, San Francisco -- Much like his fellow Samoan, Soliai is a load in the middle of the field … In a two-gap system, he is much more effective, as he plays the run well, but lacks the explosive initial step on his pass rush to be anything more than a type who can sometimes pressure the pocket … He doesn't have an array of moves or the vision to locate the ball well in backside pursuit … Left at the line of scrimmage, he is very capable of tying up multiple blockers at the point of attack … He is quick to slip single blocks, but exposes his body too much at the Xs, getting double-teamed often.
|
