new england patriots

Strengths

Hightower is lengthy and imposing in the middle of a defense. He has long arms that he uses effectively to fight off blockers, dip and push to avoid trash at his feet, and keep balls close to him. He is not the most athletic player in space, but he uses his arms to tie up receivers within his zone and fight tight ends off the ball. He is technically sound, although his style of play looks effortless. There are not many wasted motions in his movements, and he takes good angles to the ball when working both sides of the field. Although Hightower doesn’t quite possess the speed to be a true sideline-to-sideline inside linebacker or the sole tackler in the middle of a 3-4 defense, he uses his instincts well and remains in position.

Strengths: Jones is undersized but has the tools to stay on the line at the next level and work mostly out of a 5-technique position, as he excels at working in short areas and being a scrappy, active player in the box. He has a good wingspan and is a long strider, which gives him great range to run down outside runs. He uses his arms well to keep linemen at bay, and he displays good technique to defeat blocks through hand fighting. He is an effective tackler with a lot of range. Although Chandler tends to get upright immediately at the point of attack, he is a good pass rusher who plays to his strengths.