From Dave-Te...Giants Doing Homework on Jaylon Ferguson

They wined & dined him & were very impressed with his workout. As a true pass rusher, his hands are great, BUT, oh boy, look at those absences in regards to lateral agility. His shuttles were very bad;

SACK ARTIST JAYLON FERGUSON POSSESSES THE BEST HANDS IN THIS GROUP
Jaylon Ferguson-#45
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
6:4.6-271
Agility Tests...4.79 in the 40-yard dash…1.69 10-yard dash…2.75 20-yard dash…5.12 20-yard shuttle…8.08 three-cone drill…33-inch vertical jump…9'-09" broad jump…Bench pressed 225 pounds 24 times…34-inch arm length…10-inch hands…79-inch wingspan.
Note...Ferguson was not allowed to work out at the NFL Scouting Combine and his figures are from the school's recent Pro Day.
College Career...In 51 games at Louisiana Tech, Ferguson started 43 times at strong-side defensive end, recording 187 tackles (111 solos) that included 45.0 sacks for minus 287 yards, 66.5 stops for losses of 340 yards and 24 quarterback pressures. He caused eight fumbles, recovering four others, as he deflected seven passes and blocked two kicks.

Background...The major college's record-holder with 45.0 sacks, he topped the previous FBS mark of 44.0 sacks by Terrell Suggs of Arizona State (2000-02). The only other FBS player to post at least forty sacks during a career was Arkansas State's Ja'Von Rolland-Jones (43.5; 2014-17). Ferguson broke that record with 2.5 sacks in his final collegiate game - a win over Hawaii in the 2018 SoFi Hawaii Bowl. His 17.5 sacks in 2018 broke the school and Conference USA season record and rank seventh in NCAA annals.
Ferguson's 66.5 tackles-for-loss are other Louisiana Tech and league records, ranking fourth in FBS history behind Jason Babin of Western Michigan (75.0; 2000-03), Khalil Mack of Buffalo (75.0; 2010-13) and George Selvie of South Florida (69.0; 2006-09), moving past Aaron Donald of Pittsburgh (66.0; 2010-13).
One of the most coveted recruits in the South while attending West Feliciana High School, Ferguson lettered four times in both football and basketball. He received all-state honors and was an East all-star his senior year while garnering district and metro MVP honors in addition to his all-metro and all-district honors. He decided to remain in-state, enrolling at Louisiana Tech in 2015.
After sitting out his first season in college, Ferguson started five of twelve games during the 2016 campaign. He totaled 35 tackles (22 solos) on the year with a team-high 15 tackles for loss, tying for the team lead with six sacks while also recording two forced fumbles. He had a career day at UTSA in first career start, recording seven tackles (five solo, two assisted), two sacks and four tackles for loss.
Starting every game in 2017, Ferguson set the school season-record with 14.5 sacks (old record was set in 1986), which ranked third in the nation that campaign. He posted 49 tackles (27 solos), with a team-high 16.0 tackles for loss, earning All-Conference USA recognition. He would elevate to All-American status as a senior, as the league's 2018 Defensive Player of the Year broke league standards with 17.5 sacks. He registered 64 tackles, with 26.0 stops behind the line of scrimmage, another school and conference mark.

The Scouting Report
Athletic Ability...Ferguson has a solid, yet angular frame, but shows good upper and lower body muscle definition. He is most comfortable playing a 260-265 pounds, but has added bulk since the end of the 2018 season and feels that he has the frame that can carry additional bulk (will basically build to suit, depending if he is asked to play 3-4 linebacker or 4-3 rush end). He has a good bubble, quadriceps and calves, long arms, broad shoulders and tight waist.
Ferguson comes off the snap with good explosion. He has the athletic burst from the edge to surprise a slower blocker and shows a quick stride closing in the backfield. He runs with good body lean, but does have obvious hip stiffness for a defensive end. He also does not show the hip snap you look for in a linebacker and could struggle getting good depth in his pass drops, as a result, if moved to a stand-up position. He has just marginal lateral agility working down the line, relying more on his straight-line burst to angle to the quarterback. Still, for a defensive end, he shows quickness, good foot speed, fine balance, but only marginal change of direction skills. He generates a good push off the Xs on the pass rush, but is not the type that will leverage. He is a swift-moving player into the backfield, but not as good when working his way down the line.
Pursuit Skills...Ferguson shows good snap anticipation and wrap-up tackling technique, using his arms well (hands and arms are his best weapons) to try and dislodge the quarterback or runner from the ball. He is very alert to backside movement, but does have problems reacting to blocking schemes when working in-line, as he can be tripped up by low blocks. He needs to avoid double team activity, as he lacks the hip swerve to split or escape in a crowd. He does play with a good motor, but has to perform with better discipline, as he does not have the loose hips to recover when he out-runs the play. He shows better instincts and awareness coming off the edge than when working inside the box, but struggles some locating the ball in pass coverage. He has a keen nose for the ball in pursuit, but has to show that he can readily adjust on the move playing down the line.
Strength at the Point of Attack…Ferguson shows good explosion and suddenness coming off the snap. He closes with a quick burst and is very comfortable working in space. His speed coming off the edge will generally surprise an offensive tackle. He shows good bend coming off the corner and keeps his hands active, while displaying the quick feet to execute double moves. He has good playing strength, but is not the type that can stack and control in isolated situations. He generates very good pop with his hands, but is best when he tries to slip past tackles rather than engaging. Hand Usage...This is his best asset. Ferguson shows good hand usage to press, lock out and keep separation when trying to disengage from tight ends or lead blockers. He has the long arms to protect his legs from low blocks on the corner, but for some reason, loses sight of the same type of blocker when working in-line. He is quick to get his hands on the tight ends in attempts to reroute. He does a good job of stepping up and taking on the lead block, but reverts to giving a shoulder, causing him to get washed out of the play. When he gets good hand placement, he can control, get off the block and attack the ball.
Tackling Ability...Ferguson is an efficient wrap-up tackler who has the long reach-around agility to dislodge runners from the ball. He will square up and wrap, generating good explosion taking out the outside leg of a runner. He just struggles to shed when taking on bigger blockers. He wraps up and makes secure tackles on the move. He has the functional strength to drag down the ball carrier working on the outside and when he collides with the opponent, he hits with a thud. He does a good job of maintaining his base when meeting blockers head on, but when he leaves his chest open, the larger blockers can stymie him.
Run Defense...When Ferguson keeps his pads down, he can get under and around the blocker with ease. When he gets erect his stance and drops his hands, he is quickly engulfed. He has the burst to wreak havoc in the backfield and the speed to take the wide loop needed to avoid, but if he thinks he is going to win physical battles with an offensive lineman, he is soon defeated. He has good stacking ability vs. smaller blockers, but offensive lineman have great success containing him, once they get a piece of his jersey.
Pass Rush Ability...Ferguson’s explosive first step gets him most of his success as a pass rusher. He comes off the snap with suddenness and when he gets a clear lane, can zero in on the quarter-back in an instant. He has enough balance to sift out the screens and can get to the flat. Because of hip stiffness (5.12 20-yard shuttle, 8.08 three-cone drill is the worst for any down lineman in this draft - end or tackle), he struggles too much shooting the gaps, as he lacks spin moves to beat the double team (uses just a rip move there). If not for marginal hip snap and just adequate change of direction agility, he would be an ideal outside backer in a 3-4 due to his blitzing and pass rush ability off the edge. He runs with a quick burst to close on the quarterback and shows very good timing to get a jump on the blitz. His quickness and athletic agility lets him flush the quarterback out of the pocket and he shows good urgency getting to the ball. Because he lacks ideal hip swerve, he needs to develop a much better array of moves (swim, spin) to get leverage.
Compares To...Cameron Jordan-New Orleans Saints...Some scouts liken him more to the other Saints' pass rusher, Marcus Davenport, but Ferguson has much better hand grab/placement skills.
There is one area of concern - his lack of hip flexibility. As you can see from his shuttle and three-cone drills, he does not have even decent numbers for a down lineman. He has good straight-line suddenness, but does not have the body torque or hip snap to suddenly redirect working down the line than he can when just firing off the edge. He gets too tall and erect when trying to change direction, as he lacks fluidity in his hips. When he uses his hands, he can get balance to thread through traffic.