walter nolen

Overall
According to 24/7 Sports Nolen was a 5 star recruit, but he ranked 2nd nationally as a top recruit in the nation in 2022. Committed to Texas A&M and transferred to Ole Miss for the 2024 season. In 2024, Ole Miss junior defensive tackle Walter Nolen earned second-team Walter Camp All-America honors, marking his fourth All-America selection this season. A first-team Coaches All-SEC pick, Nolen ranks among the nation's top interior linemen, leading the SEC with 12.0 tackles for loss in conference play and ranking fifth with 6.0 sacks. He also boasts 14.0 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, and 48 total tackles on the season, alongside impressive metrics including being ranked the No. 5 run defender in college football according to the PFF system. Nolen was also a finalist for the Outland Trophy (Award given to the  best college football interior lineman in the United States as judged by the Football Writers Association of America).

Nolen has versatility in his game, he displays the skill to play all over the defensive line. His agility serves as one of his high qualities and allows him to move around blockers effectively. His strength is sneaky, and he can improve to manipulate his strength and agility to become a highly valuable asset to an NFL team defensive line. When it comes to Nolen technique, it can get him in trouble. His pad-level may rise when offensive linemen get their hands on him. Hand-technique allows for offensive linemen to control him at times and it can lead to him getting lost in the line of bodies. There is a legitimate effectiveness to his game when it comes to run defending and has explosiveness that makes negative plays happen for the offense. Nolen has played at a high level in highschool and college.

In the Pass Game
walter nolen Displays first-step explosion combined with power and a strong initial punch, making him a challenging matchup for offensive linemen in one-on-one situations. His strength and powerful hands allow him to consistently win at the point of attack. I was impressed by how many times OL heads popped back when Nolen engaged. While his quick feet provide the agility to maneuver around blockers. Nolen gets pressure at a solid rate. However, he can lose balance at times during his rush, often relying too heavily on his ability to work around opponents rather than maintaining control and leverage throughout the play. His pad-level can get high and that is probably his biggest weakness at the moment and his hands can get disorganized preventing pressures. Displays little bend when pass rushing.

In the Run Game
Nolen has strong hands at the point of attack and an explosive first step that allows him to beat his man before he even knows it. He demonstrates awareness in the backfield, consistently tracking the ball carrier and showing determination to fight through traffic in pursuit of the runner. Struggles to anchor against double teams which can make it difficult for him to clear gaps, often getting stood up. Improving his ability to maintain leverage and anchor in these situations will enhance his effectiveness against power-run schemes. Exhibits a gritty, hard-nosed approach when engaging blockers in the run game, consistently battling to shed blocks and shows effectiveness in disengaging from blockers in the run game.

Projection
Deone Walker shows a lot of potential as a versatile defender who can line up across the defensive line and generate pressure. Needs to refine his technique, particularly his hand technique and setting defenders up when he is pass-rushing. Needs improvement creating leverage as a pass rusher and even as a run defender because he stands tall consistently. The foundation is there for him to develop into a starting-caliber player with the right coaching. Conditioning is another area he must improve to transition into playing in the NFL and creating consistency in his play, but playing as many snaps that he does at his size is impressive. He plays three downs, but it may benefit him to play less snaps and may give him a chance to be very effective when he plays at the lower snap rate. All the talent in the world when it comes to Deone Walker and if an NFL team has an effective plan to use him Deone Walker may be the steal of the draft. He has shades of Kansas City Chiefs DT Chris Jones. If Deone Walker either improves his conditioning or plays less snaps, he will be even more effective as a defensive linemen. Deone Walker on day one will improve a teams defensive line and will affect his opposing teams offensive line. Consistency is worrisome, there is a lot of hope with the solutions provided, teams will get a starter from day one, but in need of further development.