Ourlads' Profile:
2025 Guide: What Ourlads’ NFL Scouting Services said about T.J. SANDERS:
South Carolina | Hometown: Marion, SC | HT: 6037 | WT: 305 | 40 time: 4.95 | Hand: 1014 | Arm: 3314 | Wing: 8078
Junior entry, two year starter. First team All-SEC and third team All-America in 2024. Thick lower body with impressive length and plus wingspan. Strong, athletic player with a hot motor. He’s a versatile defender who played a five, 4i, one and three techniques. He’s quick at the snap and is sudden to shoot his hands to control blockers. Strong upper body and a normally low pad level allow him to stack and shed on the move. His ability to get ball side leverage is a notable strength. Adept at hitting gaps to disrupt running plays and uses excellent lateral agility to make plays along the line. His quickness, range, and acceleration consistently put him in position to chase down backs in the backfield. His greatest asset are his pass rush tools. His initial burst creates speed to power and he can collapse the pocket from interior alignments. Has a variety of ways to get to the quarterback along with a bull rush into a move. Flashes hand swipes and counter moves and combined with a closing burst can create immediate pressure in the quarterback’s face. Effective on inside stunts he can explode through a gap and is slippery, beating a block moving at the quarterback. Lacks ideal bulk and if his pad level gets a little high he’s easily neutralized. There is some inconsistency disengaging from a block in the pass rush. Needs to improve techniques to develop the ability to consistently stack moves and counter when necessary. Can have some trouble disengaging from powerful blockers and tends to get upright versus double teams. Effective as a one gap player who could play a five technique in an odd front and kick inside on passing downs. High upside with excellent tools to work with.
2024 Stats: 50 T, 7 TFL, 4 sacks, 1 PBU, 6 QBH. Draft projection: 1st/2nd round