No slip out of 1st round for ’Canes’ Rousseau
DE drafted at No. 30 by Bills
There was a slip for Miami Hurricanes defensive end Gregory Rousseau, but it didn’t take him out of the first round.
Rousseau was chosen by the Buffalo Bills with the No. 30 pick of the NFL draft on Thursday night, erasing concerns that he may fall to the second round after opting out of the 2020 season amid the COVID-19 pandemic as someone already considered a top draft prospect last summer.
In his grey suit and blue tie, Rousseau was present in Cleveland, the site of the draft, to hear his name called. He hugged commission Roger Goodell and held up a Bills jersey for a photo opportunity with him on the draft’s stage.
“I’m more than ready,” said Rousseau, interviewed by fellow UM alum Suzy Kolber on the ESPN telecast shortly after the selection. “I’m going to go up there and show that I’m going to compete and work hard every single day. I’m going to bring it to Buffalo. I can’t wait to compete.”
He became the 67th Miami player all time to get picked in the draft’s first round after fellow Hurricanes edge rusher Jaelan Phillips went to the Miami Dolphins at pick No. 18.
It’s the first time UM has had two players selected in the first round since 2015, when offensive lineman Ereck Flowers (No. 9 to the New York Giants) and wide receiver Phillip Dorsett (No. 29 to the Indianapolis Colts) were chosen. Phillips and Rousseau also snapped the Hurricanes’ four-year drought from the first round since tight end David Njoku went to the Cleveland Browns with the 29th pick in 2017.
With Miami having its two top pass-rushing draft prospects taken in the first round on Thursday, it marks the first time two defensive ends from the same college were firstround picks since North Carolina State had Mario Williams go No. 1 overall to the Houston Texans and Manny Lawson go to the San Francisco 49ers with the 22nd pick in 2006.
Rousseau was the fourth defensive end selected after Michigan’s Kwity Paye (Colts, No. 21 pick) and Houston’s Payton Turner (New Orleans Saints, No. 28) followed Phillips.
Ironically, Phillips’ greater opportunity on the Miami defensive line was opened up from Rousseau’s decision to opt out ahead of training camp last August.
The 15 ½-sack redshirt freshman season Rousseau had in 2019 was where he burst onto NFL talent evaluators’ radar.
Around the same time last year, Rousseau was a popular top-10 projection for the 2021 draft, but after the college football season was played without him, his stellar 2019 campaign became more of a distant memory. Meanwhile, others who did play boosted their stock last fall.
Then, in his lone public display of his athleticism and skill set since December of 2019 last month, he left much to be desired at Miami’s Pro Day. He ran a 4.68-second 40-yard dash, slipped on the three-cone drill and his 30-inch vertical and 9-foot-7 broad jump lacked explosion, especially compared to Phillips, who posted better numbers in all those drills.
Nonetheless, Rousseau remained a highly desirable edge defender due in large part to his 6-foot-6 ½, 266-pound frame with an 83 ¼-inch wingspan and 11-inch hands. He possesses the ability to keep blockers off of him, reach to get to the quarterback or ball carrier down or get his hands up to bat a ball at the line of scrimmage.
UM coach Manny Diaz also praised Rousseau’s relentless motor. Rousseau was versatile, lining up all over the defensive line in 2019, including inside on third-down pass-rushing packages where he got many of his sacks.
Rousseau also told the South Florida Sun Sentinel before the draft that he believed NFL teams reviewing his film from the 2019 season saw a slimmer version of himself, 25 pounds lighter, so it could have distorted their perception of him as an NFL defensive end.
Before his monster 2019 campaign, Rousseau lost most of his freshman season in college due to an ankle injury and redshirted.
Attending Hialeah Champagnat Catholic before his time at UM, Rousseau, a Coconut Creek native, played various positions at the small Class 2A state championship-winning high school, including receiver and safety, before specializing as an edge rusher in college.