TAP (Thursday Afternoon Prospect) Draft 2016 profile: Shilique Calhoun

The Panthers will most likely be in the market for a DE. It seems counter intuitive currently since they have Charles Johnson, Kony Ealy, Mario Addison, Jason Delaire and Jared Allen (rental). But two of those guys (CJ, JA) have monster contracts. That would leave a gaping hole at DE if one or both were to be cut. The Panthers would need to draft an immediate replacement (and sign guys as well). That brings us to the review of Shilique Calhoun, Defensive End from Michigan State. I may profile other DE's through this process but Calhoun has generated some buzz on CSR. I thought, why not review him?

Shilique Calhoun #89 DE Michigan State 6'5" ~250 Rs Sr
Watched 14 games via draftbreakdown and 3 live (vs Baylor 2014 (dupe), vs Oregon 2015 (dupe), vs OSU 2015)

Special abilities:

Awareness- Calhoun displays elite awareness. He has the best awareness I have ever seen from a DL. From all the tape I watched (a lot) he was only fooled on one or maybe two plays. He spoiled many read options and quick screen plays. He is able to diagnose and react quickly. My only minor qualm is sometimes in run defending he would rather destroy his blocker than make a play on the ball carrier. This happened more in 2013 & '14 than '15.

Effort- Calhoun is a very high effort player. He regularly kept fighting while blocked to make plays on QB or ball carrier. He chased down plays from behind and kept gains to a minimum. I cannot say he was perfect in level of effort given, but I would say he rarely "took plays off." This guy will work when he is playing so no need to light a fire under him.

Stunting- Calhoun exceeded when stunting from the DE position to the A gap. He was able to get skinny in the A gap and squeeze through on more than a few plays. He did this in run and pass phases. He got a few sacks stunting but he normally caused a pressure or confusion along the OL to get another defender free.

Frame- Shilique has a great frame to build on. He has long arms allowing him to extend to keep blockers out of his chest and bat down passes. He seems a little underweight for a 4-3 DE currently, but Calhoun has lots of room to grow physically so it is a minor concern that I will highlight further down.

Hand fighting- His hand fighting is advanced. He struggles to be consistent with it, but when he is on...Calhoun is nearly unblockable pass rushing. He is much better at keeping blockers off of him than disengaging but the main thing is stop a first attempt at being blocked and advance towards the ball holder.

Potential- My initial notes were much different than the final outcome. I could see a demonstrable difference between 2013 to 2015. He should continue to grow into his body as his awareness is already hyper developed vs his peers.

Versatility- Calhoun played all over the DL at LE, RE and 3 tech. He dropped into coverage and even had an INT. This versatility should push him up 3-4 team boards if he can display enough hip flexion (I think he can). That kind of versatility really opens up exotic play calls and different zone schemes than currently achievable.

Average abilities:

Pass rushing- Calhoun does have some special characteristics that set him apart from a lot of pass rushers. He does have the ability to edge bend. He displayed that vs CMU in 2015 multiple times. Calhoun is also a great hand fighter (in spurts) which really adds to the amount of pressures he churns out. However, Calhoun seemed to struggle once his first move was stymied. He is ok at bull rushing but not amazing. Fires out of his stance high too often (does this in run game too). Essentially causes an immediate failed attempt.

Run stopping- Shilique is a decent run stopper. He is great at extending plays and letting the defense rally to him. He is amazing at zone reads and sweeps. He can get pushed around and fire out too high causing him to get washed down. Not a great tackler and he gets shrugged too often for my liking.

First step- Calhoun displays better snap awareness than first step. He can gain decent ground on his first step, but he needs to get the snap count right to be really effective.

Burst- Showed really good burst in 2013 with running down ball carriers and returning an INT for a TD; outran the entire offense. He is able to catch some OT's napping with how quickly he can go from stop to full motor. Able to close on QB very quickly and be disruptive.

Athleticism- At first I thought Calhoun displayed exceptional athleticism, but the more tape I watched the less impressed I was. He has good measurables but nothing that really wows. He is in the good category for everything but not truly exceptional in any one.

Needs improvement:

Weight/Strength?- This is more of a question mark. For 4-3 teams he may be a little light currently, but he could gain the weight easily. But, would that sap his athleticism? Calhoun does struggle to anchor vs the run currently. Added weight/strength could go a long way to making him a stud run defender. He is definitely a fit as an OLB for a 3-4 as-is.

Competition- It took Calhoun some time before playing up to the level of his competition. He was stoned vs Taylor Lewan, OSU, and Andrus Peat in 2013. Lost 90+% of battles vs Donovan Smith 2014. He has been more impactful against high level talent in 2015 but still had some issues vs Tyler Johnstone of Oregon and Taylor Decker of OSU.

Block shedding- Calhoun has a difficult time getting off blocks. He too often cannot separate once a latch is initiated. Luckily he keeps fighting with the blocker to effect the play as positively as he can. He does alright at keeping blockers off of him with hand fighting but fails otherwise.

Pad level- Plays far too high in run and pass. He is very inconsistent when firing out. One play is perfect, knocks blocker off balance with great leverage then gets blown out the next few snaps by standing up. If he learns to fire out low consistently he can be a stud in run and pass phases.

Conclusion:
Calhoun is an interesting prospect. He has high level abilities, versatility and great work ethic on the field (cannot judge off the field) that will lead to success regardless of which system he is installed in. Calhoun has gotten better from sophomore to senior year and should keep that going in the NFL. I think Calhoun will be more coveted by 3-4 teams if his hips hold up, which I think they will. This drives his draft stock up to the early teens in my opinion. He still has 1st round value as a 4-3 DE but he does not have that true explosion seen from Dee Ford, Clowney or Dwight Freeney. For 4-3 teams I think his value is more in the mid 20's to early 30's. He fits the Panthers from a schematic standpoint and a draft position but I think he may go too high for them.

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