They don't make human beings like Kentucky IDL Deone Walker often. Officially coming in at 6'7" and 340 lbs at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, the multi-time Second-Team All-SEC defender was an instant headline before he ever took the field, and even then, he was a highlight guy in the practices he did before pulling out of the event.
You see that? That's a civilian, you understand, and Walker just embedded him into the earth's crust as a warmup. He's a freak, and we've seen what he can do at his best, referencing his 2023 season with 7.5 sacks and 13 TFLs, but the production wasn't up to par in his Freshman or Junior years at Kentucky. Even so, Walker has experience everywhere from 0-Tech to standup EDGE, spending most of his 2024 snaps around the B gap via PFF. So, what's the deal with Walker? Is 2023 closer to what he's truly capable of as an NFL D-lineman, or is there more to read based on the most recent slate of available tape?
Player Bio
Name: Deone Walker
Jersey: No. 0
Position: Interior Defensive Lineman
School: Kentucky
Class: Junior
Height: 6'7"
Weight: 340
Games Watched: vs. Mizzou and Tennessee (2023), vs. Georgia, Florida, and Ole Miss (2024), Senior Bowl Practices (2025)
Major Injury History: N/A
Player Breakdown
Block Shedding (11.5/15)
For a guy his size and with his wingspan, I was very impressed with how Walker could bypass blocks beyond just outmuscling people. His swim move was a consistent go-to, and for good reason, but Walker also showed off the ability to spin off of blockers and, of course, win with power/length. You also saw him break out the club on occasion, which is another nice tool in the bag.
Unfortunately, as you can imagine, Walker's natural pad level is pretty high, which can hurt him here and just about every other aspect of his game. There were a ton of run plays, more so in 2024, where blockers got good hand placement on him and took him out of plays laterally, and he didn't display the consistent ability to get by/off blockers with his hands. He's 6'7, so there's only so much he'll be able to do to compensate for that, but you'd want him to be lower on a more consistent basis, especially if he's going to be playing 0-2 tech at the next level.
Strength at the LOS (12.5/15)
This should come as no surprise, but the 6'7" 340lb'er can generate a ton of power at the line of scrimmage. Shocking, I know. The ability to reset the line as a run defender showed up when he put everything together, but this is where having a high pad level also hurts. If you caught him high, you could nullify him in the right spots, and Georgia did that to a good extent in 2024. Then you could get plays like this against Georgia, where he holds firm on the initial double, rips himself away from a guard, and makes a nice stop in no man's land—an excellent example of upper and lower body strength coming together to make something good happen. Consistency in the technique is the key. Low Man Wins isn't just a slogan for the sake of it. He can generate even more power by staying low with how good he can explode out of his stance.
Pass Rush Ability (13.75/15)
Walker is statistically one of this draft class' best interior pass rushers and that certainly shows up on film. Even while his overall hand usage was a bit inconsistent, his ability to win with finnese and with the swim move from the inside was legit. The tape would also tell you that his pass rush ability popped more last year, and he was scary good in the Mizzou game which leads off this clip.
I had him down for a hands-to-the-face on a sack that was called back against Mizzou, but there are no other penalty-related notes here to speak of. Also, I don't want to spend too long getting into the double teams in relation to the pass rush, but I'd be remiss if I didn't show this specific play from the Mizzou game: Seven-man protection vs. three-man rush with Walker lined up over the right tackle. What happened to shame? Where'd she go?
I would like to see him add a bit more to the pass rush repertoire if possible, but it's good to know he can win with more than just brute strength coming into the league.
Consistency (10/15)
It's not an effort reason why this score is rather low considering the snap-per-game numbers Walker put out, but he's a guy carrying a 340lb frame at the end of the day. It's only natural that he'd be getting gassed in stretches and in-game conditioning; it is going to be something he has to improve at the next level. He's not going to do the 56 snaps per game he did in 2023, but the odds of him amassing 700 plus snaps a season by his second or third year are pretty high. I don't hate the idea of him shedding potentially 10-20 lbs and seeing where things go into year one.
Push (8.5/10)
We've talked about pad level affecting most of Walker's game, which hurt him a ton even when he got to the point of attack first (mainly vs. the run in 2024), but his ability to time up the snap was phenomenal for the most part. It didn't show up a ton per se, but he has the potential to reset the line vs. the run at will. Walker also showed off the ability to walk tackles back out on the edge, which is...horrifying. He gets a penalty here on the sack, but the key is everything leading up to that.
Length Usage (9.25/10)
How about a Senior Bowl example of what Walker can do with his massive reach? Check this clip courtesy of the Draft Network's Ryan Fowler.
Engage, extend, win. You can't teach 34.5-inch arms, nor what will almost certainly be a wingspan around the 95th percentile range. His frame is also massive (thanks, Captain Obvious), and he's naturally able to eat up a lot of space in the run game, demanding multiple blockers a ton. Another thing I like a lot is that Walker almost always tried to get a hand in the passing lane if he could, and we caught one of his seldom PBUs.
Athleticism (9.25/10)
One of the first things you'll notice with Walker is his initial burst off the snap, which is preposterous for someone his size. Being able to win with quickness is one hell of a weapon in Walker's arsenal, and you saw him be able to dictate those early moments at the point of attack. His movement skills, in general, are really good, and we saw a glimpse of that down in Mobile, where Walker was running some drills earlier this week.
Stamina is a bit of a knock here on the athletic front, but it also says a lot that Walker was still able to put up north of 50 snaps a game, lining up all over the defensive front, including as a STANDUP EDGE RUSHER at times (primarily in these three-man fronts they love). Especially given how great his first step looked, it wouldn't shock me in the slightest if he tests very well in the explosion metrics at the combine.
Football IQ (8.75/10)
Outside of really one play vs. Tennesee where Walker and his near-side edge egregiously gave up contain on Joe Milton (he didn't take the open lane, but nevertheless) and then a few other plays at most, there wasn't anything that would indicate to me that the Kentucky product doesn't have a good understanding of the game. He saw into the backfield pretty well and was disciplined in his gaps as a run defender and, for the most part, as a pass rusher.
Player Summary
The 2023 tape holds up much better than the 2024 tape for Walker, but it's hard to say he doesn't have a frighteningly high upside as an NFL defender. I wanted to check this, but do you want to know who was also praised for power, athleticism, and length but lamented for pad level and playing a bit upright coming out of college? Chris Jones and Calais Campbell. Both of those guys fell out of the first round, and I imagine they will sleepwalk into Canton. I'm not saying Walker is or will develop into that caliber of player. Still, with his physical tools and youth on his side, the potential for him to grow into an excellent NFL defender is there. Even for a more grounded example, look at a guy like Grover Stewart with the Colts. Smaller than Walker, yes, but he was another versatile interior guy with pad-level concerns and has become one of the better nose tackles in the league.
Walker certainly needs development, there's no denying that. Pad level has to be better, wouldn't mind seeing an extra tool or two as a pass rusher, and conditioning will be a big storyline with him moving forward. That said, I'm not selling an ounce of stock here, not when the upside for someone is this good.
Rookie Projection: Early Down Interior Pass Rusher/Goalline IDL
Third-Year Projection: Every Down Multi-Tech IDL
Final Grade (83.5/100): Mid-Second Round Grade
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