Darius Stills - Nose Guard West Virginia Mountaineers Scouting Report
DARIUS STILLS | West Virginia | DT | #56 | Sr | 6005 | 285 | 4.95e | Fairmont, WV | Fairmont Senior | 05.01.98
Overview:
With a father having played in the NFL and a younger brother alongside him on the defensive line at West Virginia, Stills has a rich bloodline for football. He broke out during his junior season in 2019, earning All-Big 12 first-team honors, leading his team in sacks with seven. He followed that up with a fair senior season, accumulating 3.5 sacks along with his first career interception. He played the majority of his snaps as a one-technique or three-technique for the Mountaineers. His explosion off the snap followed by straight-line foot speed was incredible. Stills plays with a lot of juice in his step and he has a natural ability to rush the passer because of that speed and quick hands at the point of attack. He is also an extremely aggressive and strong tackler who finishes plays with conviction. However, Stills did have his fair share of struggles in the run game because he lacks the ability to maintain leverage at the line of scrimmage. He is a fairly strong player, but if he gets stood up by blockers immediately, he is out of the play right off the bat. That inability hinders his projection as a reliable run defender in the league. Because of his prowess as a pass rusher, Stills will still hold value to many teams because of his prowess as a pass rusher. His best fit will be in a 4-3 defensive scheme that can somewhat mask his run defending struggles.
Background:
Raised outside Morgantown, West Virginia. Three-star recruit according to 247Sports. Multidisciplinary Studies major. Played in nine games as a freshman. Played in 12 games as a sophomore. Started 11 of 12 games played as a junior. Played in nine games in 2020. Father played nine years in the NFL. Two siblings. Brother is also a defensive tackle at West Virginia.
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