NFL Draft Profile: Nik Bonitto, Outside Linebacker, Oklahoma Sooners
#11
Pos: OLB
Ht: 6030
Wt: 248
Hand: 0938
Arm: 3248
Wing: N/A
40: 4.54
Bench: 22
3-Cone: 7.07
Shuttle: 4.23
Vert: 35.5
Broad: 1000
DOB: 9/26/_
Eligible: 2022
Fort Lauderdale, FL
St. Thomas Aquinas High School
Nik Bonitto
Oklahoma Sooners
One-Liners
A versatile defender with upper-echelon burst and bend, Nik Bonitto has excellent inside-outside versatility as a speed rusher. He has the awareness to capitalize on poor footwork with occasional power moves. He can and should drop into coverage at times.
Pros:
The Oklahoma defense boasted multiple NFL-caliber athletes in 2021. Nik Bonitto may be the best among them. The Florida native is a fluid and quick mover with impressive transitions and change of direction ability. His explosive first step helps him in his pass rush and enables him to penetrate. Bonitto overpowers skill position blockers and can work through linemen if he forces them off-balance. When rushing the passer, Bonitto’s feel for leverage helps him manufacture power and length while reducing blockable surface area. The Oklahoma star sets up all of his rushes with body fakes and salesmanship. Bonitto then wins with outstanding ghost and dip and rip moves. He is extremely flexible and easily bends the edge to the passer. He also flashes solid swim, side-scissor and swipe moves; he has a dangerous stop-start attack. If linemen overset, the Sooners’ standout threatens the inside track with speed. Bonitto has the leg drive and flexibility to drive through half-man with a rip move. In run defense, Bonitto tracks and works to ball carriers efficiently. In addition to beating blockers with quickness, he eats blocks, sets the edge, windows and stacks to shed well. His penetration ability sees him disrupt plays even when he fails to make the tackle. What’s more, Bonitto has experience handling running backs and tight ends in man and has solid spatial awareness in zone. He can spy athletic passers. Moreover, he is an excellent tackler in space with sound pursuit angles and a high motor.
Cons:
The Sooners’ standout’s various strengths do not overshadow certain noticeable deficiencies. First and foremost, he is fairly small for the position. What’s more, Bonitto is a scheme-specific player who will not be an every-down pass rusher until he improves his technique; that said, he can still see the field as a versatile defender. When facing blockers, he exhibits middling functional length. Overall, though, Bonitto’s greatest shortcoming is his lack of refinement as a pass rusher. His pad level is too high too often. He also leads with his shoulder into contact, rather than with his hands. In fact, he is regularly late with his hands and sometimes fails to employ them at all. These tendencies surrender his frame to opposing linemen. Further, Bonitto lacks a consistent pass rush plan and rarely uses moves beyond his ghost rush. Additionally, the Oklahoma star lacks difference-making power. He rarely displaces linemen without leverage; even then, he often fails to win without first putting blockers off-balance. His anchor is inconsistent at best; he struggles against double teams, even when the secondary blocker is a running back. In coverage, Bonitto needs to improve his hip discipline.
Summary:
A star in his time with the Sooners, Nik Bonitto is a versatile 3-4 outside linebacker with enticing traits. While his technique is unrefined and he lacks ideal play strength, the Oklahoma star is passable in man and zone coverage. What’s more, he has rare burst and flexibility to bend the edge. He is intelligent and instinctive against the run and the pass. Though he must improve his rush plan and move arsenal to be a full-time pass rusher at the next level, Bonitto’s versatility and traits make him an immediate starter. The rare athlete has All-Pro potential.
Background:
Born September 26th, 1999 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Nik Bonitto was a standout at St. Thomas Aquinas, a powerhouse high school program. In his career, he put up over 140 tackles. He also recorded 26.5 tackles for loss, 17 sacks, two interceptions, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. In recognition of his outstanding high school career, Bonitto received a four-star grade from 247Sports Composite Rankings. The same outlet named him the 220th-overall player in his class, the 17th-ranked outside linebacker that year and the 40th-best player from Florida in 2018. In his first year at Oklahoma, Bonitto redshirted. Still, he played in three games and made three tackles. The next season, he played in all 14 games and started the final eight. The versatile defender put up 43 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, one interception and four pass breakups. In 2020, Bonitto found a way to build upon his stellar redshirt freshman season. He started each of the 10 games he played in on his way to 32 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, two pass breakups and 10 quarterback hurries. Further, Pro Football Focus (PFF) credited him with the top pressure rate in the nation - 25.7%. In 2020, Bonitto was named First-Team All-American by Pro Football Focus and Second-Team All-American by the Associated Press. He was an Academic All-Big 12 Second Team selection. In 2021, Bonitto started all 12 games of the regular season before sitting out the bowl game to prepare for the 2022 NFL Draft. Still, the impactful defender recorded 39 tackles, seven sacks, 15 tackles for loss, nine quarterback hurries, three fumble recoveries, one forced fumble and one pass breakup.
Grades
Current Player Value/Potential Player Value
7.9 / 9.0
Floor/Ceiling: Starting Hybrid On-Ball Linebacker / All-Pro Hybrid On-Ball Pass Rusher
Scheme Fit: 3-4 Rush Linebacker
Grade: First Round
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