2022 NFL Draft Prospect Profile: DL Travis Jones, Connecticut

The Giants can't forget about adding depth to their defensive line. So Nick takes a look at UConn's Travis Jones' skillset.

Travis Jones, DL

Height: 6’4
Weight: 326 lbs.
Class: Senior
School: Connecticut

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Jones is a former three-star recruit from Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven, Connecticut. Jones was the tenth-ranked Connecticut prospect in the 2018 recruiting cycle. 

Jones took the NFL scouting and media world by storm at the Reese’s Senior Bowl, where he was almost unblockable all week. Much credit should go to Senior Bowl director Jim Nagy, and his staff, for finding this small school gem and allowing him to showcase his talents that weren’t always noticed by a broader audience.

Notables

Jones played three years in college due to Connecticut's opting out of the 2020 season; he was always an adept run defender, but he really developed as a pass-rusher plan and very crafty pass-rushing moves in 2019 & 2021. Jones had 23 and 25 pressures, respectively, in those two seasons.

He finished his Connecticut career with 87 tackles, 8.5 sacks, 19 tackles for a loss, and 56 pressures. Jones also recorded 70 STOPS at the line of scrimmage through his 1,603 snaps (844 of them being run defense). 

Jones was a big team leader in college; he was overweight at one point and reportedly trimmed his body fat percentage from 30% to 13%, which is very difficult to do for a 300+ pound individual. Jones arguably rose his stock more than any other player at the Reese’s Senior Bowl.

Strengths

• Mountain of a man with an ideal nose frame
• Carries his weight well - isn’t sloppy
• Functionally athletic for a player that is 326-pounds
• Has more flexibility than I originally thought after studying his tape
• Does a solid job in short areas with burst and lateral agility
• Moves very well laterally for a man of his size
• Quick first step, gets into OL chest fast
• Has heavy hands, can stack and shed quickly
• Explodes low to high with great strength
• Very crafty hand use to shed blocks and separate
• A good overall run defender who does a solid job anchoring and shedding in 1v1 situations
• Does a good job reading OL’s intentions - hard to reach because of pop and lower leg drive
• Plays with excellent play strength, very hard to move of the line in 1v1 situations
• Anchors well vs 1v1, has the capability to resink hips after contact if he’s not penetrating
• Can penetrate and run through blockers
• Solid pass rushing upside for a nose tackle
• Would make a good penetrator on stunts
• Deceptively good finesse hand usage to win at the point of attack
• Can bull-rush through interior offensive lineman well, combines it with supplement move (chop, swat, club, etc.) to create further separation laterally
• Great counter move usage, has a pass-rushing plan
• Very smart player who processes the game quickly
• Great work ethic, and a leader

Can Improve

• Allows his pad level to rise too much during plays
• Plan is solid but was caught lunging a few times in college (and at Senior Bowl practices) which led to him being snatch & trapped
• Although he’s a great athlete, I don’t think he has the quickness to effectively loop on stunt
• More than likely relegated to a nose or 1-technique

View all of Nick Falato's draft prospect profiles right here / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Summary

Overall, Travis Jones is a good, massive run defender with a pass-rushing upside in a nose tackle’s body. He can win with power and finesse, and he has the capability of stringing moves together in a coordinated plan. 

He allows his pad level to rise, leading to balance issues, but it’s correctable. Jones is a good athlete who could find himself selected on day two with the stellar performance in Mobile.

GRADE: 6.3 (He might not be a true second-round prospect but he has the potential to develop into a future starter) 

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