INDIANAPOLIS — There seems to be some confusion about Texas A&M defensive end Cashius Howell.
Talent scouts assembled here for the NFL Combine apparently think he played college football at T-Rexas A&M.
Howell is apparently viewed as a ferocious predator, but with alarmingly short arms.
“He’s going to be interesting in a case study because he’s got all the production,” NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said in a pre-Combine press conference. “He has really, really short arms.
“There are teams where people will say it’s no big deal. Some teams care about it. That’ll be interesting.
“Take the short arm part out of it, and I think he might run in the low 4.5s (at the Combine 40-yard dash) or possibly even faster than that. He’s a freak in terms of how explosive he is.”
Howell exploded onto the Southeastern Conference scene this season. In his first year as a Texas A&M starter, he recorded 11.5 sacks to earn SEC Defensive Player of the Year honors. The explosive performance raised his collegiate sacks total to 27.
Will Huffman, TexAgs
Cashius Howell became the 11th unanimous All-American in Texas A&M history this fall.
Howell posted three consecutive plays in a victory over Utah State. He dominated Florida tackle Austin Barber, who was also invited to the Combine, in a victory over the Gators. Howell twice sacked LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier in an A&M blowout win.
Yet, his hopes of being a first-round draft choice could be out of reach because of arm length.
Howell understands he’s been analyzed and scrutinized. Yet, he’s eager to show how he can be utilized.
“I know, obviously, I have shorter arms,” said Howell on Wednesday. “That’s just the cards that I was dealt. I’m going to do everything in my power to perfect my technique and perfect my craft in whatever way possible to make sure my game translates to the next level.”
Howell spoke at the same time as Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor of Miami and David Bailey of Texas Tech, who are projected first-round picks.
Howell, by the way, had more sacks than Bain.
“Production has never been a real issue for me,” Howell said.
“I know, obviously, I have shorter arms. That’s just the cards that I was dealt. I’m going to do everything in my power to perfect my technique and perfect my craft in whatever way possible to make sure my game translates to the next level.”
- Texas A&M defensive end Jason Howell
But questions regarding arm length persist. It’s as if his arms being an inch or so shorter could make him a lesser football player.
“I’m going to do everything in my power to change that narrative,” he said.
He vows to work harder on technique in pass rush and run defense. That’ll require refining hand placement, footwork and setting a stronger edge against the run.
“I just want to increase my strength as much as I can,” he said.
Perhaps NFL scouts should put more emphasis on how strong the arms are than on how long they are.
“Everybody has different thoughts on it,” Jeremiah said. “Some teams are going to be more strict on it than others.”
Jeremiah said some of the questions about Howell’s arm length stem from his showing against Miami in the Aggies’ 10-3 College Football Playoff loss.
Brian Jones
In 26 games as an Aggie, Howell registered 71 total tackles, 22.5 TFLs and 15.5 sacks.
Howell managed just one tackle, no sacks and no quarterback pressures against Miami tackles Francis Mauigoa and Markel Bell.
But Jeremiah said those concerns might be overblown. He said Howell’s perceived problems in the Miami game might be deceiving.
“I went back and watched it,” Jeremiah said. “There’s not a ton of pure pass-rush opportunities there because (Miami quarterback Carson Beck) is getting the ball out quick. They even ran some non-traditional formation stuff.
“(Howell) looks a little small and plays a little small at times,” Jeremiah continued. “It’s all got to be kind of factored into it, but I’d have a hard time taking a worse player because he has long arms.”
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