The Arizona Cardinals took Clemson linebacker Isaiah Simmons with the eighth overall pick in the NFL Draft late last month, and the club is thrilled about his potential:
“Our thought process, is if he is really able to focus on one position, having the flexibility to still move around, but really focus on one, what does that look like?” said Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, according to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com. “And the sky can really be the limit. That's why we were so excited about him. The athleticism is through the roof. But his ability to play different positions and not really have any chance to focus on one, we just think the sky can be the limit for what he could be if we really lock him into one position the majority of the time.”
Simmons was considered one of the best defensive players in the class entering the draft, so it was somewhat surprising that he even fell all the way to Arizona.
But the Cardinals obviously aren't going to complain.
Simmons arrived at Clemson in 2016, but redshirted his first year. Then, in 2017, Simmons saw some decent playing time, registering 45 tackles, a sack, a forced fumble and six passes defended. He showed marked improvement the following season, finishing with 88 tackles, nine tackles for loss, a couple of sacks, an interception, three forced fumbles, six passes defended and a defensive touchdown.
The 21-year-old finally broke out in his junior campaign, racking up 104 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, a pair of forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and eight passes defended.
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