A quick look at Nick Fairley's stat line in the BCS Championship game shows why he was the game's MVP and a future top-five pick in the draft.
Against Oregon, Fairley finished with five tackles, three tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble.
However, if you look past the stat line, it's hard to consider Fairley for the first pick in the draft.
Fairley’s stats lie in BCS Championship game
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First and foremost, if Carolina moves to a 3-4 defense (as expected), Fairley is a poor scheme fit. As a three-technique tackle, Fairley’s game is pressure and quickness. His game isn’t based on strength. That showed early in the national title game when Fairley was controlled pretty well in the first quarter.
Of course, his three tackles for loss were impressive, but two of them came when he was completely unblocked. Fairley also got a lot of pressure going one-on-one against Oregon’s undersized interior line. What made Oregon think that was a good idea, who knows.
What it did do, though, is inflate Fairley’s stats. It pushed his tackles for loss on the year to 24 and his sacks to 11.5.
There is no question that Fairley is a good player. His playing style and effort could immediately give a defense an attitude. Rival teams will hate Fairley and his penchant for cheap shots.
There are questions about whether or not Fairley is a one-year wonder, or if he can take up two gaps in the NFL. Or if he has the power to take on and shed blockers.
The answers to all those questions point to Fairley being a big risk at the top of the draft, let alone as the first pick overall.
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