Washington State defensive tackle Xavier Cooper has found a home in the NFL, landing with the Cleveland Browns with the No. 96 pick of the 2015 NFL Draft. The Browns swapped spots with the New England Patriots, shipping picks Nos. 111, 147 and 202 in exchange for No. 96 and No. 219.
2015 NFL Draft: Browns trade up for Xavier Cooper, Patriots select Geneo Grissom
Cleveland swapped picks with the Patriots to move into position for Cooper.
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The Patriots used the No. 97 pick to grab Oklahoma defensive end Geneo Grissom.
Cooper put up Aaron Donald-like numbers at the NFL Combine, posting a 4.81 40-yard dash, with a 1.68 split while weighing in at 296 pounds. That time was the fastest among players projected primarily as defensive tackles, and of the six defensive lineman on either side of his 40 time, none of them weighed over 280 pounds.
If you were going to find a way to knock Cooper, you could point to his reach. He has about the shortest arms and wingspan of defensive linemen in the draft, which could limit his ability to fight off blocks and penetrate the backfield.
Those short arms certainly didn’t keep Cooper from bulldozing his way through offensive linemen in college, leading the Cougars in tackles for loss in each of the last two seasons. Throw in his quick burst off the line and he’s an ideal penetrating defensive tackle -- or five-technique defensive end -- capable of playing either position at the NFL.
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