Will Alualu drop to the top of the 4th round? I doubt it, I think he is likely a top 3rd round prospect, but stranger things have happened in the draft. At 6-3 and 290, he could move out to defensive end in a 3-4 or still play inside in 4-3’s, he is a great leader who works his butt off on every single snap. He won’t be the strongest, and he won’t be the quickest, but he will always be around the ball, whether that be in the backfield, at the line or down the field. He is a play to the whistle type player. He finished his career at California with 26 tackles for a loss, and 16.0 sacks, 7.5 of them coming in 2009. As he has gotten older he has gotten better, he is a hard worker. In three years as a starter, he averaged around 60 tackles a season. I watched Alualu against Oregon this season, against one of the better running teams and he did a great job of getting penetration and stuffing the run. I’m all for giving Rex some toys to work with, and give him a hard worker, who has talent and is willing to listen and learn, and you never know what you could get. I think we are set at DE for 2009, Ellis/Douglas/Devito all showed talent in 2009, and with Pouha and Jenkins, I’m drifting towards addressing that issue if it is still one in 2011, picking a player like Alualu is a low risk, high reward type deal in the 4th. When it is all said and done however, I doubt he reaches us.
