Steelers Draft Profile: Outside linebacker Oshane Ximines

Oshane Ximines was a dominant player at a small school in college and could be an option for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2019 NFL Draft.

All stats and measurements come from odusports.com

School: Old Dominion

Position: Outside Linebacker

Height: 6’-4’’

Weight: 255 Ibs

Career Stats: 176 Total Tackles, 51.5 Tackles for Loss, 33 Sacks, 1 Interception and 11 Forced Fumbles

Career Highlights: All Conference USA First Team (2017,2018), All Conference USA Second Team (2016)

Draft Projection: 1st Round, Pick: 20 – 30

Strengths

Oshane Ximines was the best athlete on the field playing in Conference USA. He was a dominant player for years evidenced by over 50 tackles for a loss, 30 sacks and double-digit forced fumbles in his career at Old Dominion. In the games, I watched he was deadly bending the edge and showed good burst getting off of the line of scrimmage. He’s fast enough to blow past tackles if they lose positioning and was rarely out of position against the run. He would likely be asked to cover more as an outside linebacker than he was in college but has the athleticism to be serviceable.

Weaknesses

One major knock on Ximines is the level of competition the majority of his snaps came against in college. He needs to play stronger at times and got away with poor technique occasionally due to his superior athleticism. I would like to see him improve his hand usage and keep offensive lineman out of his pads. He also shows a willingness to play the run but sometimes needs to play with better leverage.

Analysis of Potential Selection

The selection of an edge rusher will likely depend on the team’s feelings about Bud Dupree’s long term future with the team. T.J. Watt looks to be the future at the position on one side of the defense but the other side is less clear. If the Steelers like Dupree enough to sign him to a second contract then it is unlikely Pittsburgh selects someone like Ximines unless they fall in love with a prospect.

Ximines is a player that could take a year to acclimate to the NFL, however, and could be a guy that the team sees as a situational player in year one and a replacement for Dupree next season if they choose to let him walk in free agency.

Grade for Potential Selection: C+

I wasn’t exactly floored when watching Ximines. He has a potential and could be a really good player down the road but I don’t see him as an immediate force in the NFL. There is a strong possibility that it will take him a while to acclimate to the speed of the NFL coming from Conference USA. On top of that, I think his technique will need to be refined some as well.

I would not have any issue with the Steelers selecting Ximines in April but I would not expect him to come out and seize the starting job right away especially while Dupree, who isn’t a star but is a capable player, is still on the roster.