| Score | Overall |
| 85.9 | 36 |
| Position | Day |
| 1 | 2 |
| Score | Position | Day | Overall |
| 85.9 | 1 | 2 | 36 |
| Height: | 6' 4" | Weight: | 233 lbs |
| Hands: | 9 | Arms: | 30.5 |
| 40 YD Dash: | 4.43 | 10 YD Split: | 1.54 |
| Vertical: | 34.5 | Broad: | -- |
| Shuttle: | -- | Cone: | -- |
| Height: | 6' 4" | Hands: | 9 | 40 YD Dash: | 4.43 |
| Weight: | 233 lbs | Arms: | 30.5 | 10 YD Split: | 1.54 |
| Broad: | -- | Cone: | -- | ||
| Vertical: | 34.5 | Shuttle: | -- |
| Height: | 6' 4" | Hands: | 9 | 40 YD Dash: | 4.43 | Broad: | -- | Cone: | -- |
| Weight: | 233 lbs | Arms: | 30.5 | 10 YD Split: | 1.54 | Vertical: | 34.5 | Shuttle: | -- |
Butkus Award Winner (2023)
Unanimous All-American (2023)
Nagurski Award finalist (2023)
Bednarik Award Winner (2023)
ACC Defensive Player of the Year (2023)
1st Team ALL-ACC (2020, 2023)
Class-best athleticism. He tested as a 99th percentile athlete for the position, and his film agrees. Wilson has the requisite linear explosiveness to be a disruptive force in all facets of the position. He also has the foot speed and lateral agility of a defensive back.
Good play recognition and range. Wilson quickly diagnoses and understands what is going on in front of him in the run game. He keys his gaps well and has elite sideline-to-sideline potential. When he triggers, he gets downhill with suddenness. When on the move, he does a good job using his lateral quickness to scrape and dip blockers coming his way. He is a nuisance to block up on outside zone plays.
High-level coverage instincts. You see the football IQ pop in coverage as he picks up route patterns quickly and can also sniff out screens and shallow crossers. His hips are oily, allowing him to turn and run in man. It is hard to scheme up mismatches against him as he does not process and move like a typical linebacker.
Excellent blitzer. Wilson’s explosiveness and timing as a blitzer are awesome. When teams commit an extra body to the pass-rush plan, they want to know it will come with results. Wilson doesn’t waste opportunities and uses all the tools at his disposal to impact the throw or even rack up sacks.
Not a stack-and-shed run defender. Wilson has super short arms and gets beat to the punch in engagements. Given that he consistently loses the battle for leverage, he can be completely blown out of a play. He is more of a block slipper and needs to avoid contact outright to stay alive defending his gap.
Needs to add functional play strength. You see it taking on blockers, but it really pops when making tackles. When he wraps up ball carriers he doesn’t have the strength to bring them down before giving up some ground in a fight. I had a similar complaint about Jack Campbell last year and thought that continued in Campbe;;’s tape as a rookie.
Lack of length limits upside as a coverage defender. For clarity, Wilson is generally great in the coverage phase of pass-down play. However, his lack of length will inevitably lead to some missed opportunities to get his hands into passing windows and even limit the opportunities to generate turnovers.
Wilson is a physically gifted off-ball linebacker prospect who has a high football IQ and football intangibles. If he doesn’t develop one iota at the NFL level, I still think he has a ton of value as a pass-down specialist who thrives both in coverage and rushing the passer as a blitzer. The good news is that Wilson will have plenty of time to develop his play strength and tighten up his ability as a run defender. I value pass coverage more than anything at the linebacker position, and with that, Wilson scores as my LB1 and a top-40 player in the class for me.
| Score | Overall |
| 84.8 | 45 |
| Position | Day |
| 2 | 2 |
| Score | Position | Day | Overall |
| 84.8 | 2 | 2 | 45 |
| Height: | 6' 2" | Weight: | 230 lbs |
| Hands: | 9.75 | Arms: | 34 |
| 40 YD Dash: | 4.51 | 10 YD Split: | 1.54 |
| Vertical: | 34.5 | Broad: | -- |
| Shuttle: | -- | Cone: | -- |
| Height: | 6' 2" | Hands: | 9.75 | 40 YD Dash: | 4.51 |
| Weight: | 230 lbs | Arms: | 34 | 10 YD Split: | 1.54 |
| Broad: | -- | Cone: | -- | ||
| Vertical: | 34.5 | Shuttle: | -- |
| Height: | 6' 2" | Hands: | 9.75 | 40 YD Dash: | 4.51 | Broad: | -- | Cone: | -- |
| Weight: | 230 lbs | Arms: | 34 | 10 YD Split: | 1.54 | Vertical: | 34.5 | Shuttle: | -- |
1st Team All-American (2023)
1st Team All-SEC (2023)
SEC All-Freshman Team (2023)
Former 4-star recruit
Athleticism and length make for a deep coverage toolbox. Cooper has the explosiveness and fluidity to run with anyone he will be matched against. Few linebackers thrive in man coverage against non RBs, but I think with some work, Cooper could be an asset there. His length gives him the ability to shut down passing windows and generate a ton of ball production. When he is involved in a play at the catch point he does a good job looking to separate the ball from the receiver.
Excellent blitzer. Cooper uses that explosiveness to jump into the backfield and actually has an arsenal of pass-rush moves, including a variety of chops and swats. He can also convert speed to power against TEs and RBs. He was highly productive as a pass-rusher on blitzes in 2023 and was a legitimate part of Texas A&M’s pass-rush plan. He also has the long speed to chase down scrambling QBs and stack up clean-up opportunities.
Competitive motor and intensity. Cooper is a tone-setter. He plays his tail off on every single play and never stops moving. His energetic approach helps him slip blockers. He can wear down ball carriers as games go on with his pop and willingness to bring the thunder.
Slow processing and shaky instincts. Cooper has a slow diagnose and trigger when defending the run. He is late to key his fit and can lose his gap. He has a "feel-and-chase" approach to the run game, which often gets him cut off at the NFL level. In coverage, you see the closing speed on routes working in front of him, but you don’t necessarily see the “click.”
Despite length, loses the leverage battle too often. Among the top LBs in the class, Cooper has by far the best length, but as of now, it doesn’t help him keep himself clean. He enters engagements with poor pad level and hasn’t quite figured out how to uncork his hips to bring power to the conversation.
Cooper is a boom-or-bust type of prospect. He has every physical tool you could dream of to be an excellent linebacker, but he has a long way to go from a mental processing standpoint. However, with pass-game chops being so valuable, I can look past some of his deficiencies and bet on the traits. He scores as my LB2 in the class and is a top-50 player for me.
| Score | Overall |
| 83.8 | 51 |
| Position | Day |
| 3 | 2 |
| Score | Position | Day | Overall |
| 83.8 | 3 | 2 | 51 |
| Height: | 6' 1" | Weight: | 238 lbs |
| Hands: | 9.38 | Arms: | 32.5 |
| 40 YD Dash: | -- | 10 YD Split: | -- |
| Vertical: | -- | Broad: | -- |
| Shuttle: | -- | Cone: | -- |
| Height: | 6' 1" | Hands: | 9.38 | 40 YD Dash: | -- |
| Weight: | 238 lbs | Arms: | 32.5 | 10 YD Split: | -- |
| Broad: | -- | Cone: | -- | ||
| Vertical: | -- | Shuttle: | -- |
| Height: | 6' 1" | Hands: | 9.38 | 40 YD Dash: | -- | Broad: | -- | Cone: | -- |
| Weight: | 238 lbs | Arms: | 32.5 | 10 YD Split: | -- | Vertical: | -- | Shuttle: | -- |
2nd Team All-Big 10 (2022, 2023)
Led Michigan in tackles with 95 tackles in 2023
Made 36 starts in 3 years at Michigan
Lott IMPACT Trophy Winner (2023)
Good size and above-average athleticism. Colson has a big, muscular build with a very proportionate frame. He has good length and strong hands. His athleticism is more quickness and lateral-agility centric than explosive, although his first step is pretty good. He has a ton of functional play strength and has sideline-to-sideline chase ability.
Plus run defender with throwback stack and shed ability. Colson can play downhill and take on blockers with the best of him. He has great initial strike timing and has a ton of pop in his hands to displace and get off blocks. He also has the lateral agility to scrape from gap to gap and track ball carriers through traffic.
Elite stopping power. He is an excellent tackler in space and gives up almost no ground when making tackles, dropping ball carriers right where first contact is made. He brings the thunder and uses great form. He is incredibly valuable defending the sticks in both the run and short pass game.
Zone coverage instincts are good. Colson isn’t really the coverage archetype linebacker, but he definitely won’t be a liability in zone defense. He keeps his feet light and can change direction in a blink. He has excellent field vision and plays with good reaction ability. He shows a good understanding of route concepts and can make late adjustments to pass-catchers entering his space late.
Weirdly slow trigger defending the run. Sometimes, Colson slowly processes when defending the run and is late to trigger into his gap or take on his blocker. He also doesn’t always flow correctly with certain run concepts and can find himself way out of position or in the wrong gap outright.
Man coverage not a strength. Athletic tight ends and running backs can put Colson in a blender when in man coverage.
Wasn’t productive as a blitzer. With the combo of skills Colson has, it seems like he would be an asset as a blitzer, but that just isn’t the case. His blitz timing wasn’t always great and he doesn’t really have a plan once he goes. Most of his production came when he got 1-on-1 opportunities on a running back.
Colson is a toolsy MIKE LB prospect who has a pretty high floor with his stack-and-shed ability and zone coverage chops. Ideally he speeds up his processing a bit to become a more consistent and complete player. From the people I have talked to Colson also has exceptionally high football intangibles and can anchor a defense from a leadership standpoint. He scores as my LB3 in the class and is worthy of a Day 2 selection.
More Evaluations Coming Soon
The Fantasy Points Prospect Guide will be regularly updated as Brett Whitefield makes his way through more film.
Check back regularly for updates on both offensive and defensive players.
