Eyabi Okie-Anoma, EDGE, Charlotte
Size:
Height: 6’4.5”
Weight: 260 lbs
Arm Length: 33 1/2"
Hand Size: 9 1/2"
Accomplishments:
Second Team All-American Athletic Conference (2023) • SEC All-Freshman Team (2018) • OVC All-Newcomer Team (2021) • 5-star recruit
“Eyabi Okie-Anoma is a physically gifted former 5-star edge defender with an enticing combination of NFL-caliber size, athleticism, and power that will pique the NFL’s interest.”
Strengths:
Physically gifted
NFL size/frame and strength
Stacks/sheds in run game
Power moves are go-to
Concerns:
Maturity concerns (constant transferring in college)
Unrefined pass-rush repertoire
Natural bend
Consistency dropping anchor vs. run
Film Analysis:
Eyabi Okie-Anoma brings legitimate NFL-level talent to the edge rusher position. He has enough first-step explosiveness needed to attack the outside shoulder of offensive tackles, opening room for his power moves. He possesses an effective speed-to-power bull rush to drive blockers deep into the backfield and disrupt the quarterback’s comfort zone. He has a nice pop in his hands when converting speed-to-power. This can be troublesome for IOL on twists and stunts where Okie-Anoma can run through their chest into the face of the QB.
Okie-Anoma has the power to take advantage of technically poor blockers. He will get his hands underneath their pads and forklift/uproot them from the turf in both run and pass games. He has the quickness to slice and slip through lanes and across blockers’ faces as a backside run defender. On run actions like split flow/zone and stretch/wide zones, he will slip reach blocks and chase plays down from behind.
As physically gifted and talented as Okie-Anoma is, the lack of maturity plagued him as a collegiate player. He transferred to a handful of different schools during his career. This has limited his developmental growth as a pure pass rusher.
He lacks the natural bend to defeat the outside shoulder and corner to the quarterback. Okie-Anoma must develop second-hand counters after his bull rush/power move is stifled. His rush plan appears to be lacking on how to attack blockers snap to snap.
Overall, Okie-Anoma projects as a toolsy backup who fits as an odd-front edge rusher. Teams will have to be comfortable with his maturity and work ethic to finally take the steps to develop.
Prospect Projection: Day 3 — Scheme Specific
Written By: Damian Parson
Exposures: Rice (2023), Florida (2023), SMU (2023), Maryland (2023)