2018 Georgia Football NFL Draft Prospect: LB Lorenzo Carter

Could he be better in the pros?

Carter will go down as a legend at UGA because of his 2017 season. His previous 3 seasons were constantly frustrating because the talent never matched up to the production. However, the performances in his final year changed his legacy in Athens. He’ll go down as one of the founding members of Kirby Smart’s ‘Wolfpack’ and a team captain that made critical plays that won big games.

At the next level, Carter will likely be an outside linebacker. The key to his success will be that he lands in the right spot. It’s important that he’s picked by an organization whose coaches have a clear plan for how to use him in their scheme. That was the big difference between 2017 and the other years. Carter had a clear role and it was one he was more than capable of filing.

I can see him succeeding in either a 4-3 or a 3-4 scheme. He has the athletic ability to play in coverage and stop the run while rushing the passer when necessary. I don’t believe that he’s a great fit as a pure pass-rushing linebacker. Teams that use their OLB’s in that regards should likely pass on Carter. He’s not a great fit for those scheme’s because that is not his strength.

That’s not to say that Carter cannot get sacks at the next level. I’m a firm believer that he could continue to develop and get better at it at. But there is so much more to his game than just that. This is a guy who can cover tight ends if he needs to and sets the edge as well as anyone else in the draft. Those skills shouldn’t be wasted.