Scouting Report: Brandon Dorlus (IDL) - Oregon
Sales Pitch: "3-4 DE who wins as a penetrator with speed and quickness. Impressive length and powerful hands allow him to quickly defeat blocks. Is a bit of a tweener who struggles to defend the run but should provided plus value as a pass rusher."
Athletic Profile
Height: 6’ 3”
Weight: 283 lbs
Arm Length: 33 1/4”
Hand Size: 9 3/8”
40 Yard Dash: 4.85
10 Yard Split: 1.68
Vertical: 30.5”
Broad Jump: 9’ 3”
Short Shuttle: 4.85
3-Cone: 7.43
Age: 23
Relative Athletic Score: 8.65 / 10.00
Statistics
Career: 160 Pressures - 11 Sacks - 68 Tackles - 68 STOPs
2023: 46 Pressures - 4 Sacks - 14 Tackles - 16 STOPs
Strengths
Excellent all-around athlete with an impressive wingspan
10 batted balls in his career
580+ snaps and 40+ pressures in 3 straight seasons
Consistently beats IOL w/ speed and quickness as a rusher
Good collection of pass rush moves with counters and secondary moves to win late
Effective long arm to push the pocket
Quick powerful hands to quickly defeat blockers
Does a good job ripping down off balance lineman in the run game
Primarily wins as a penetrator in run defense
Athletic ability to be used on stunts and twists
Weaknesses
Tweener build who is scheme specific
Lighter frame with average lower body strength
Struggles to push the pocket vs bigger OL
Fails to hold his ground at the point of attack vs doubles and combo blocks
Below average run game instincts
Single gap run defender only
23% career missed tackle rate
Motor and aggression as a run defender is inconsistent
Summary
Brandon Dorlus is a hybrid DE/DT who is at his best as a penetrator and pass rusher relying on his speed and quickness to win. The former 3-Star recruit from Florida was extremely productive during his time in Oregon, logging 40 plus pressures and receiving All Pac-12 honors in each of his last three seasons. Dorlus is an impressive athlete who wins as pass rusher with his quickness and agility. He is a smooth mover capable of changing his rush angles to set up offensive lineman. He shows the ability to turn his hips at the top of his rush and close on quarterbacks when he gets a step. Dorlus is not known for being power rusher but his long powerful arms give him an effective long arm move, which he can use to drive back smaller guards. The same length also allows him to disrupt offenses quick passing game by getting his hands in throwing lanes, his 6 batted balls in 2023 were second in the country. Dorlus has a strong compliment of pass rush moves, showing off a swim move, push/pull and cross chop, as well as a collection of counters and secondary moves to win if his initial moves stall. He has strong hands that are quick and violent, they allow him to quickly shed off balance blockers as a pass rusher and run defender. Dorlus is at his best as a run defender when asked to be a single gap player where he can leverage his quickness and excellent hand work to create disruption. He is on the smaller side for an interior lineman (283 lbs is sub 10th percentile) and struggles to hold up versus down blocks and double teams at the point of attack. He also doesn’t display strong read and react skills in run defense which limits his scheme versatility. Dorlus has struggled with missed tackles in his career (26% missed tackle rate) due to questionable control in the open field, although it did improve dramatically in his final season (14% in 2023). Dorlus projects as a starting DE in a 3-4 front. He is at his best as a 3T/4i in a single gap run scheme that leans of his athletic gifts and penetration skills. Given his tweener build and run game inconsistencies he won’t fit every team’s defense but in the right scheme he can be impactful rotational rusher early and a quality starter down the road.