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Jack Sanborn NFL Draft Profile
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Jack Sanborn Scouting ReportJack is an effective as a tackler, Sanborn does well to come to balance and square up ball-carriers in the alley. He also offers an effective tackling radius and has consistency away from his frame to finish plays. Sanborn offers sufficient lateral mobility and range and, for some defenses, could fill the MIKE role at the NFL level from an athletic perspective. Sanborn is even consistent in making tackles while being leaned on and playing through congestion. Sanborn offers impressive football IQ, showing situational awareness to attack the football as a tackler or to try to hold up the ball-carrier to make him available for an attempt to strip the ball. He’s fairly diverse and has taken snaps as an end man on the line of scrimmage, mugged up in interior gaps, or as a true stack backer. Jack is a sideline-to-sideline MIKE, but he negotiates blocks well, he trusts his juice to make decisions working over or under blocks, and he’s a firm and clean tackler. Sanborn has been highly productive against the run and the Wisconsin defense has put him in a position to succeed with some of their run blitzes and gap exchanges at the snap. Sanborn has, at a minimum, shown he’s cerebral and physically competent in all phases of the position. He’s had success in various stretches as a pass defender (three INTs in 2019), as a penetration player (14.5 tackles for loss in 2021), and as a rally defender to the ball (led the team in tackles in both 2019 and 2020). He’s got a base personnel skill set and the tackling efficiency to be a starting linebacker in the NFL. |
Areas for ImprovementSanborn doesn't have the most sudden transitions. He’s more twitched gearing into contact as compared to physically exploding in short spaces or redirecting to attack small creases and working toward the ball and rapidly closing down distances. There's a bit of tightness to his hips and he's not the most fluid in his coverage drops—not certain how well he'll hold up in man-to-man coverage against NFL TEs in a defense that implements a lot of pressure looks and isolates their linebackers in coverage. Sanborn isn’t going to pop or shine in hook/curl coverage drops—there’s going to be a debate about his ability to play all three downs and he’ll need strong athletic testing to help buy-in.
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Jack Sanborn Career at WisconsinHenningsen has played in 29 games with 16 starts at defensive end. He owns 58 total tackles, including 7.5 TFLs and 5.0 sacks. He has recovered 3 fumbles, including 2 for touchdowns. He was First-team all-state by Wisconsin Football Coaches Association, both as offensive lineman and defensive lineman. He redshirted his freshman season in 2017. As a redshirt freshman, he earned first letter, playing in all 13 games with 10 starts at defensive end. He made 32 tackles, including 2.5 TFLs and 1.0 sack and had 1 pass breakup. In 2020 campaign, he earned second letter, playing in all 14 games with 5 starts at defensive end and scored 2 touchdowns on fumble recoveries. He also recorded 24 total tackles, 5.0 TFLs and 4.0 sacks.
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Jack Sanborn NFL Draft Player ProfileJack Sanborn is an old-school LB prospect with intriguing instincts that allow him to always be near the ball. When defending the run, Sanborn instinctually flows to the direction of the ball and shows quick processing skills to read offensive linemen keys and the ball carriers through traffic. Furthermore, his patience and discipline within his run fits allows Sanborn to position himself well versus runs between the tackles. At the point of attack, Sanborn has much improved tackling technique from his 2019 season. He targets low, wraps up and drives through the ball carrier to bring them down upon impact. Furthermore, Sanborn has moments of great stacking and shedding due to play strength and technique - getting low, shooting inside hands and disengaging by pulling cloth. He’s a highly competitive player who has a non-stop motor, as evidenced by consistently joining teammates on gang tackles and chasing down plays from the backside. In the passing game, Sanborn is often used as a blitzer, where his physical toughness, feisty passion and good snap-timing shine through. In addition, Sanborn’s instincts in zone coverage puts him in the general vicinity of receivers, allowing him to capitalize on mistakes to the tune of four INTs in 21 games.
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