Player Evaluation: DT Terrence Cody, Alabama

By NEXT LEVEL SCOUTING

Alabama junior defensive tackle Terrence Cody returned to the lineup on Saturday after missing the past few games due to a sprained MCL in his right knee. Cody, who is listed at 365 pounds, although most feel he is probably closer to 380 pounds, contributed his normal run stuffing presence, but only had one assisted tackle in the box score.

In fact, on many downs he was left in 1-on-1 situations with LSU senior center Brett Helms, who he outweighs by nearly 100 pounds, yet remained blocked and sometimes even turned away from the play on some early long gains by LSU running backs. He seemed winded at times during the course of the game and was not fighting through blocks as easily as he had in past evaluations.

Cody has shown some unique quickness, balance and explosiveness for his size and position to create havoc for opposing interior linemen; see games vs. Arkansas, Clemson and Tulane. However, has played less than a full season against high-level competition, having transferred from JC this past February and there are some concerns over his potential battle of the bulge.

He was timed in the 5.50 range in the 40-yard dash at the JC level while at a similar weight, so his workout numbers might not be as eye-opening as his early season success. It is likely that he would receive a potential first-round grade if he opted to solicit his grade from the NFL Advisor Committee at season's end, but the defensive tackle position has been a "Hit-or-Miss" group in recent years with the lack of on-field success by players including Johnathan Sullivan, Dewayne Robertson and most recently John McCargo.