Noah Sewell Scouting Report

By: Michael Higgins

(Image courtesy of Sean Meagher/The Oregonian)

School: Oregon (Junior)

Position: LB

HT: 6’3

WT: 250 lbs

Sideline Prospect Ranking: #36

Noah Sewell was a 5-star recruit in high school out of Utah. His name may sound familiar as his family has an extensive football history. Most recently, his brother Penei, who was a dominant left tackle for the Oregon Ducks, was selected in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Lions. The oldest brother, Nephi Sewell, was a great linebacker at Utah and is currently playing for the Saints. In high school, Noah Sewell played both linebacker and running back, dominating both sides of the ball.

Noah Sewell is an extremely versatile linebacker who has been a starting MIKE Linebacker since he stepped foot on campus as a freshman. Sewell plays with an undeniably high motor that simply cannot be replicated. He is a willing tackler and an aggressive finisher. Sewell is the leader of the defense and doesn’t have any scheme weaknesses. While Sewell is a great fit for a traditional MIKE backer, he also excels as an edge rusher or a blitzing linebacker. Sewell possesses a great combination of power and finesse when rushing the quarterback. He also plays a decent amount of snaps in coverage, whether it be zone or man. In zone, Sewell primarily covers the intermediate areas of the field in between and just outside of the hashes. In man, you can find Sewell lining up opposite of Tight Ends, either in the slot or at the line.

Noah Sewell is a great player but his weaknesses are a bit obvious. For starters, his positional value as a MIKE linebacker is low, resulting in him, most likely, dropping on some mock drafts. Another area of Sewell’s game that is a weakness is his stiffness. While he is a physical freak and extremely athletic, he plays with a lot of stiffness that allows for ball carriers to beat him with certain angles and cuts. If he were to play with more bend he would have a larger tackle radius, but I am not sure how fixable of an issue that is. Another area of improvement that I do believe to be fixable is Sewell’s decisions both as a rusher and in the open field as a tackler. Sewell often rushes too far up the backfield and takes himself out of the play by getting behind the ball carrier. If he can take better angles to the backfield and collapse the pocket, rather than work around it, he will begin to see more success in that area.

Noah Sewell is a linebacker that offers strength, speed, and size at the position. He can quarterback a defense right away, he is just a bit raw and will experience some growing pains.

Scheme Fit: Zone Blitz Heavy

Ideal Role: MIKE Linebacker

Best Team Fits: BUF, MIA, DAL

Player Comparison: Devin White

Player Grade: 81.6