The lofty praise of Buffalo outside linebacker Khalil Mack continues, as he has been compared to Denver Broncos star Von Miller by one AFC college scouting director.
NFL Media reporter Albert Breer talked with the scouting director about Mack, whose final college game comes Saturday against San Diego State in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. The director compared Mack to Miller from a size/speed standpoint, even if Mack is what Breer calls "a tick below" Miller as a prospect.
"He's one of the top pass rushers in the draft," the AFC college scouting director said. "He played his best games against the biggest opponents, and can be an [outside linebacker] in a 3-4 or a Sam [linebacker] in a 4-3."
Mack (6-foot-3, 248 pounds) has 94 tackles, 10.5 sacks, 19 tackles for loss and five forced fumbles this season. He is the NCAA's career leader in forced fumbles with 16 and should break the career record for tackles for loss in the bowl; he has 75, which is tied with former Western Michigan defensive end Jason Babin, now a starter with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Breer says that with strong pre-draft workouts, Mack -- who will play in the Senior Bowl -- could wind up as a top-10 pick. That's not bad for a player whose only official recruiting visit out of high school was to Buffalo. Going by 247sports.com's composite recruiting rankings, Mack was the consensus No. 143 player in Florida -- not the nation, but the state of Florida -- in the 2009 recruiting class. Jacksonville Jaguars rookie safety Jonathan Cyprien, who attended FIU and was taken in the second round of the 2013 draft, was No. 138.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
