Processing / Game IQ
Pros:
•Has a variety of moves in his toolbox and can adjust accordingly
•Make the read on what gap the offense is trying to run through and explodes into it
•Does a good job giving OL as little hitting area and things to grab onto
Cons:
•Occasionally has bad gap discipline and gives up a massive hole
•Doesn’t have the greatest play recognition or game IQ at times
•Not great at recognizing screens
•Eyes are late to react at times
•Gives up his containment sometimes
Athleticism / Frame
Pros:
•Big frame
•Great downhill speed
•Good build both lower half and upper
•Uses the length he has well
•Good hip mobility
Cons:
•Lacks true straight-line speed
•Was in a car accident in 2024, Torn MCL in 2021, soft tissue injury in 2024
•Gonna probably have to get into better shape because his hustle and consistency play-to-play isn’t amazing
•Very concerning arm length sitting at ~30”
Tackling / Wrap Up
Pros:
•Good hit power
•Average wrap up
•Good pad level on his hits allows him to sometimes pop the ball free
Cons:
•Misses a fair amount of solo tackles and occasional sacks because he can’t quite finish the play I think that stems back to his arm length
Pursuit / Bend
Pros:
•Good bend and closing speed
•Good pursuit of the ball carrier when the offense runs away from his side
•Takes good angles to the QB
•Can drop that shoulder to get lower and bend below the arms of the OL
Cons:
•Doesn’t show great effort once the QB escapes the pocket
•Inconsistent effort
•Because his change of direction isn’t great, he often can’t recover, he misses the sack, or takes a bad angle to the QB
•Doesn’t have the greatest straight-line speed in long pursuits of ball carriers or QBs
•Not the greatest finisher of sacks
Hand Usage
Pros:
•Really good hand usage that consistently gets hands off
•Great swim move and finesse for how thick he is
•Has hands that are both quick while also violent and strong
•His hand timing his exceptional
•Knocks down hands well
•Disengages well in run defense when the ball carrier breaks the LOS plane
•Gets good extension with his arms to create separation so he can get eyes on the ball and disengage
•Good rip move
•Great bull rush
Cons:
•His hands sometimes drop down, which leads to him getting sealed off to a side
•If an OL can really lock into him, he can struggle to get them off
•Operates best when he bats hands away early rather than trying to
•Doesn’t disengage fast enough sometimes in run defense
•Hands can be late to counter or make a move at times
Versatility
Pros:
•Can occasionally line up in a 2-point stance and remain effective
Cons:
•Only lined up in 3-point and 4-point pretty much, and took very few snaps in recent seasons at DT, but he is so good at DE, it doesn’t matter that much
Strength / Balance / Leverage
Pros:
•Strong at the point of attack
•Pure anchor and blockade that clogs up gaps and opens up hits for other players
•Great pad level and leverage
•Plenty of strength to simply out-leverage and overpower the OL
•Has good leg drive
•Can take on double teams and not get moved out of the way in run defense
•Tosses people to the side easily
Cons:
•Can get outleveraged, especially when going against the interior offensive linemen
•Pad level can be a teeny bit inconsistent at times
•Can’t do much when he is double-teamed in pass rush
Explosiveness / Twitch / Agility
Pros:
•Great downhill explosiveness
•Great twitch and overall suddenness
•Has good agility he utilizes to cause the OL to mistime their hands
•Good footwork
Cons:
•Doesn’t have a great change of direction
Games Watched
•Week 1 vs ND, Week 2 vs BCU, Week 4 vs FLA, Week 5 vs FSU, Week 9 vs SYR, Week 10 vs NCSU, Week 11 vs VT, Week 12 vs Pitt, CFP vs TA&M
Ideal Situation
•Rueben Bain Jr. is going to be a top pick in this draft. Bain was pretty solid playing in his years at Miami. Bain is much younger than his teammate Mesidor. Bain is only 21, which means he still could improve and become even better. I think Bain could slim down a bit or maybe split time at DT. His ceiling is much higher than Mesidor's, but he has concerns of his own. The average arm length of most DEs is about 33,” and Bain is a whole 3 inches shorter than that. This is a major concern, and it shows up on tape every so often. His margin for error with his hand timing at the next level will be very slim because his chop move to get his hands off of him is subpar when an OL locks onto him. Bain still has a ton of explosiveness, solid hand usage, a good amount of moves, good balance, and strength. Overall, I still think Bain will be an effective edge rusher at the next level. I would be slightly wary of picking him in the top 5. I think he fits more in the 6-10 overall range, or even later. Reuben Bain Jr. fits best with the Chiefs, Commanders, Saints, and maybe the Titans.
Rating
•Processing / Game IQ – 6.6/10
•Athleticism / Frame – 7.7/10
•Tackling / Wrap Up – 8.6/10
•Pursuit / Bend – 8.6/10
•Hand Usage – 9.3/10
•Versatility – 6.7/10
•Strength / Balance / Leverage – 9.6/10
•Explosiveness / Twitch / Agility – 9.4/10
Total = 84.9/100 Early 2nd to Late 1st
DraftedR1 • P15Tampa Bay Buccaneers