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USA Today
26-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Tennessee Titans draft Oluwafemi Oladejo: 5 things to know about the edge rusher
Tennessee Titans draft Oluwafemi Oladejo: 5 things to know about the edge rusher The Tennessee Titans traded their original second-round pick (No. 35) to the Seattle Seahawks for two picks (No. 52 and No. 82) in the 2025 NFL draft. With the first of those two picks, the Titans selected UCLA edge rusher Oluwafemi Oladejo at No. 52. The Titans have a ton of needs and could have gone in any direction with this pick, but they decided to take an edge to help boost their pass rush. Three-star college recruit A former three-star recruit from Cosumnes Oaks High School, he was accomplished on both sides of the ball before settling in as an inside linebacker at Cal. He flashed the athleticism that allowed him to transition to edge after transferring to UCLA. Culture He carries his heritage with him all the time, with both of his parents being born in Nigeria. His name Oluwafemi means "God loves me" in their native Yoruba language. Outstanding Senior Bowl week After an outstanding season, Oladejo flashed at the Senior Bowl as one of the more consistent and disruptive edge players on hand. This performance was huge in his evaluation and showcased his upside in his rapid development from inside linebacker to edge. Experienced yet inexperienced Although he has shown tremendous upside as an edge, he is raw and relatively inexperienced at the position. Though he has played in 27 games and racked up 238 tackles and 6.0 sacks during his college career, split between Cal and UCLA, the majority of them were at inside linebacker. He has only 10 starts on the edge. Dedicated on and off the field He transitioned to edge at UCLA and broke out with 13.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in 2024 en route to being named the Kenny Clark Award as UCLA's top defensive lineman. He also excelled in the classroom, where he earned spots on both the Big Ten Academic Honor Roll and UCLA Athletic Director's Honor Roll.
USA Today
25-02-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Lions grab rising hybrid linebacker prospect in Mel Kiper's second mock draft
The Scouting Combine is underway in Indianapolis, which means plenty of mock drafts have started making the rounds as teams prepare to watch over 300 prospects take part in drills at Lucas Oil Stadium. Among those mock drafts is one from the original draft master, Mel Kiper of ESPN. Kiper dropped his second mock draft of the season ahead of the Combine. In this instance, Kiper has the Lions taking a linebacker prospect that has risen since the Senior Bowl after a strong week. With the 28th pick in Mel Kiper's mock draft, the Detroit Lions select Oluwafemi Oladejo, outside linebacker, UCLA. Kiper wrote: 'On one hand, Detroit ran into bad luck in 2024 with an inconceivable number of injuries to its defense, seemingly dooming the otherwise dominant team. On the other, the Lions never really had a clear No. 2 pass rusher opposite Aidan Hutchinson (who missed some time himself with a leg injury). Za'Darius Smith had four sacks over eight games after a midseason trade to Detroit, but no other edge rusher had more than three sacks. The rest of this roster is too good to ignore this, and GM Brad Holmes should be looking for answers in both free agency and the draft. 'Oladejo has steadily risen in this class, moving from Round 3 to the Round 2 conversation with a good Senior Bowl week. The jump to Round 1 is a bit of a projection, but Oladejo is getting buzz right now — I think he could be in this range after the combine. He should test well considering his burst and intensity. And while he had just 4.5 sacks in 2024, his tape is really good.' Oladejo won the Kenny Clark Award last season as the top defensive lineman for the Bruins after recording 4.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for a loss. Oledejo switched to defensive end after transferring to UCLA. He also played linebacker for California. As Kiper notes, Oladejo has been rising since the Senior Bowl when he recorded a pair of sacks. He would add much-needed depth and a potential instant impact player for the Lions after Detroit was near the bottom of the league in sacks, particuarly after losing Aidan Hutchinson (7.5 sacks) in Week 6.
