Jaxson Turner Scouting Report: 2022 NFL Draft Prospect Report

 

Linebacker, University of North Dakota, #15

Jaxson Turner Scouting Report Measurements

6’2”/225 lbs.

40 time: 4.60

It’s time to hit our readers with a little bit of inside information. Linebacker Jaxson Turner will likely be a Minnesota Viking. He’s had talks with the Vikings already and will be in Minnesota’s training camp if another team doesn’t take him first. In fact, he is currently training with Adam Thielen in Mankato. So let’s take a deeper look at Jaxson Turner, especially for you Vikings fans out there. 

Jaxson Turner NFL Draft Player Profile

Jaxson Turner is from Esko, Minnesota. Turner attended Lincoln Secondary High School where he emerged as a two star athletic prospect. There’s not a lot of high school information about Turner out there, but I did find he had over 2,000 yards from scrimmage and 27 touchdowns his junior year, on offense. He threw in 28 tackles, 12 pass breakups and four interceptions on defense just for good measure. Turner ended up committing to the University of North Dakota.

College

Turner was a redshirt his true freshman year and then saw the field a lot for the rest of his college career. During his redshirt freshman year, Turner played in every game that year. He also contributed in every game that year with at least one tackle. Turner even returned six kickoffs, that’s something very interesting of note for a linebacker. Once Turner’s sophomore year came around he was a full time starter. 

Turner racked up 59 tackles, seven for loss and four and a half sacks. In Turner’s junior year he put up 44 tackles, four and a half for loss and four and a half sacks again. During his senior shortened year he made 29 tackles, five for loss and lead the team with five sacks. He showed up big in the FCS Playoffs, with multiple sacks against Missouri state and a season best eight tackles against James Madison. Turner used the Covid extra year this past season to add 28 tackles, four for loss and three sacks. He leaves North Dakota as their all time leader in sacks.

Jaxson Turner Strengths

Athleticism

I pointed it out earlier, but a linebacker who returns kicks? That’s an anomaly. Turner is an excellent athlete at the linebacker position. He ran a 4.60 40 yard dash at North Dakota’s pro day. Turner added a 38.5” vertical and a 128” broad jump. Those are both very impressive numbers and they show the strength and explosiveness he possess in his legs. Unfortunately, Turner strained his hamstring at the pro day so he wasn’t able to complete all the drills, but I’m confident they would have had equally impressive results. 

More importantly, his athleticism is evident on film. There are plenty of plays I saw where he just blows past offensive tackles. I even found a clip of a punt return from his high school career where he jukes out the entire team, reverses the entire field and eventually takes it in for a touchdown. Very Devin Hesteresque, in fact that high school return made it to ESPN. Finally, his lateral quickness shows up on film constantly. He’s a sideline to sideline linebacker who showed great pursuit as well.

Tackling

When Turner goes for a tackle, he rarely misses. He’s a great wrap up tackler with excellent form. 110 of his 197 tackles were solo tackles as were 18 of his 19 sacks. Turner doesn’t need help when he’s bringing someone down. 

Bend

Turner has elite bend when rushing the passer. He gets nice and low while maintaining his elite speed and quickness. Turner showed off his ankle and hip flexibility on numerous plays. This allows him to keep those tall offensive lineman’s hands off of his upper body. It’s not surprising, as Turner was very successful at a smaller size. His high level bend is one of the most appealing traits he will bring to the NFL.

Jaxson Turner Weaknesses

Size

This is the big one that keeps Turner from being a high draft pick. If he was 250 pounds, we would be talking about him as a small school prospect with day two potential. I do want to point out that his height is actually ideal for a 3-4 pass rushing linebacker. Shorter has actually proven to be better, as it allows the pass rusher to create leverage, as long as they have the bend. However, Turner is light in the weight department. This makes his job difficult when big offensive lineman are able to get their hands on his shoulder pads. Hopefully his offseason training includes adding some bulk while still maintaining his elite athleticism.

Small School

I’ve already said I hate pointing this out, but it’s a big factor in draft position. The University of North Dakota is an FCS school, a level below the FBS. While there are plenty of excellent talents that come out of FCS schools every year, I understand that scouts would rather see good production against SEC teams every week. I do want to point out that North Dakota is a high performing FCS team. They appeared in the FCS playoffs twice while Turner was a starter, three times if you count his true freshman year when he redshirted.

NFL Comparison

Turner is similar to Dolphins’ linebacker Jerome Baker in size and versatility. They are both excellent athletes as well.

Jaxson Turner NFL Draft Stock

Turner is a day three pick or an UDFA. His 40 time at North Dakota’s pro day proved he has the athleticism to compete in the NFL, but he’s still undersized and went to an FCS school. Still, I wouldn’t be shocked if he is picked on Day 3. He’s an excellent fit for a 3-4 defense as a pass rushing linebacker. At worst, he’s a priority UDFA with a good shot at making a team’s final roster as a situational pass rusher and on special teams coverage. The Vikings may want to start looking at him in the fifth round if they want to guarantee he ends up in purple.