With a 7th round compensatory pick in 2016 (pick 246 overall), the Steelers drafted the most productive defensive player in all of college football. Tyler Matakevich was the 2015 Bronco Nagurski Award winner and three-time first-team All-American in the Athletic Conference.

His play on the field was so good that he made the 2015 College Football All-American team, which is chosen by the following selector organizations: Associated Press (AP), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Walter Camp Foundation (WCFF), The Sporting News (TSN), Sports Illustrated (SI), USA Today (USAT) ESPN, CBS Sports (CBS), College Football News (CFN), Scout.com, and Yahoo! Sports (Yahoo!).

The list of the very select to achieve this honor is small and impressive:

Name	Position	Year	University	Round drafted
Deshaun Watson	Quarterback	Sophomore	Clemson	1st
Leonard Fournette	Running back	Sophomore	LSU	1st
Derrick Henry*	Running back	Junior	Alabama	2nd
Corey Coleman*	Wide receiver	Junior	Baylor	1st
Josh Doctson*	Wide receiver	Senior	TCU	1st
Hunter Henry*	Tight end	Junior	Arkansas	2nd
Taylor Decker	Offensive tackle	Senior	Ohio State	1st
Spencer Drango*	Offensive tackle	Senior	Baylor	5th
Ronnie Stanley	Offensive tackle	Senior	Notre Dame	1st
Joshua Garnett*	Guard	Senior	Stanford	1st
Ryan Kelly	Center	Senior	Alabama	1st
Joey Bosa	Defensive end	Junior	Ohio State	1st
Shaq Lawson	Defensive end	Junior	Clemson	1st
Carl Nassib*	Defensive end	Senior	Penn St.	3rd
A’Shawn Robinson	Defensive tackle	Junior	Alabama	2nd
Reggie Ragland*	Linebacker	Senior	Alabama	2nd
Tyler Matakevich	Linebacker	Senior	Temple	7th
Jaylon Smith	Linebacker	Junior	Notre Dame	2nd
Jeremy Cash*	Safety	Senior	Duke	UFA
Jalen Ramsey	Safety	Junior	Florida State	1st
Vernon Hargreaves*	Cornerback	Junior	Florida	1st
Desmond King*	Cornerback	Junior	Iowa	5th
Ka’imi Fairbairn	Kicker	Senior	UCLA	UFA
Tom Hackett*	Punter	Senior	Utah	UFA
Evan Berry	All-purpose	Sophomore	Tennessee	2018 draftee
Christian McCaffrey	All-purpose	Sophomore	Stanford	1st

Of all the non-special teams players on this list, only Jeremy Cash (priority free agent) fell further in the draft than Tyler Matakevich. With hundreds of capable linebackers at the collegiate level, making this list of is no small accomplishment.

However, it’s hard to argue with Matakevich’s production:

Year	School	Conf	Class	Pos	G	Solo	Ast	Tot	Loss	Sk	Int	Yds	PD	FR	FF
2012	Temple	Big East	FR	LB		67	34	101	3	0			3	0	1
2013	Temple	American	SO	LB	12	106	31	137	11.5	1	1	0	0	2	3
2014	Temple	American	JR	LB	12	88	29	117	10.5	1.5	1	47	3	2	0
*2015	Temple	American	SR	LB	14	77	61	138	15.5	4.5	5	47	5	0	0
Career	Temple					338	155	493	40.5	7	7	94	11	4	4

Temple’s best defensive player crushed the stat sheets as he compiled nearly 500 tackles in four years. In his senior campaign, he also proved to be one of the best linebackers in the nation at taking the ball away, as he recorded five interceptions.

In 2015, Tyler Matakevich was far and away the most valuable player on Temple’s roster. With his help, the Owls surrendered just 336.8 total yards and 2.0 offensive touchdowns per game.

Here’s a chart showing how much more productive Matakevich was than the rest of his teammates: including Haason Reddick, who was drafted in the first round this year.

Rk	Player	Solo	Ast	Tot	Loss	Sk	Int	Yds	Avg	TD	PD	FR	Yds	TD	FF
1	Tyler Matakevich	77	61	138	15.5	4.5	5	47	9.4	0	5
2	Jarred Alwan	30	43	73	7.5	1.5					2				4
3	Sean Chandler	44	21	65	5.5	1.0	4	120	30.0	2	10
4	Nate L. Smith	31	22	53	0.5	0.0	1	74	74.0	0	3
5	Alex Wells	32	20	52	1.0	0.0	1	21	21.0	0	5
6	Avery Williams	28	21	49	6.5	0.0	1	13	13.0	0	1
7	Stephaun Marshall	23	23	46	0.5	0.5	1	0	0.0	0	6	1			0
8	Haason Reddick	29	17	46	13.0	5.0					1				1
9	Matt Ioannidis	27	15	42	11.5	3.5					5	2			0
10	Tavon Young	29	12	41	5.0	1.0					7

However, college statistics are just one factor in the grand scheme of things. So why wasn’t Matakevich drafted higher in 2016? An AFC North Executive close to NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein put it this way:

Not big, not fast and not strong. Hard to make it as an NFL linebacker without those elements. With that said, the kid makes a bunch of plays. Production matters and he has it.

On the field, Matakevich is known for making plays, but his physical attributes leave a lot to be desired.

Matakevich is a below average athlete in every measurable category. Though he is smooth and fluid on the field, it’s true that he doesn’t possess the God-given athletic ability that many NFL linebackers have.

However, how important is size and athleticism to the position? There are many linebackers currently succeeding in the NFL with remarkably similar attributes. Here’s how some recent linebackers match up with Matakevich in terms of size:

Player	Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand size
Rey Maualuga	6’2”	249	N/A	N/A
Jon Beason	6’1”	237	N/A	N/A
Larry Foote	6’1”	231	N/A	N/A
Manti Te’o	6’1”	241	32 1/2”	9 1/2”
Reggie Ragland	6’1”	247	32”	9 7/8”
Vontaze Burfict	6’1	248	31 1/4”	9 3/4”
Tyler Matakevich	6’0”	238	31 1/4”	9 1/2”
Paul Dawson	6’0”	235	31 1/2”	9 1/2”
Danny Trevathan	6’0”	237	32 1/2”	9 1/2”
Pat Angerer	6’0”	235	30 1/2”	9 1/8”
Anthony Hitchens	6’0”	240	32 1/2”	9 1/8”
Chris Borland	5’11”	248	29 1/4”	9 7/8”
Denzel Perryman	5’11”	236	31 7/8”	9 1/2”

There are many more NFL linebackers who possess similar size traits as Matakevich, but I chose this sample for a reason. Not only are these linebackers similar in terms of height, weight, arm length, and hand size, but also in terms of athleticism.

Take a look at how some of these solid NFL linebackers tested when they came out of school:

PLAYER	40 YD	20 YD	10 YD	BENCH	VERTICAL JUMP	BROAD	SHUTTLE	3-CONE
Reggie Ragland	4.72	2.75	1.65	–	31 1/2	9’8″	4.28	7.55
Jon Beason	4.72	2.74	1.6	19	DNP	9’3”	DNP	DNP
Anthony Hitchens	4.74	2.74	1.62	23	31 1/2	9’8”	4.45	7.15
Paul Dawson	4.76	2.84	1.68	21	28	9’1″	4.49	DNP
Vince Williams	4.76	2.76	1.71	22	32 1/2	9’3”	4.67	7.53
Denzel Perryman	4.78	2.77	1.67	27	32	9’5”	DNP	DNP
Tyler Matakevich	4.81	2.8	1.66	22	31	9’4″	4.34	7.19
Manti Te’o	4.82	2.78	1.67	21	33	9’5”	4.27	7.13
Larry Foote	4.83	2.8	1.73	24	30	DNP	4.41	7.18
Chris Borland	4.83	2.8	1.66	27	31	9’6”	4.27	7.18
Rey Maualuga	4.91	2.86	1.73	23	31	8’11”	4.35	DNP
Danny Trevathan	4.84	2.79	1.65	18	31 1/2	9’3”	4.7	DNP
Pat Angerer	4.77	2.8	1.7	26	35	9’2”	4.29	7.04
Vontaze Burfict	5.09	2.96	1.78	16	30	8’8”	4.56	7.51

What I find most notable about this list is that probably the best linebacker on here, Vontaze Burfict, is actually a horrible athlete. Burfict’s athletic numbers aren’t underwhelming, they are pitiful. Yet he proves to be one of the league’s most instinctive and most physical run stopping linebackers.

Matakevich is also taller, longer, more athletic, and far more productive in college than former 49ers linebacker, Chris Borland – who had 107 tackles and 2 interceptions in just 8 starts as a rookie before retiring due to concussion scares.

Typically, the best linebackers in the league have a combination of everything: football IQ and instincts, good athletic traits, size or length. Players like Luke Kuechly, Bobby Wagner, C.J. Mosely, and NaVorro Bowman come to mind.

Conclusion: 

The success rate of “Class C” NFL players (college production, but lacks NFL athleticism) isn’t very good. It also makes a difference where a player gets drafted. Matakevich, for example, is going to be on a shorter leash as an expendable seventh-round compensatory draft choice than a linebacker that was drafted in the third or fourth round – that’s just the way it goes. The third round pick is going to have many more chances to prove that he can be that guy, while a seventh rounder is fighting tooth and nail for snaps to work his way up in the pecking order.

Tyler Matakevich is an incredibly smart and instinctive NFL linebacker. This was even on display with the plays he made during the preseason as a rookie last year. With a little bit more size and a few more physical traits to go with his fantastic college film, it likely would have been enough to land Matakevich inside the first two rounds of the draft. However, the NFL covets players that are big, fast, and strong.

It’s all about an opportunity in the NFL. Vince Williams was a sixth-round pick who ended up starting 11 games as a rookie, despite testing horribly in the agility drills at his Pro Day. Still, he took advantage of a chance he was given.

With only Williams currently ahead of him for playing time, Matakevich has a chance to carve out a role for himself this season. Though it’s unlikely he becomes the long-term solution for the Steelers based on where he was drafted, Tyler Matakevich is no stranger to hard work and overcoming the odds. If Matakevich is given the opportunity to work his way into the starting lineup, don’t be surprised if he impresses.