Habakkuk Baldonado, EDGE
School: Pittsburgh | Conference: ACC
College Experience: RS Senior | Age: 23
Height / Weight: 6’3” / 257 lbs
Projected Draft Status: 4th-7th Round
Player Comparison: D.J. Wonnum
College Statistics
| Tackles | Def Int | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Solo | Ast | Tot | Loss | Sk | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | PD | FR | Yds | TD | FF |
| *2019 | Pitt | ACC | FR | DL | 11 | 12 | 18 | 30 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||
| 2020 | Pitt | ACC | SO | DL | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| *2021 | Pitt | ACC | JR | DL | 14 | 25 | 16 | 41 | 12.0 | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |||
| *2022 | Pitt | ACC | SR | DL | 9 | 9 | 16 | 25 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Career | Pitt | 48 | 51 | 99 | 21.5 | 15.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||||
Player Overview
Habakkuk Baldonado might have the most interesting path to the NFL. Born in Rome, Italy, Baldonado fell in love with football watching games and YouTube clips. He found a team that played the sport in Italy for three years before moving to the United States to play his senior year in Florida. He drew the attention of college programs by putting up 30.5 sacks in a season. Once at Pitt, he made an impact as a reserve player but broke out in 2021, his first season as a starter. He regressed a bit in his final season where he suffered an injury that caused him to miss three games.
Strengths
- Long frame that makes it hard to escape his reach
- Does whatever it takes to get to the ball carrier
- Strong hands to shock blockers and violently rip down ball carriers
- High-effort player that doesn’t give up on plays
Weaknesses
- Incredibly raw prospect with inconsistent technique
- Stiff, lacking ideal agility and bend
- Struggles to find the ball, causing hesitation in pursuit
Let’s see his work
One of the things Habakkuk Baldonado (#87) will need to work on is he comes out of his stance too high at times and will get too far over his toes. pic.twitter.com/DaCu5dLGcT
— Brian Maafi (@Bmaafi) February 23, 2023
Nice little trick from Habakkuk Baldonado (#87). He starts his rush like he’s going to attack the LG, so the center turns his attention to his right, Baldonado takes advantage of that, does a quick hand swipe and flies into the A gap where there is no one to stop him. pic.twitter.com/tN3hK1jQty
— Brian Maafi (@Bmaafi) February 23, 2023
How he fits on the Commanders
Baldonado has a lot of raw ability as an edge rusher that needs to be honed. While he might be tight, he is strong, athletic, and relentless. With Efe Obada a free agent this year, adding a developmental player who can provide depth might be a good idea. The question is with Montez Sweat, Chase Young, Casey Toohill, and James Smith-Williams all set to be free agents in 2024, can Baldonado play a bigger role on he defense? It will take some time, but Baldonado could be worth a flyer in the late rounds or as an undrafted free agent.
The post Should the Commanders Use a Late-Round Pick on Habakkuk Baldonado? appeared first on Canadian News Today.
