GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 23: DJ Lagway #2 of the Florida Gators is sacked by Walter Nolen #2 of the Mississippi Rebels during the first half of a game at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on November 23, 2024 in Gainesville, Florida.
Milton Williams is likely not staying in Philly. Which means the Eagles will be looking to add a DT this off-season. Given their limited cap space and their recent track record in the draft, they might look towards a rookie to fill in the Milton Williams-sized hole. One player they may be looking at is Walter Nolen out of Ole Miss.
Here Are 6 Things Eagles Fans Should Know About Walter Nolen
1) A Top Recruit Coming Out Of High School
Walter Nolen is no stranger to being a highly coveted prospect. In fact, going into the draft as a late-round pick is a step down from when he was entering college. Coming out of Powell High School, he was the consensus top DT in the nation. ESPN and USA Today ranked him as the top recruit period, and Rivals and 247 Sports ranked him 2, with Travis Hunter taking the number 1 spot.
There was good reason for that. In his Senior Year, he racked up 17 sacks, 33 tackles for loss, and 27 QB Hurries.
This is what his coach at Powell High School, Matt Lowe, said about him back when he was being highly recruited.
“Usually you just dont see guys that are that big, that are that quick and athletic. That is what really sets them apart… he just moves like a Linebacker or a Safety, and he happens to be 6ft5 and 300+ pounds”
2) A Great Junior Season
Nolen spent his first 2 years at Texas A&M. In those 2 years, he racked up 32 pressures, 21 hurries, 3 QB Hits, 1 batted ball, and 5 sacks. Not a bad production for a College DT, but not eye-popping either. Especially for a guy who was the number 1 recruit in the nation.
It was when he transferred to Ole Miss for his Junior Year though that things kicked into high gear. This past season he outpaced the combined totals from his 1st two years combined. He had 35 pressures, 25 hurries, 4 QB hits, 2 batted balls, and 6.5 sacks.
#OleMiss DL Walter Nolen was in the backfield often against South Carolina yesterday. Winning one on one pass rush reps, stacking and shedding as a run defender. Picked up 2 sacks too, showing a relentless pursuit to the QB. pic.twitter.com/FNZltLj7rA
But that is just the pass rush. He also played incredibly well in the run game. Among draft-eligible DTs, he had the 5th most Run Stops, the 6th best run stop rate, and the 5th lowest missed tackle rate for players with at least 20 tackles. He also had 14.5 tackles for loss, was an Outland Trophy finalist, and was a consensus All-American.
3) Helped Anchor An Elite Defense
As Eagles fans know with Jalen Carter, being a great DT is not just about the stats you put up, but also about helping your teammates as well. There were games where Carter had little statistical production, but where his dominance led to wins for his teammates.
The same went for Nolen at Ole Miss. The Rebels defense had a historic season with 52 combined sacks and 120 tackles for loss. His consistent disruption in the backfield played a big part in that.
His teammate DE Jared Ivey, who is also projected to be a late-round draft selection and has been connected to the Eagles, said this about Nolen back in October after Ole Miss’s win over South Carolina.
“He is a really disruptive guy. A lot of times, it will be plays where he is not making the tackle, but he is making the play, and really shaking things up and moving the Line of scimmage to give other guys opprtunitues to make plays. When he does his job, we are hard to stop.”
Walter Nolen has reportedly been “unblockable” early on into Senior Bowl practices.
Nolen has reportedly been “drawing”Aaron Donald and Ed Oliver comparisons, due to his dominant power and elite athleticism.
There are a lot of vague talks around Nolen about character concerns. They have followed him going back to his High School Days, throughout his time at Texas A&M, and to Ole Miss. There are little to no hard examples given, but it is out there, and enough for some teams to have reportedly already taken him off their boards.
It is hard to know what to think about this when the accusations are this vague. But one thing that should not be held against him is how often he changed schools. He played at 3 different High Schools, in addition to the IMG where he never played. Then of course he played at two different Colleges. Some people use that as evidence he wears out his welcome at places.
But the High School moves were reportedly because his family moved for work. And he only left Texas A&M after Jimbo Fisher was fired. Could there have been off-the-field issues at each of those stops? Sure. But there is no reporting available backing that up.
There are players in this draft who face real accusations of real wrongdoing. But everything surrounding Nolen is vague. Every article that talks about it just says character concerns with no examples of ways he has caused problems, or what those problems even are. .
There were similar vague complaints about Micah Parsons out of Penn State. It feels like the type of thing scouts just put out there hoping a guy will fall. Unless there is more concrete info on what those “character concerns,” are, I can’t put much stock into those complaints.
It is also important to note all of these players are still young men, and some immaturity is to be expected. People can mature, and people can grow up.
Good coaching, like any player drafted to the Eagles would get from people like Vic Fangio or Clint Hurt, would help. He also would have Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter to lean on who had similar accusations of poor work ethic thrown at them out of college. They did not seem to be an issue at all this year for the Eagles.
By the way, if there are effort concerns, you don’t see it much in the game. As Devin Jackson noted in the Tweet earlier in this article, his QB pursuit can be relentless.
5) Compares Himself To Aaron Donald
Nolen is certainly not short on confidence. At the Senior Bowl, where he was considered one of the standouts, he referred to himself as the next Aaron Donald.
“I’m the next Aaron Donald, man… I feel like I can do it all. Aaron Donald did it all at the highest level. I’m a younger, upcoming version of Aaron Donald. I just can’t wait to show everybody that when I get this opportunity I’m being blessed with.”
Nolen actually got a chance to talk to Donald at the NFL Combine.
“I heard you said you’re the next Aaron Donald, man. So keep doing your thing, man. Hopefully you have a long career, a better career than what I had. I’ll be looking out for you, I’ll be watching for you and see how this thing turns out for you.”
You have to love the confidence. He has a lot he needs to do to back it up.
6) Drawing Comparisons To A Familiar Face
The guy the Eagles would be trying to replace is Milton Williams. So why not replace him with someone be compared to him?
PFF did a whole piece giving comps for players in this draft to NFL players. Milton Williams was the comp for Nolen. And it makes sense. Both have similar builds and similar explosive traits. Williams shot onto the scene with his elite performance at his Pro Day. Nolen did not test at the combine, but when he does test at the Ole Miss Pro Day, you will likely see similar results given what he has shown on the field.
Dylan MacKinnon is The Digital Content Coordinator For 97.5 The Fanatic. he has been an Eagles, Flyers, Sixers, and Flyers fan his whole life. He graduated from Rutgers University with a Bachelors in Journalism. Dylan has worked at the Fanatic since 2016, starting as an Intern, moving to the Street team, and eventually was hired as an Associate Producer before settling into his current role in the Digital Department. You may hear him referred to on-air as "The D-Train."
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