Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - In the days leading up to the 2025 NFL Draft in Green Bay, WGR will provide profiles on some players that could be a good fit for the Buffalo Bills at positions of need.
As we continue to focus on defensive tackles, this profile will feature Alfred Collins from the University of Texas.
Texas is known as one of the best states in the country when it comes to producing football players. High school football is a very big deal in the Lone Star State. Which makes Alfred Collins' accomplishments even more impressive.
The native of Bastrop, Texas was an All-American and rated the eighth-best defensive lineman coming out of high school.
Collins signed on the dotted line with the University of Texas and spent all five of his seasons with the Longhorns. As a freshman in 2020, he played in all 10 games and got one start. Collins recorded a sack in his very first game as a true freshman.
Collins was a regular for the rest of his college career, and following the 2023 season, he was named an Honorable Mention All-Big 12 member.
The 6-foot-5, 320-pounder saved his best season for his last in Burnt Orange. He started all 15 games in 2024 and led Texas defensive linemen with seven pass break ups. Collins ended up with First-Team All-SEC honors, as well as being named a Second-Team All-American.
Collins left Austin with 63 games played, 139 tackles, 17.5 tackles for a loss and seven sacks.
He measured in at the NFL Combine with 35-inch arms and an 85-inch wingspan. The wingspan is one of the longest for any defensive tackle in combine history.
Here is what Joe Marino from the “Locked on Bills” and “Locked on NFL Scouting” podcasts has to say about Collins:
Positives:
Collins is another guy where length and strength is the name of the game.
I love how he controls his space, very natural ability to lock, peek and shed, and find the football. There's pursuit effort here that you're going to love. This guy is 332 pounds and he's willing to run anywhere on the football field to get to the ball.
I think there's some versatility. He's going to be at his best as a one tech in the "A" gaps, but if you wanted to play him in some wider alignments, it's not crazy to think that he can do it if you wanted to.
I don't know if the Bills would take advantage of that versatility, but I think it's part of what's on the menu. But he is a guy that absolutely owns his space as a run defender and plays in a lot of effort.
Concerns:
I think Collins lacks first step quickness, and I think that really limits the overall pass rush ceiling. You're not getting a free down player. I think that's what you have to call it, and I think that limits him as a player you'd ideally want to invest a first-round selection in.
I think there's a specialization to his skill set, and he's missing the most important thing that you want a defensive tackle to do, which is rush the passer.
WGR will provide full coverage of the 2025 NFL Draft during all seven rounds, starting Thursday, April 24 and continuing through Saturday, April 26.
Related
