Another day, another madness. James Pearce That stat comes from Pro Football Focus, the outlet that might have better thoughts on the Tennessee junior pass rusher than anyone else, noting that he was one of just 15 players in college football last season to hit 23 miles per hour on the field.
The 6-foot-5, 242-pound Pearce put an exclamation point on his outstanding sophomore season in a 35-0 win over Iowa in the Citrus Bowl on New Year’s Day in Orlando, where he intercepted a pass and raced 52 yards down the sideline for the touchdown.
Pearce is projected to be the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft according to PFF’s projections, which were published on the Way-Too-Early Top-50 Big Board in April.
James Pearce Jr. was one of 15 players to hit 23 MPH on a single play last season.
Reminder: he’s a 6’5″ 242 LB defensive end😳
— PFF College (@PFF_College) June 30, 2024
“Pearce was one of the most feared quarterbacks in the country as a sophomore,” PFF’s Max Chadwick wrote. “His 92.4 PFF quarterback grade and 21.3% pressure rate rank third among FBS edge defenders.
“The scary thing about those numbers is that last year he was winning almost exclusively on athleticism, which means he can become nearly unblockable with a few extra pass-rushing moves.”
Before the 2024 NFL Draft began in April, PFF released a mock draft that included every player in college football. Pearce was the No. 8 overall pick by the Atlanta Falcons in that scenario and was the first player from the 2025 draft class to appear in PFF’s mock draft.
James Pearce led Tennessee with 10.0 sacks, 14.5 TFL and 16 QB hits last season.
In March, PFF looked at the 2025 NFL draft and asked if Pearce could be the first overall pick.
“He has incredible explosiveness at 6-foot-4, 260 pounds,” Chadwick wrote at the time, “and converts speed into power at an elite level. With the 2025 NFL Draft looking like it will feature a weaker quarterback class, there’s a real chance Pearce could be the No. 1 overall pick.”
Pearce led Tennessee’s defense with 10.0 sacks as a sophomore, 14.5 tackles for loss and added 16 quarterback hits. He played 462 snaps in 13 games, including 246 pass-rushing snaps and 182 run-defense snaps.
‘His speed and clever passing moves deserve all the attention’
Pearce was Tennessee’s highest-rated defender last season with a 91.0 overall grade, outperforming Jaylen McCollough (85.8), Kamal Hadden (85.7) and Keenan Pili (80.8) Second-year teammate who is dedicated to pass rushing Joshua Joseph had a rating of 79.1.
KeynoteUSA NFL Draft Analyst Matt Miller He also wrote in January that Pearce could have potentially been the first defensive player selected in this year’s NFL Draft.
“Pearce is a 6’5 blur,” Miller wrote for KeynoteUSA in January. “With 43 pressures and 9.5 sacks in 2023, Pearce has established himself as one of the SEC’s top pass rushers.
“In fact, an AFC West scout who covers the conference told me that Pearce would be the first defensive player selected in the 2024 class if he were draft-eligible. Expectations are high for Pearce, but his speed and slick passing moves are worthy of the hype.”
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