Nick
Niemann.
Nick
Niemann.
Iowa· 6'3"· 234 lb· 4.51s 40
"A 6'3", 234-pound Iowa outside linebacker with a 4.51 forty and 6.67 three-cone but only one full season as a starter — a Round-6 special-teams-first pick with SAM/dime rotational upside if the change of direction translated."Pre-draft read
This off-ball linebacker functions as a WILL in space or as a coverage-package dime backer. He displays clean redirects against zone-read pullers and screen redirection, with the closing burst to defend flat routes. He reads keys quickly, triggers downhill on run fits with conviction, and squeezes the alley on outside zone. As a blitzer, he has legitimate speed off the edge and uses hand technique to win against backs.
In coverage, he is a functional zone dropper who reads the quarterback's eyes. Limitations arise against isolation blocks from large interior linemen due to his frame, and he lacks the length and functional strength to stack and shed against NFL tackles or reset the point of attack in a heavy-personnel run game.
4-3 Cover-3 zone/match system that prioritizes speed and agility at all three levels while generating pressure with four-down linemen and sub-package rushers.
Immediate special teams ace with the athletic profile to develop into a rotational WILL in sub-packages, carving out an NFL career as a coverage and zone-read specialist.
3-4 two-gap fronts where linebackers are asked to stack and shed against interior linemen; his frame limitations are exposed and he loses play speed.
Niemann's elite change-of-direction and special teams prowess make him a valuable depth piece in modern defenses, but his size limits his ceiling in run defense.
Hawkeye LB Nick Niemann
Iowa career overview reel: run fits, trigger downhill and stand-up rush reps from his senior season.
1Q — Nick Niemann 4th and 2 stop
Signature short-yardage rep: reads the key, triggers downhill and stops the ball short of the sticks.
Iowa linebacker Nick Niemann | Minnesota pregame (11.12.19)
Pre-game feature capturing his role in the Iowa defense before his senior breakout.
Niemann projects as a rotational linebacker and core special teamer, offering teams an athletic profile with plus change-of-direction ability. His 6.67 three-cone time highlights this trait, suggesting immediate value in coverage and run defense within certain schemes. He is a disciplined assignment player who makes quick reads and triggers decisively.
His production was modest due to spending three seasons behind veteran linebackers, beginning his full-time starting role as a senior. He demonstrated solid tape in the Iowa scheme, which emphasizes eye control and gap integrity. However, this limited starting sample against Power-Five offenses created evaluation questions.
Evaluators were torn between his athletic profile and limited experience, largely consensualizing a Day 3 to priority UDFA grade. The Chargers selected him in the sixth round, banking on his special teams prowess and developmental upside, characteristic of an Iowa-coached, assignment-disciplined prospect.
- 01
Elite COD Testing
His 6.67 three-cone time translates to immediate value in coverage and run defense within certain schemes.
- 02
Reads Keys Quickly
He reads keys quickly, triggers downhill on run fits with conviction, and squeezes the alley on outside zone.
- 03
Assignment Discipline
He is a disciplined assignment player who makes quick reads and triggers decisively in the Iowa scheme.
- 04
Pass Rush Ability
As a blitzer, he has legitimate speed off the edge and uses quick hand techniques to win against backs.
- 05
Special Teams Role
Niemann projects as a core special teamer, offering teams a profile with plus change-of-direction ability.
- 01
Limited Starting Time
His production was modest due to spending three seasons behind veteran linebackers, limiting exposure.
- 02
Frame Limitations
Limitations arise against isolation blocks from large interior linemen due to his frame at 234 pounds.
- 03
Lacks Functional Strength
He lacks the length and functional strength to stack and shed against NFL tackles or reset the point.
- 04
Modest Vertical Power
Average vertical explosion at 33½" indicates less lower-body power, impacting stack-and-shed leverage.
— — — positional median (p50)
- 40 yd
- 4.51sp50
- Vertical
- 33.5inp50
- Broad jump
- 121inp50
- Three-cone
- 6.67sp50
- Shuttle
- 4.23sp50
- Bench
- 19repp50
| Yr | Team | G | Tkl | Sk | Int | PD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Iowa | 12 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | Iowa | 13 | 43 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | Iowa | 13 | 32 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | Iowa | 8 | 77 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | — | 46 | 157 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Career special teams captain who logs meaningful ST snaps for a decade with occasional defensive appearances; the honest projection for a sixth-round LB with elite agility but a thin starting sample.
High-end outcome is a rangy sub-package linebacker who grows into 700+ defensive snaps as a spot starter while anchoring core teams; requires Niemann to add functional strength and prove the tight-end coverage.
Floor is a two-year practice-squad/gameday-46 body who never carves out defensive snaps beyond garbage time before washing out to the UFL.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Pre-draft context. Nick Niemann arrived at Iowa as a lightly recruited safety, grew into a 234-pound outside linebacker inside a defense employing a particular defensive style, and split much of his career behind veterans before finally starting in a full-time role as a senior. He finished 2020 with 46 tackles, 3.5 for loss, an interception and a forced fumble in an eight-game Big Ten slate, and closed his college run with a strong pro day: 4.51 forty, 33½" vertical, 121" broad, 6.67 three-cone and 4.23 shuttle at 6'3"/234, elite change-of-direction numbers for the position and a top-decile athletic profile per MockDraftable. The board consensus, driven by the limited starting sample and the fact that his brother Ben was already an established Chiefs core-teams player, landed him as a Day 3 SAM/rush prospect and projected four-phase teamer.
NFL fit — Los Angeles Chargers. Los Angeles took Niemann at #185 as a developmental linebacker and immediate special teams contributor in a particular defensive scheme. He earned a helmet as a rookie, established himself as a core teamer, and progressively grew his defensive role: 37 tackles across 17 games in 2023 including a Week 17 start with 11 stops against Denver, and a Week 5 start in 2024 before landing on injured reserve. He signed with the Green Bay Packers in 2025 and continued in the same ST-lead-plus-rotational-LB role.
Retrospective. For the 185th pick in a class where most late-Day-3 defenders never see a helmet, Niemann is a legitimate hit: five-plus seasons in the league by 2025, respected special teams contributor with sub-package snaps, and the exact "graduate to spot starter" arc teams want out of a sixth-rounder. The ceiling never expanded to full-time starter, but the Chargers extracted every drop of value the pre-draft grade projected.