Shaka
Toney.
Shaka
Toney.
Penn St.· 6'2"· 242 lb· 4.51s 40
"A 6'2'/242 Penn State edge with a 4.51 forty, 39'' vertical and 20 career sacks over four seasons — an undersized Day-3 speed rusher with sub-package pass-rush upside and hard special-teams questions."Pre-draft read
Toney is a twitchy edge rusher who relies on an explosive first step and ankle flexibility to win around the arc. Aligned wide, he attacks the tackle's outside shoulder early, then works a low dip to flatten pursuit to the quarterback. His hand usage includes quick chop-rips and snatch-and-swipes, effective counters when tackles overset or present an exposed elbow.
He displays a high motor, contributing on backside chases and drive-throughs with closing burst. However, he often plays with high pad level and can struggle against power. He lacks the anchor to consistently hold the edge against down blocks and can be washed out of gaps, limiting his effectiveness in run defense. On stunts, his loop is quick, but conversion to power is limited.
He's a designated pass-rusher who projects best into an attacking wide-9 front that allows him to pin his ears back and leverage his elite get-off, ankle flexibility and hand quickness.
As a Year 1 sub-package pass-rusher, he can provide immediate situational disruption on passing downs with a ceiling to develop into a rotational pressure player.
Gap/duo run schemes that require him to consistently set and hold the edge against power are a poor fit due to his undersized frame and lack of anchor.
Toney's value is almost exclusively tied to his ability to generate pressure on the quarterback, and he offers little in terms of run defense or versatility across different fronts.
Top 35 Plays of Penn State DE Shaka Toney | Big Ten Football in the 2021 NFL Draft
Game film cut-up of Shaka Toney's Penn St. tape.
Shaka Toney Penn State Highlight Mix
Game film cut-up of Shaka Toney's Penn St. tape.
Penn State DE Shaka Toney Spring Game Highlights
Game film cut-up of Shaka Toney's Penn St. tape.
Toney presents as a designated pass-rusher whose NFL projection hinges on his elite get-off and bend. His athletic testing, including a 4.51 forty and 6.95 three-cone, supports an archetype built on speed and agility around the edge. A team is investing in a situational player who can contribute on obvious passing downs with an immediate impact as a rush specialist.
He was a four-year starter at Penn State, consistently productive with 20 career sacks and 33 tackles for loss, demonstrating durability and a rushable role. Though undersized at 6'2", 242 pounds, his career production against Big Ten competition showcased his specialized skill set, even if his usage leaned heavily into pass-rushing situations rather than a full three-down role.
Evaluators flagged his undersized frame, limited anchor, and struggles against power, leading to a consensus projection in the late Day 3 range. He represented a trade-off: high-end pass-rush traits balanced against significant concerns in run defense and a limited positional ceiling. He was ultimately drafted in the seventh round at pick 246.
- 01
Elite get-off
Consistent first-step advantage against Big Ten tackles, timing the ball with a low forward lean that produces immediate width and stress on the edge of the pocket.
- 02
Ankle flexibility and bend
Turns the corner without gearing down; drops his inside shoulder to flatten to the quarterback and finishes through contact when he beats the set.
- 03
Hand quickness and counters
Fast chop-rip and swipe inside when tackles overset; hands arrive before the tackle can reset, which is how a lighter edge wins one-on-ones.
- 04
Production over four seasons
20 career sacks and 33 tackles for loss with steady snap counts, showing durability and a rushable role rather than one-year spike output.
- 05
Closing burst on chase
Backside pursuit and second-effort finishes on the film; motor is real and translates to hustle sacks and pressures when the initial rush stalls.
- 01
Undersized frame
242 pounds with narrow build and 32.5-inch arms sits at the NFL edge waterline; body is close to maxed and there is little room to add functional mass.
- 02
Anchor and point of attack
Tight ends and pulling guards can wash him out; struggles to hold the edge against down blocks and gives ground when a lineman fits inside his frame.
- 03
Bull-rush and power
Cannot convert speed to power on a plan; counter after the first move is finesse-dependent and there is no real long-arm to walk tackles back.
- 04
Pad level
Plays high for his weight class, which compounds the strength gap and lets bigger blockers get under his hands on run downs.
Relative Athletic Score (Kent Lee Platte) benchmarks combine/pro-day numbers against every measured prospect at the position since 1987. 10.00 is elite; 5.00 is average.
— — — positional median (p50)
- 40 yd
- 4.51sp50
- Vertical
- 39inp50
- Broad jump
- 128inp50
- Three-cone
- 6.95sp50
- Shuttle
- 4.28sp50
- Bench
- 24repp50
| Yr | Team | G | Tkl | Sk | Int | PD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Penn State | 12 | 18 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | Penn State | 13 | 23 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2019 | Penn State | 13 | 40 | 6.5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020 | Penn State | 8 | 31 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Career | — | 46 | 112 | 20.5 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Speed-rush specialist who lived on third-down snaps and special teams for multiple teams — the realistic role if Toney maxes his hand package.
Undersized get-off rusher who carved out a long career as a sub-package edge without ever becoming a base-down anchor — Toney's ceiling in the same mold.
Athletic pass-rush profile who bounced between practice squads without carving a permanent snap share — the risk if the anchor never comes and the counters stall.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Pre-draft context. Toney arrived at Penn State as a slight, hand-fighting edge and left as a four-year starter with 20 career sacks and 33 tackles for loss. At 6'2', 242 pounds with 32.5-inch arms he was undersized for the position, but a pro-day 4.51 forty, 39-inch vertical, 128-inch broad and sub-7.00 three-cone produced an 8.44 RAS and confirmed the get-off and bend that showed on tape. The film argued for a designated speed rusher; the frame and anchor argued against a base role. Board consensus landed in the Round 7 range as a sub-package flier with special-teams tax attached.
NFL fit — Washington. Washington took him at #246 into a defensive front that already featured Chase Young, Montez Sweat and Jonathan Allen, meaning the runway was almost entirely third-down snaps behind established starters. The bet was that Toney's get-off and counters could carve a rotational pass-rush role while he grew into special teams. Rookie usage was limited; he then dealt with a suspension in 2022 that erased any developmental window and made the frame concerns from the pre-draft process louder against pro tackles.
Retrospective. The career has followed the pessimistic side of the projection: minimal defensive production, practice-squad churn and short stints without ever locking down a sub-package role. As a Round 7 pick the acquisition cost was appropriate for the archetype, and the athletic profile was real, but the anchor and frame limitations that showed up on tape at Penn State compounded against NFL tackles rather than being masked by scheme. Grades as a miss relative to expectations for a rotational edge, though the draft slot always framed the outcome as low-cost.