Derrick
Moore.
Derrick
Moore.
Michigan· 6'3"· 254 lb
"Rugged Michigan strong-side edge who wins with hand violence, heavy hands and a rebuilt long-arm punch; the bend is average, but the plan and the motor are pro-ready right now."Pre-draft read
Operates as a rotational strong-side edge, consistently winning with hand violence, a powerful long-arm punch, and relentless motor. He aligns predominantly at 5-technique or wide-9 in even fronts, effectively setting the edge using heavy hands and extension, ensuring his outside arm remains free to constrict pulling blockers. He pursues hard down the line, closes with accurate angles, and consistently finishes plays behind the line of scrimmage.
As a pass rusher, he initiates with a two-handed shock, then transitions to a swipe-swipe rip or a cross-chop when offensive tackles overset. Lacking elite ankle flexion around the corner, he wins through leverage, half-man strategies, and second-effort push-pull counters that drive him into the pocket.
A one-gap 4-3 penetrating front that asks its defensive ends to hold the edge against the run and win with power as pass rushers.
Year 1 rotational strong-side end, eventually developing into a 55+ snap, two-down run defender with sub-package interior rush upside.
A 3-4 two-gap scheme that asks edge defenders to drop into coverage or consistently two-gap over a nose tackle.
Moore’s combination of power, hand usage, and motor makes him a natural fit for a 4-3 scheme that prioritizes edge setting and an interior rush on passing downs.
2026 NFL Draft Highlights: E Derrick Moore | Michigan
Full career-highlight reel showcasing hand usage, edge-setting anchor, and interior sub-package rushes.
Derrick Moore shows why #defensematters — 2025 Lott IMPACT Trophy Watch List
2025 senior-year reel emphasizing motor, leadership, and closing burst on second-reaction wins.
Can Derrick Moore Be An Elite Pass Rusher For Michigan?
Ourlads pre-season eval breaking down his pass-rush plan, long-arm work, and ceiling debate.
Derrick Moore projects as a base defensive end, prized for his elite play strength and nuanced technique. His value lies in his ability to anchor the run defense and execute a sophisticated pass-rush plan, compensating for average bend and burst with consistent effort and strategic hand usage. Teams drafted him for his immediate impact against the run and his potential to develop as a sub-package interior rusher.
Moore started his career as a rotational player behind experienced veterans before evolving into a full-time starter in 2024 and being named a captain in his final 2025 season. He faced a steady diet of double-teams and heavy tight-end alignments, accumulating 8.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss during his career. A notable performance included five pressures and a strip-sack against Ohio State in the 2025 season.
Evaluators consistently praised his anchor, run defense, and performance against top-tier competition. The primary concern among scouts was his ability to achieve consistent second-reaction wins against elite offensive tackles. He was generally projected as a Day 2 base end, best suited for a 4-3 scheme, and was selected in the mid-second round.
- 01
Elite hand usage
Opens every rush with a two-handed shock or long-arm punch, then works to a swipe-rip or cross-chop that stresses tackles who oversee the outside shoulder.
- 02
Point-of-attack anchor
Sets a hard edge in the run game with heavy hands and locked-out arms, holding ground against down blocks and squeezing pullers back into the mesh.
- 03
Motor and finish
Chases from the backside, closes with correct angles, and consistently arrives on the second and third effort; production shows up in TFL as much as full sacks.
- 04
Program-tested résumé
Two-year Michigan starter and 2025 captain who played meaningful snaps in the CFP era and put his best tape on Ohio State, Oregon, and Penn State in back-to-back seasons.
- 05
Plan and processing
Reads tackle sets pre-snap and pairs first move to protection type; won’t waste rushes on speed around unblockable arcs when a power rush is on the menu.
- 01
Average bend around the corner
Ankle flexion is stiff; when tackles kick clean and don’t oversee, his top-side arc dies at the quarterback’s depth instead of under it.
- 02
Get-off is good, not elite
First-step burst grades a tick below the top edges in the class, so he needs the plan and hands to be right or the rush stalls at contact.
- 03
Length is functional, not premium
Arms in the 32-inch range keep him honest against long NFL tackles; tackles who punch first can neutralize the two-hand shock.
- 04
Limited off-ball versatility
Almost exclusively hand-in-dirt at Michigan; a 3-4 team asking him to drop or two-gap over a nose in odd fronts is a project year.
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.
— No athletic data recorded
| Yr | Team | G | Tkl | Sk | Int | PD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Michigan | 14 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Michigan | 15 | 34 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2024 | Michigan | 10 | 23 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025 | Michigan | 12 | 29 | 9.5 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Career | — | 51 | 93 | 20.5 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Base 4-3 end whose long-arm and inside counters carried a productive Cincinnati stretch; similar mid-range athletic profile with an interior sub-rush role.
Michigan-style strong-side edge who built a decade of quality snaps out of hand violence, anchor, and a pro-ready plan more than premium bend.
If the second-move package doesn’t develop, floor is a rotational strong-side end who plays 45 snaps, sets the edge, and lives in the 4–6 sack range.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Pre-draft context — Moore arrived in Ann Arbor as one of the top edge recruits in the 2023 class out of St. Frances Academy, but Michigan didn’t rush him. He rotated behind veterans as a true freshman during the national title run, took over a starting job in 2024, and closed his career as a 2025 captain. By his last fall he was Michigan’s alpha up front, closing with 8.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss on a defense that lived in third-and-long. The signature tape was Ohio State: five pressures, a strip-sack, and a run stuff on a critical fourth quarter down that reset his board grade. Evaluators liked the anchor, the hand usage, and the two-year sample against top competition; the flag was whether average bend and burst would let the plan translate.
NFL fit — Detroit Lions. Detroit spent the second-round pick at 44 on a base 4-3 body who slots directly behind Aidan Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport as a strong-side end capable of playing 25–35 snaps as a rookie without asking too much. In Kelvin Sheppard’s front the ask is exactly what Moore did at Michigan — set the edge, force spill, and rush with the pre-built plan on obvious passing downs. Reduced alignments on 3rd-and-long give him a runway to make an early-career impact on stat sheets without inheriting a full-time role, and the Lions’ pass-rush coaching room should sharpen the counter tree the college tape only flashed.
Retrospective — Too early to grade, but the archetype rewards patience. If Moore ever adds a real inside counter and a functional dip, the ceiling is a Sam Hubbard-style eight-year starter with a couple of double-digit-sack peaks. If the bend never comes, he’s still a useful strong-side base end and rotational interior rusher in a defense that already has premium edges — exactly the pick spot value Detroit paid for.