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Former Wake Forest linebacker Marquel Lee was taken off the board by the Oakland Raiders with the 168th pick in the 5th round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
If you are here because you are a fan of the Raiders and looking to learn about Marquel Lee then you are in the right place.
Lee is a 6-3, 240 pound player from Wake Forest who projects as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme in the NFL. While his size may look like he fits into a 4-3 scheme, he needs some more development to be an ideal match there.
As we noted in Marquel’s NFL Draft Profile, he compiled nearly 300 tackles in his during his time in Winston-Salem.
Pros: He is a very aggressive player with a knack for reading and knowing where the ball is going. His size and strength is also favorable to other players at the OLB position. His 25 bench presses at the NFL Combine was one of the best out of all the outside linebackers, and was second to only Ben Gedeon (Michigan) in the entire linebacking corps.
Cons: His downside at this point is his average tackling and average athleticism compared to other players at the position. He is also very strong in zone, but struggled a bit in man-to-man at times while at Wake Forest. The aggressiveness that allows him to make a lot of plays can also work against him a bit, as he can overshoot a play and take himself out of it.
It is likely that Lee will spend at least the first couple of years on the special teams for the Raiders, with some backup play at times. There is no doubt his work ethic is a check in his favor, which will allow him to learn and develop under his coaching staff.
With the right situation Lee could become a starter down the road, and we would love nothing more than to see that happen, as he is a great young man on and off the football field.
Congratulations to Marquel Lee from Blogger So Dear, as we know this is a dream come true for you and all your hard work is paying off. No matter where you go from here, you will always be a Demon Deacon and you have an entire fan base behind you!