Louis Nix was once considered to be the highest rated Notre Dame player in the 2014 NFL Draft. He ended up being the 4th Notre Dame player selected after falling all the way to midway through the 3rd round when the Houston Texans finally ended Nix’s draft free fall by trading up to select the jovial nose tackle.
Up until recently, Nix was considering a potential first round pick but began to slip down draft boards after the season ended and ended up sliding all the way down to #83 overall where the Houston Texans may have gotten one of the best value picks in the entire draft. I said leading up to the draft that whoever drafted TJ Jones would get the steal of the draft, but with Nix at 83rd overall, Houston ought to be charged with grand larceny.
For Nix the freefall is going to hurt both emotionally and financially. From a football standpoint though, he joins what could be one of, if not the best defensive line in the NFL in a few years. Houston already had superstar defensive end JJ Watt on their roster before the draft. During the draft the Texans added Jadeveon Clowney #1 overall and now Nix. That is line with some scary, scary potential.
It’s tough to say what exactly caused Nix’s draft fall but some have suggested Nix’s extensive presence on social media along with concerns that his weight and conditioning might be an ongoing issue on the professional level could have been the cause of his tumble. Whatever the case, the Texans got a steal and I personally was more than a little upset that my Philadelphia Eagles did not select Nix when they had a need for depth at NT. Instead, the Eagles were the Texans trading partner.
With Nix off the board, Notre Dame now has 4 players selected overall:
- #16 Overall – Zack Martin – Dallas Cowboys
- #46 Overall – Stephon Tuitt – Pittsburgh Steelers
- #52 Overall – Troy Niklas – Arizona Cardinals
Notre Dame still has several players likely to be draft as well including Chris Watt, TJ Jones, and Prince Shembo along with Carlo Calabrese and Dan Fox.
Frank, My main thought during the beginning of the 3rd round was that there was no way Nix would drop to the Eagles. When it was their turn I was hoping they’d draft him and was pretty bummed out when they traded away their pick…. only to find out that the Texans moved up to get him. I knew you’d be upset as well!
This player info is from ESPN, and was compiled and preceded this year’s 2014 NFL draft.
L.Nix, DT 6’2″ 331 lbs
S.Tuitt, DE 6’5″ 304 lbs
I have no doubt that at some point in their college careers Tuitt was pushing 325, and Nix 350.
And while I can’t speak for Tuitt, I did see some of Nix’s workout and he was noticeably lighter. (Can’t say it helped his 40 time (5.42) )
The problem with Nix and Tuitt is they bulked up after the NC loss to Alabama. The were playing 20 lbs over their playing weight in 2012. This hurt their conditioning and also hurt Nix’s knee and probably Tuitt’s foot. Carrying that access weight took a toll.
The only question I have is Kelly said prior to Louis’s junior year he need to play at around 330. Why did he allow his weight to balloon to 347? Also, Tuitt couldn’t do any core training, how about some cardio to lose weight?
Moral of the story: manage your weight to the number specified if you want to be taken seriously by the NFL. It’s all risk versus reward, and with academics in his rear view mirror, Nix need to become a workout/eat right warrior.
I love Louis but his #1 job now is weight/physique management.
Nix needs to look in the mirror to understand his drop in the ranks. Now, Louis, what are you going to do about it????
When Nix looks in the mirror he will see the same thing that the NFL saw…
A talented player who is coming off Knee surgery that ended his college career all too soon on November 21st 2013.
The way I see it, the moral of his story, like that of several ND D-Lineman before him is: The NCAA needs to rid the game of cut-blocking!
So say we all…
“Only one player in the first round. What a tragedy, we have no soul! Every senior that Lou and Ara had went in the first round. ND our mother pray for us”
Sincerely
bj
Like great QBs buy their linemen fancy gifts, Clowney will be taking care of Big Lou, he will get a lot of sacks as a result of Lou’s presence.
You’re upset with the Eagles?
My Bears picked two DTs ahead of him,
and in the third round picked Will Sutton (Az.St.)
with Nix going next!
At Houston, he will be part of the best DLine in the coming year(s).
With the Bears, he’d have been part of the worst D in the NFL.
Good for Louis; bad for those who had their chance on him and passed.
To be fair, the Bears don’t utilize a zero technique, so it wouldn’t really make sense to draft him.