The Kansas City Chiefs took Stephen F. Austin chose edge rusher BJ Thompson, hoping his athletic ability would translate to the NFL.
Thompson, a 6-foot-6 defensive end, began his career at Baylor and played two seasons for the Bears before transferring to the FCS level. Casey gave him the 166th pick.
At Stephen F. Austin in 2022, he rated as the Lumberjacks’ top defender with an 86.8 defensive grade, According to Pro Football Focus, Of all 287 FBS and FCS programs, Thompson’s 92.7 Pass-Rush Grade Ranked third among all players in playing half the snaps on his team.
In February, Thompson was one of the East-West Shrine Bowl Standoutsposting 1.5 sacks with four tackles.
Chief area scout Jason Lamb said that Thompson was impressive in that game.
Lamb said, “You see a man who knows how to run off the edge.” “This guy is Bendy. He makes some plays where you think his knees will buckle for a lot of players, and you’ll fall down. But this guy is able to keep his balance, keep his feet and Still leans over the edge.
Lamb previously described Thompson as a “freaky athlete” on Saturday, highlighting his height (6-foot-6) and arm length (35 inches). Thompson also made Bruce Feldman’s “College Football Freaks List” In 2022.
“Shoot this kid,” said the Lamb. “His ability to evade passers … you definitely get excited about it.”
After transferring from Baylor, Thompson said he was “going through a lot of things mentally” during the pandemic in 2019 when he moved home to England, Arkansas. He said that the desire to play football went away for a while.
Eventually, Thompson said his childhood goal of making the NFL resurfaced as he continued his football career at Stephen F. Austin.
“Being away from sports for so long when I was out of school made me realize that I love sports. And I want to get back on that field. I want to go back to how everything was,” Thompson said. “Just going to Stephen F. Austin in 2019, I was happy to be back in every aspect — being back in the classroom, being back on campus, football Getting back on the field, getting back in the meeting room – it was just a blessing that I was able to get back to that. Immediately, the love for football began to grow again.”
Thompson’s brother, Blake Mack, had previously been in the Chiefs for a short stint. As an undrafted free agent in 2018,
At this point, Thompson stated that his quickness as a pass rusher was his best asset.
“I was blessed with great athletic ability,” Thompson said. “So I’m always going with the speed first. I’ll always try to use my speed, my athletic ability, so I can bend that edge and around that corner.
First elected chief:
