HELLO CHICAGO BEARS!
Congrats to Fremont-Mills grad and former Iowa DE Nate Meier on signing with the Bears! #kmasports
— Derek Martin (@d2mart) May 1, 2016
WHAT'S SO SPECIAL ABOUT NATE MEIER?
He's a 6'2" 255 pound defensive end that arrived at Iowa a former 8-man football do-it-all player. He arrived as a running back and almost broke in there. He moved to linebacker and became a pass rush specialist in Iowa's third down pass defense called the Raider. The pass rush skills remained and he grew into an every down defensive end.
WHAT DID HE DO THAT WAS SO GREAT?
We mentioned Meier as a pass rush specialist. Overshadowed by opposite defensive end Drew Ott, Meier quietly put together a very solid senior season. He finished with 6.5 sacks and 10.5 tackles for a loss before injuries piled up and he played the last half of the year with various ailments. He's a tough guy that does have some speed. He could be a versatile player that can drop into pass coverage.
STATS:
YEAR | TACKLES | SACKS | TFL | FF | INT |
2012 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2013 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
2014 | 57 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
2015 | 76 | 6.5 | 10.5 | 1 | 0 |
TOTAL | 139 | 9.5 | 17.5 | 1 | 0 |
PRO DAY:
Iowa Pro Day: Nate Meier 6005, 249 lbs, 4.83 forty, 4.21 shuttle, 30" vertical, 8'8" broad jump, 21 reps bench https://t.co/fojdMCzm3y
— Blair Sanderson (@BlairRIVALS) March 21, 2016
HIGHLIGHTS (#34):
WHAT ABOUT THE BAD?
He's a tweener by NFL terms. He's terribly short at just over 6' for an NFL perimeter player. He's not overly big at 255 pounds and may not be able to add much more weight. He does run in the low 4.8s 40-yard dash which is perhaps too slow for an outside linebacker.
WAS THIS A GOOD SIGNING?
The NFL has specialized players for specific down and distance. Meier broke in at Iowa as a specialized player rushing on pass downs. There may be a place for Meier in certain situations but NFL rosters are small and he will really need to impress in camp to stick around. He's a tough player and could be a solid scout team contributor that gets a call if injuries hit the 55-man roster. He gives options at multiple positions and can even play fullback.