hawknation2018
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Here is a smattering of pre-draft articles on McDowell's "laziness."
Last season, Dion Jordan did succeed in rescuitating his career.
Of 16 personnel people asked by the Journal Sentinel to identify the leading defensive lineman with the best chance to fail, McDowell drew half the votes (eight) and [Tim Williams of Alabama] was second with four.
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What he saw was McDowell disappearing in games by early October and showing up late and then lollygagging at practice.
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“Worst interview in our room at the combine,” one NFL personnel man said. “Completely sucked the life out of the room. He’s everything that’s wrong with the modern athlete.
“Been entitled his whole life. Not a worker. Doesn’t practice. Asks to be taken out of games all the time. Rolls his ankle and you’d think he had three compound fractures the way that he reacts. It’s hard enough with guys that aren’t (expletive).”
As poorly as McDowell played and handled himself at the combine, he might slide to the second round.
“This guy is an undisciplined and indifferent kind of a player,” said an evaluator from an NFC team. “He’s so gifted but he’s kind of his own man. You’d have to have a coach that could relate to him, that he trusted. If you did the guy could be as good as these other guys.”
https://www.packersnews.com/story/sport ... 100738052/
McDowell isn't just hit or miss. He's get rich or go broke.
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The problem is his discipline will waiver at times causing maddening displays which are more than easily identified in his film.
The disciplinary issues also runneth over into the locker room as well, where he's seen as the Terrell Owens' type -- making enemies of coaches and teammates alike. A tremendous upside he indeed has, but as someone like the now-ousted Greg Hardy found out the hard way:
People still have to want to play with you.
https://247sports.com/nfl/dallas-cowboy ... l-52354901
His unusual pass-rushing technique might drive his NFL coaching staff crazy for a bit. McDowell even talked at the combine about how coaches have tried to clean up that technique in the past, only to throw in the towel. “They tried to help me out but I really couldn’t get it right,” he said. ”I tried to tweak the technique a little bit ... and after a certain point they just started teaching me my own style of play.”
https://www.si.com/nfl/2017/03/31/malik ... ing-report
"He's just a little lazy and I worry about whether he is going to be a self-starter." -- NFC North area scout
http://www.nfl.com/draft/2017/profiles/ ... id=2557970
Former Michigan State DL Malik McDowell received the dubious distinction of being named a “loser” of the 2017 NFL Combine by Yahoo Sports’ Eric Edholm.
Why? McDowell’s overall numbers didn’t jump off the page, but at 6-foot-6 and 295 pounds, his 4.85-second 40-yard dash mark had to intrigue scouts, as well as his ability to play across the line.
But per Edholm, he stood out away from the TV screen for the wrong reasons. One NFL team told Edholm of McDowell, “Worst interview we did.” Another reportedly said, “Awful interview. Awful.”
McDowell has been dogged by questions of work ethic, to which he responded on Sunday by saying, “That is not a problem at all.” He added that teams have said he needs to work on playing hard every down.
Said one team to Edholm, “He might be the type who, maybe he falls (in the draft) and it lights a fire under him. I don’t know. But I need that light on more often, and he didn’t like it when we asked him about that.”
https://www.landof10.com/michigan-state ... k-mcdowell
I hate to question a player's passion, but it is a red flag for me when I see different effort and discipline on crucial and non-crucial downs. First and ten is a crucial down if you give maximum effort and force the team into second-and-long situations because it makes the offense one-dimensional. If discipline or effort are an issue, then his bust potential starts to reach "Dion Jordan" territory.
Against double-teams, he struggles, and it bothers me to see him shut his motor down when he has been neutralized. The best players at his position excel in this area and often make plays 5-8 yards down the field. Being initially beaten is one thing, but giving up on the play is another big red flag. He has to learn to play to the whistle because when he finishes good things happen. Big hits can energize a defense, even when the outcome of the play went in favor of the offense, and with his size he has the ability to cause fumbles with his power and a running start. Second effort is crucial in football, especially among defensive linemen.
https://www.drafttek.com/NFL-Draft-Scou ... Dowell.asp
Last season, Dion Jordan did succeed in rescuitating his career.
