OVERVIEW
Regarded as the school's finest linebacker prospect since the Derrick Brooks era (1991-94), Sims is a legacy at Florida State. His father, Sims, Jr., played for head coach Bobby Bowden with the Seminoles from 1977-81 as a running back, while his mother, the former Alice Bennett, was an All-American sprinter on the Seminole track team from 1980-83. Sims was given jersey No. 34 upon arriving at Florida State in 2003, a number that was retired in honor of former Seminole great Ron Sellers. With Sellers' permission, the number was brought out of retirement at the request of the Seminole coaching staff.
At North Florida Christian High School, Sims was rated the nation's best prep prospect in 2003. He earned All- American honors by Parade as the top prep linebacker in the nation and USA Today All-USA second-team accolades. He was named to the top 100 in the state of Florida by the Orlando Sentinel, was a member of the Super 75 team as selected by the Florida Times Union, chosen as the best player in the south and to the All-South Top 20 by the Tampa Tribune.
Sims earned five varsity letters at NFC, as he earned varsity spot in eighth grade. He led the Eagles to four state championships (1998-2001) during his five-year career. An incredible two-way player, he totaled 133 tackles (73 solos), 15 stops for lost yardage, six forced fumbles, seven fumble recoveries and one blocked field goal attempt from his linebacker position and ran for 1,081 yards on 115 carries for 23 touchdowns as a running back during his senior season. He led NFC to the Class A state championship as he rushed for three touchdowns in the championship game.
Sims recorded 180 tackles, 41 stops for losses, 12 sacks and forced seven fumbles as a linebacker and rushed for over 600 yards and 17 touchdowns as a running back during his junior season. Upon graduation, Sims selected Florida State over Miami, Florida, Georgia, Oklahoma, Michigan, Tennessee, Auburn, Southern Cal and Oregon.
As a true freshman, Sims appeared in every game as a reserve linebacker. He recorded 42 tackles (32 solos) with two stops for losses, a forced fumble and a pair of pass deflections in 2003. He started the final eleven games of the 2004 campaign, earning second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors as he totaled 86 tackles (41 solos) with 4.5 sacks, nine stops behind the line of scrimmage and nine quarterback pressures. He also caused two fumbles, batted away five passes and blocked a kick.
The Butkus Award semi-finalist manned the strong-side linebacker position in 2005. He finished fourth on the team with 72 tackles (22 solos), adding 2.5 sacks, ten stops for losses and seven pressures. He also caused a fumble, deflected four passes and picked off two others.
In 38 games at Florida State, Sims started his final 24 contests. He finished his career with 200 tackles (95 solos), seven sacks for minus 61 yards and 21 stops for losses of 74 yards. He registered nineteen quarterback pressures, a fumble recovery and three forced fumbles. He also blocked a kick, gained three yards on two interception returns and had eleven pass deflections.
ANALYSIS
Positives: Undersized, but has above average quickness, good instincts and plays with reckless abandon...High-energy linebacker with very good aggression in his play...Is quick to see plays develop and while he needs to be free in order to make the play, he moves very well through traffic to locate the ball...Compensates for a lack of bulk by relying more on his quickness and sudden burst to beat blocks...Uses his hands well to keep separation and play off blocks (scrapes to the ball well)...Has the hand usage to sift through traffic and has the acceleration needed to get to the edge and contain the outside run...Generates good power behind his hits, showing the body control to break down, wrap up and hammer the ball carriers with authority...Shows very good reaction dropping back in pass coverage, as he is capable of covering tight ends and slot receivers in the short area and also gets enough depth in his pass drops to stay tight on the receivers going deep...Against the run, he is best when allowed to flow to the ball, as he can run, slide and move in space...Fast and athletic in his lateral movements, getting through trash to run the field and move down the line in pursuit...Takes proper angles in pass coverage and has the hip flexibility and body control to react immediately to plays in front of him...Is very good at reading the quarterback and reacting to the ball, showing the leaping ability to get up and deflect passes...Explosive hitter with good flexibility to counter blocks and close on the passer, but is better when playing off the line than in backside pursuit.
Negatives: Lacks the lower body strength to prevent the bigger blockers from washing him out of the play when they are able to latch on to his body...Lacks overall muscle development and gets bounced around quite a bit when taking on blockers in a phone booth...Shows good aggression, but will get reckless in his play and does not have the plant-and-drive agility to recover when he out-runs the ball...Tries so hard to avoid blocks that he takes a wide loop around them, failing to get back into the action in time to make the play and close on the passer in backside pursuit...Better coverage defender than a pass rusher, as he does not show good hand usage and an array of pass rush moves to get an edge on a blocker (has better hand placement on the move than when having to hold ground at the point of attack)...When he gets out of control in his pursuit, the runners are quick to find the cutback lanes...Has some durability concerns due to a fractured fibula and a concussion in 2005.
Sims is an undersized linebacker who plays with reckless abandon, which helps him pile up tackles, but also causes him to out-run plays. He struggles to recover from his over-pursuit and while he has good tenacity and aggression, he needs to play with better control of his emotions in order to be effective. A strong-side linebacker, he lacks the bulk and muscle mass to man that position in the pros and is better served on the weak-side, where his range, quickness and pass coverage ability can be put to better use.
Sims shows a good feel for reading blocks and works hard to avoid them. His problems occur when the bigger blockers latch on to his body, as he does not have the bulk or power to shed and disengage. He is best when allowed to flow to the ball, but by taking the wide loop around offensive tackles in attempts to gain backside pursuit, he is often late in closing on the pocket. He shows good hand usage to counter blocks, but if the lineman gets into his body, the lack of strength causes him to get washed out of the play, especially when working in tight quarters.
Sims has the range and lateral movements to be very effective working in space. He has the functional upper body power to reroute tight ends and backs in the short area and also gets very good depth in his pass drops to mirror the receiver on long routes. He is very instinctive working in the zone, handling switch-offs well and takes proper angles to close on the ball. He has excellent hip flexibility to come out of his backpedal without having to gather and anticipates the receiver's routes.
His range outside the box allows him to make plays on the perimeter and push the outside running game back inside. He needs to be free in order to make the play, as he does not shed blocks well, but he can sift through traffic and locate the ball. He relies more on quickness to beat blocks coming off the edge, but lacks the pass rush moves needed to seal the deal in the backfield.
If you look at his statistics, you will see a player that is capable of making the plays working in space and in motion, but most of his tackles come from arriving late and jumping in on the action. There are concerns about his marginal size and lack of raw power, limiting him to Cover-2 schemes at the next level, where his weaknesses will not be exposed as much. Durability issues are also a concern, along with maturity (see Off-Field Issues).
While he has the size and speed of Tampa Bay's Derrick Brooks, to put him in that category at this stage of his career is ridiculous. He will best be served working at weak-side linebacker, as he does not have the strength or bulk to handle strong-side duties in the pros.
AGILITY NOTES
Campus: 4.56 in the 40-yard dash.
INJURY REPORT
2005: On 3/30 in spring drills, Sims suffered an ankle fracture while being blocked on a running play. Sims underwent outpatient surgery on his fractured lower fibula and six weeks later, participated in the team's summer volunteer programs and was at full strength for fall practice...Suffered a concussion when he collided with a teammate while making a tackle on QB Marques Hagans after a 6-yard run with three minutes left in the Virginia contest (10/15).
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