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2016 NFL Draft Player Profile: USC defensive tackle Antwaun Woods

A mid-to-late round gem at a position the Cincinnati Bengals should consider adding to comes from the Pac-12. Some really like the future outlook of USC's Antwaun Woods, while others believe he could be just another depth guy on an NFL roster.

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Antwaun Woods spent three years at USC trying to become a full-time starter before his senior season when he earned the role. Woods impressed, earning a first-team All-Conference designation. His 41 stops and seven sacks over the course of his time at USC were enough to put him on the board as a projected late round draft pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

Height/Weight: 6'0", 318 pounds

2015 Stats: 38 total tackles, three sacks, one fumble recovery.

Pro Day Results: 5.07 40-yard dash, 8'8" broad jump, 27 1/2-inch vertical

Woods injured his pectoral muscle doing the bench press at the Combine, which nullified the result and caused him to not participate in any other drills. He also hurt his hamstring at his Pro Day. His Combine numbers

Draft Projection: Rounds 5-7 or undrafted free agent

Strengths: For teams looking for a versatile guy with a knack for getting into the backfield, Woods seems to fit the mold. The four-year college producer also has an infectious personality and has reportedly aced pre-draft interviews. While Woods doesn't take over games single-handedly, he disrupts opposing offenses frequently at both interior and edge positions on the defensive line. Furthermore, like many recent USC players, Woods has remained productive throughout a tumultuous past few years in the program, and spoke about it to us at the NFLPA Bowl. Often times, big plays against the Trojans that were partially associated with poor discipline up front by Woods and others, were actually a product of poor play at the secondary levels of the defense.

Weaknesses: Teams might reach for Woods simply for the potential he has flashed, but a mid-round pick might be too high for a guy who may never be more than a rotational player on a team's line. Even though he's got the perfect frame for many teams' mold for an NFL defensive tackle, he doesn't make plays when double-teamed, as the great ones do. The injuries during both the Combine and pro day workouts are also a concern.

Overview: Some look at Woods and see a poor man's version of Bengals perennial Pro Bowl defensive tackle, Geno Atkins. Others see him as a clone of current Bengals Practice Squad defensive tackle, DeShawn Williams. The truth is that Woods is somewhere in the middle, more closely resembling the latter than the former. However, Woods could fit in nicely with a team like Cincinnati, who has a lot of surrounding talent on the defensive line, as evidenced by some of his production with other great Trojan defenders like Leonard Williams playing with him from 2012-2014.