Player: Chad Muma

College: Wyoming

Height and Weight: 6’3”, 239

Combine Results:

• 40: 4.63
• Bench: 27
• Broad Jump: 10’9”
• Vertical Jump: 40”
• 3 Cone: 7.06
• 20 Yard Shuttle: 4.28
• Other Notes: 4.63 isn’t a bad 40 time for Muma, that’s roughly what I thought he would run. He may play a little faster than 4.6, but not much. He showed great strength as he led the linebackers in the bench and showed great explosive power, as he was top 3 in both jump tests. He had an average, maybe above average, time in the 3-cone, but a great time in the short shuttle. It’s kind of crazy to see Muma test so well in the change of direction tests because he struggled with that in the on-field workouts. He tested well, but I feel like his on field workout probably hurt his stock.

Strengths: Solid Tackler, blitzing/rushing, man coverage

Weaknesses: Block shedding, zone coverage/larger responsibility

Projected Draft Day: Day 2

Player Comparison: Robert Spillane

Player Summary: In my eyes, Muma looked way too rough for a guy who is being mocked in the first round/early second round. Muma playing at Wyoming really didn’t even play top notch competition. Against average competition, Muma just did not look good. He looks good at times and other times just looks completely lost and is nowhere near the play.

His big bright spot watching his film was his tackling. He also seemed like he was okay in man coverage when he had a strict and clear assignment. I mean in man coverage you know who you’re supposed to cover and it seems like he has the play speed to run with running back out of the back field and tight ends off the line.

Muma looked super rough in zone coverage and shedding blocks against the run; however those are both skills that can be improved upon with the right coaching in the league. In a lot of the film I watched though Muma just looked lost and not really anywhere near the play. He would drop way too deep at points, and it was hard to see what he was seeing or know what he was thinking. When given more responsibility like covering the middle of the field in zone, it just seems like he is overwhelmed and lost. He just rarely ever seemed like he was in a position to make a play on the ball. It seems like Muma has a lot of work to do before competing for a starting job.

I compared Muma to Robert Spillane of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Muma is physically bigger than Spillane, but I think he models a similar style of play and potential career path. Spillane got to Pittsburgh in 2019 after a year in Tennessee and had to sit behind Mark Barron, Vince Williams, and Devin Bush. In 2020 Spillane finally got his shot to start when Bush went down with a torn ACL. Spillane stepped in and shined. Spillane is a solid starter, but is not top of the line by any means. He is not just given a starting role either. It seems like he has to fight for his spot week in and week out with guys like Bush and Schobert in the room with him. I could see Muma in a similar situation where he’s either a backup or special teams player that finds his way into a starting role due to injuries around him or being in a weaker LB room. He could be good enough to start, but is not considered irreplaceable and could be consistently fighting to keep his spot. I also feel like Spillane’s strength is the run game and playing in the box, and I see that in Muma as well.  Muma could potentially find himself in a situational role in the right system. One final note is based on the way he tested, I could see a situation where Muma excels as a 3-4 OLB. A 4.63 is a quality time for OLBs, and he clearly showed to have the strength and explosive power. He could be a good edge setter for a team.

It sounds like Muma is going to be a late day 1/early day 2 pick, but I personally think he’s a mid-late day 2 pick if not a day 3. Muma seems to have a lot of hype around him, and I just don’t see it.