TCU’s L.J. Collier impressing at Senior Bowl: NFL teams ‘won’t waste their money on me’

Most attention going into any NFL Draft is on the quarterback position. This year’s Senior Bowl has a nice group of quarterbacks, too, that are drawing most of the headlines.

But TCU defensive end L.J. Collier has made favorable impressions early on. He handled himself well on Day 1 of practice Tuesday, notably beating K-State’s Dalton Risner in a one-on-one drill.

Collier won a few other times on the day, too, and is treating the Senior Bowl like a business trip. He wants NFL teams to know he’s worth taking a chance on by his play on the field.

“I tell them they’re going to get a hard worker, a guy who is going to play every down like it’s my last,” Collier said. “I’m going to work hard, run to the ball, and I’m going to treat practice like it’s a game. They won’t waste their money on me.”

Collier has been making a name for himself since becoming TCU’s starting defensive end as a senior. He tied for second on the team in sacks with a career-high six, and also had 11.5 tackles for loss.

Collier led the Frogs’ D-linemen with four pass breakups as well. He checked in at 6-foot-2, 280 pounds with 34 2/3-inch arms and 81 1/4-inch wingspan.

Collier is hoping to show NFL teams versatility off the edge, too, a player capable of a speed rush or power rush.

“I’m here to prove that I can speed rush the edge,” Collier said. “And, if I need to run over a guy, I can do that as well.”

Collier feels he’s comparable to Seattle Seahawks defensive end Frank Clark, a second-round pick who has 36 career sacks in four seasons.

For Collier, though, he feels he’s still growing as a player. As stated, 2018 marked his first full season as a starter.

“I knew it only took a season to get your name out there. That’s what I tried to do,” Collier said. “I played my hardest I could and showed teams what I’m capable of. I did that. I played hard every game and I ran through guys. People took notice of that.”

People will take notice if he continues to run through guys at the Senior Bowl. This week of practice can help players boost their draft stocks substantially.

Collier has met with a few teams already, and just needs one to fall in love with him and his potential. Maybe it’ll be the Dallas Cowboys, something that would sit well with his dad, a lifelong fan of America’s Team.

“My dad is a helluva Cowboys fan. He really is,” Collier said. “He’d lose it [if I was drafted by them]. He’d be like, ‘Man, I can’t believe my boy is a Cowboy.”

This story was originally published January 24, 2019 at 9:00 AM.