Sydney Brown is the brother of Illinois running back Chase Brown and heralds from a very athletic family. His role in the Illinois defense has certainly evolved over his five years as a starter. In 2022, Brown spent most of the season in the box, playing almost more of a linebacker role. Brown has a ton of attractive tools for NFL teams to be attracted to. 

HT: 5016
WT: 205
Year: Super Senior
High School: St. Stephens (Bradenton, FL)
Rating: 3-star (0.8294)

Sydney Brown scouting notes

Pros: 

• Good speed. Should test well in this area. 
• Good lateral quickness. 
• Very explosive defender. 
• Works down into the box well. Strong wrap up when he tries. 
• Played both deep and underneath zone coverage effectively. Stays true to his assignment very well, not typically found cheating up. 
• Really does well to be physical and contest the catch point, even when he’s in less-than-advantageous situations (size mismatches, bad positioning, etc). Might be too physical, still creating contact well beyond the five yard limit downfield. 
• Good space defender when he can get on the ball carrier. Needs to shore up his pursuit technique. 
• Does a good job staying in his position. 

Cons: 

• Doesn’t have a great upper body. 
• Doesn’t always try to wrap up. Struggles to secure tackles routinely, gave up some huge plays throughout 2021. 
• Typically pursuit angles are good. Can over-pursue at times and miss tackles. 
• Not a great blitzer. Doesn’t time the snap nor the gap well.