Green Bay Packers on why South Carolina's Kingsley Enagbare slipped in 2022 NFL Draft

Kingsley Enagbare’s wait to being drafted by the Green Bay Packers with the final pick in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL Draft on Saturday made where he was once projected feel like worlds away.

South Carolina’s standout edge rusher entered his senior season in 2021 with many pundits pegging him as a possible late first-round draft choice after recording six sacks in limited time during the shortened 2020 season.

But Enagbare couldn’t quite back up that production last season for the Gamecocks. On top of that, his NFL Draft testing at the NFL Combine and at USC’s Pro Day looked less that ideal. He ran a 4.87 second 40-yard dash and appeared stiff in agility drills.

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All that eventually led to him falling to day three of this year's draft.

The Packers suggested a lower leg injury and weight fluctuation were possible reasons why Enagbare was sitting there Saturday at the 179th overall pick for them to take.

“He’s more of a line-of-scrimmage player, an edge setter,” Patrick Moore, Green Bay’s assistant director of college scouting, told media members after the team’s selection of Enagbare Saturday.

“He battled a little bit of a lower leg injury and weight fluctuated a little bit. I don’t know if he got bad advice – different advice – to put weight on, but there are no issues with that. He’ll be ready to go.

“(Enagbare’s 40 time) was not a factor in where he went.”

In four seasons at South Carolina, the Atlanta native finished with 13 career sacks and 22 tackles-for-loss playing the Buck position.

Enagbare has imposing size for an edge setter at 6-foot-4 and 271 pounds, but the Packers said they liked his athleticism and how he uses his hands. The former Gamecock probably will play special teams in Green Bay as well.

“He can bend, and he’s powerful. Thick lower body. They did a good job of singling him up,” Moore said. “But a power guy that can straight-arm guys. Power is his game.

“J.J. is an athletic kid. His 40 time is not indicative of the kind of athlete that he is. On our depth chart, he’s going to be expected to play (special teams). I’m sure he’ll help.

“We’re lucky to get him where we got him. He has good burst, good power. Kingsley played good competition at South Carolina. He’s a good player for us as an edge.”

Cory Diaz covers the South Carolina Gamecocks for The Greenville News as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his work for all things Gamecocks on Twitter: @CoryDiaz_TGN. Got questions regarding South Carolina athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com.