[Elvis]

BRADEN FISKE | Florida State 6035 | 292 lbs. | 6SR Michigan City, Ind. (Michigan City) 1/18/2000 (age 24.27) #55

BACKGROUND: Braden Fiske (Fisk) grew up in Michigan City (northwest Indiana on the shore of Lake Michigan). At age 6, he started playing football for Michigan City Pop Warner league and led his team to the 2010 junior pee-wee national championship at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida. Fiske attended Michigan City High School, where he was a four-year varsity letterman. He played primarily offensive tackle as a freshman and sophomore while also seeing “a few” snaps on the defensive line. As a junior, Fiske moved inside to guard (also saw center snaps) and earned All-Conference honors both years as an offense-only player for his final two seasons (Fiske: “My high school coach wasn’t really a believer in the two-way player.”). As a senior captain, he battled through a back injury (herniated disc) and helped Michigan City to a nine-win season and the 2017 5A Sectional championship (the first in school history). Fiske also lettered in baseball. A three-star recruit, Fiske was the No. 67 guard in the 2018 recruiting class and the No. 18 recruit in Indiana. He attended countless recruiting camps but had a tough time getting noticed. Despite Fiske playing only offensive line his final two seasons of high school, Western Michigan defensive coordinator Lou Esposito recruited him to a defensive camp and gave him an offer as a defensive lineman. With FCS Illinois State being his only other scholarship offer, Fiske committed to the Broncos in June 2017. He was the No. 7 recruit in Western Michigan’s 2018 class (the same class as WR Jayden Reed and RB Chase Brown). The Western Michigan coaching staff was fired after the 2022 season, and Fiske decided to enter the transfer portal for his sixth season, taking advantage of the extra year of eligibility granted because of the pandemic. He was a highly ranked transfer recruit, with notable offers from the Big Ten (Penn State, Rutgers), Big 12 (Oklahoma, West Virginia) and the SEC
(Florida, LSU, Ole Miss). Ultimately, Fiske committed to Florida State over Notre Dame and USC. He graduated with his degree in sport management from Western Michigan (May 2022). Fiske accepted his invitation to the 2024 Senior Bowl and was voted the top defensive lineman on the American team during the week of practice (he switched to the National squad for the game because of injuries).

YEAR (GP/GS) TKLS TFL SACK FF PD INT NOTES
2018: (2/0) 0 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 Western Michigan; Enrolled in August 2018
2019: (12/0) 24 2.0 1.0 0 0 0 Western Michigan
2020: (6/6) 23 5.5 2.5 0 0 0 Western Michigan; Blocked FG; Pandemic-shortened season
2021: (13/12) 43 8.0 4.0 0 0 0 Western Michigan
2022: (12/12) 58 12.0 6.0 2 3 0 Western Michigan; Second Team All-MAC; Led team in FFs
2023: (13/13) 43 9.0 6.0 0 0 0 Florida State; Second Team All-ACC; Missed the bowl game (injury); Enrolled in January 2023
Total: (58/43) 191 36.5 19.5 2 3 0
HT WT HAND ARM WING 40-YD 20-YD 10-YD VJ BJ SS 3C BP
COMBINE 6035 292 9 3/8 31 76 3/4 4.78 2.79 1.68 33 1/2 9’9” 4.37 - 26 (no 3-cone — choice)
PRO DAY 6036 293 9 1/4 30 5/8 76 3/4 - - - - - - - - (no 3-cone — choice)

STRENGTHS: Looks like an NFL lineman with his wide, heavy frame and proportionate thickness … with his initial quickness, he can barrel through gaps or create vertical displacement … physical with his club/swat moves or a good old-fashioned bull rush to press the pocket … keeps his feet alive on stunts and shows off his agility … stout versus the run to hold his ground and stack blocks … one of the most alert defensive linemen in the class and quickly reads screens … impressive foot speed and effort to chase down his prey in the pocket or near the sideline … plays with a worker-bee attitude and his motor doesn’t have an off switch … teammates rave about his competitive nature and the way he maxes out his ability during the week and in games (Jared Verse: “He’s one o f the only people I’ve met who can meet my intensity.” If you know Verse, this is a tremendous compliment).

WEAKNESSES: Below-average arm length and can be out-leveraged by blockers … needs to continue developing his technique in the run game … doesn’t consistently play with cohesion in his rush plan, sacrificing his balance … late counters and has trouble becoming unglued from engagement … won’t be able to outhustle blockers at the next level … was part of a heavy rotation at Florida State, averaging only 29.6 defensive snaps per game … durability is a question mark — after the 2022 season, he required a “cleanup” procedure for his shoulder (December 2022) and was limited during 2023 spring practices after transferring to Florida Stat e; played through nagging injuries over the second half of the 2023 season, which sidelined him for the 2023 bowl game … will already be 24 years old on draft weekend.

SUMMARY: A one-year starter at Florida State, Fiske lined up primarily over the B-gap in defensive coordinator Adam Fuller’s four-man front. After showing yearover- year improvements at Western Michigan, he transferred to Tallahassee for his sixth season and conti nued to take his game to new heights against better competition. A sawed-off, throwback brawler (he doesn’t wear gloves), Fiske generates movement with his get-off, agility and raw power, creating stress on the blocking scheme with his disruptive qualities. While his effectiveness can fluctuate from play to play, his effort sustains whether he is splitting doubles or holding the point of attack. Overall, Fiske doesn’t have a deep arsenal of counters if he doesn’t win early, but he already has a professional mindset and his twitchy urgency and steady play strength will translate well to the pro game. He projects as a rotational three -technique with versatility to move around an aggressive front.

GRADE: 3rd Round (No. 71 overall)

[BrooklynRam74]

Great pick, but it appears we grossly overpaid. Tell me why we didnt?

[Elvis]

Yeah it's a lot, this year's 2, a 5 and next year's 2...

[actionjack]

Yeah it's a lot, this year's 2, a 5 and next year's 2...

yep aggressive this year, love Fiske, twitchy and huge motor, couldnt be blocked at senior bowl

[Elvis]

[BrooklynRam74]

The only thing I could think, Rams valued 2024 3's more than 2025 2. Still, very dangerous when you trade FUTURE Capital. Love Fiske pick though.

[Dare]

I love this pick! IMO it tells me that Shula is going to dump the two gap interior DL and he's going to go with an attacking, penetration one gap front.

Fisk is a great compliment to Turner. Both are high energy, quick interior DL. Fisk is probably going to play a 1T. It also shows me that Shula and McVay are also not overly impressed with Bobby Brown, he's strictly a rotational talent right now.

With Young and Verse on the edges and Turner and Fisk inside there is a whole lot of speed and quickness on this DL. This DL is built to dominate. I love it.

[RAMMAN76]

2 FSU alums in a row?

[Will0120]

2 FSU alums in a row?

You'll see a familiar celebration at the end of that YouTube video. If he can even remotely live up to the person on our team that had that celebration, I think we'll be alright...

[Elvis]