Fighting For A Chance - Zeek Bigger's NFL Draft Journey

The road to the NFL Draft is a long, arduous journey for every player that has hopes to hear their name called. That journey includes countless hours of practice, workouts and film study combined with personal sacrifice.

This journey becomes much harder for players who are not highly recruited, lack ideal size or speed for their position or play at a smaller school. The difficulty is amplified when a player is not invited to the NFL Scouting Combine. All of these factors have combined to make the draft journey of Zeek Bigger a very difficult one.

Despite these factors, Bigger is not quitting on his dream of hearing his name called out in Chicago. The Gastonia, N.C. native spent five years at East Carolina, starting as a special teams standout and finishing as the leader of the defense at middle linebacker.

Oct 17, 2015; Greenville, NC, USA; Tulsa Golden Hurricane quarterback Dane Evans (9) is sacked by the East Carolina Pirates linebacker Zeek Bigger (44) during the 3rd quarter at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. The East Carolina Pirates defeated the Tulsa Golden Hurricane 30-17. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports /

At 6-2 and 231-pounds, Bigger was not blessed with the ideal size to be an inside linebacker. He has added some size since his final game as a Pirate. He was listed at 216 pounds during his collegiate career, but was able to bulk up to 231 pounds for his recent Pro Day.

The most important part of Bigger’s Pro Day to show his new build while showing he maintained speed. After not being invited to the NFL Combine, this Pro Day was Bigger’s largest opportunity to display his skills for NFL scouts.

“It felt good being out there,” Bigger said of his Pro Day performance. “Just being able to go out there and show some of my abilities, some of the things I’ve been working on these past 11 weeks.” Bigger has been training at D1 Sports in Tennessee and North Carolina during the lead up to his Pro Day, and with his added weight and strength, Bigger was able to keep his speed.

Bigger also spent time working out with Indianapolis Colts linebacker Sio Moore – an underrated linebacker coming into the NFL draft who was selected in the third round (by the Oakland Raiders) after a terrific pre-draft process.

“I think I put some good thought in other teams and other coaches minds. Now we will just have to see how it goes.”

The biggest takeaway from Bigger’s workout was that he left it all on the field – something that he has done his entire career. Bigger started his career as a special teams player for the Pirates, recording 18 tackles during his freshman year in 2012. His ability to find the ball and make plays impressed coaches at that time, but his lack of size was a huge detriment to Bigger becoming a defensive player.

“You can never be so good at something that you can’t work on it.” – Zeek Bigger

He got that chance in 2013 due to a string of injuries at linebacker for the Pirates. Bigger took advantage of that opportunity and never looked back. He recorded 77 tackles in 2013, including five tackles for a loss, two sacks and an interception. He followed that up with a remarkable 140 tackles in his Junior season and a career-high two interceptions.

Throughout this time, Bigger became known as a down hill player who specialized in the run game. He was stout, despite his frame, and filled holes well due to his instinctual play. Entering 2015, Bigger knew he was going to need to improve on his pass coverage skills, which he vastly improved. He has continued to work on that throughout his training.

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“That is something I have been working on. It’s something I have always been pretty decent at, but I never give myself too much credit. It is something I have to work on each and every day. I don’t think I’m that good or great yet, we’ll have to figure that out down the road on the team I play for. I just work on everything each and every day.

“You can never be so good at something that you can’t work on it. There were some other thing [that I worked on] but I think I surprised [scouts] with that. Hopefully I’ll hear some good news about that soon.”

While Bigger has proven to scouts that he has the ability to play in the role of a middle linebacker in the NFL, one of his best attributes is his leadership and willingness to play as a special teams player at the next level. Bigger made his name as a special teams standout, and believes that humble start to his career has helped him fight to get to his current spot.

“I’ve been fighting since day one,” Bigger said when asked about how his journey has affected his current drive for the NFL. “I’ve been the underdog since day one. I came in here and played special teams, did what I had to do on special teams and ended up being a starting linebacker because of injuries..

Fighting For A Chance – Zeek Bigger’s NFL Draft Journey

By Matt LaPan | Apr 1, 2016

The road to the NFL Draft is a long, arduous journey for every player that has hopes to hear their name called. That journey includes countless hours of practice, workouts and film study combined with personal sacrifice.

More from NFL Spin Zone