Gang Green Nation
Taking a look at a Jets defensive line prospect
The New York Jets recently signed former West Virginia nose tackle Fatorma Mulbah as an undrafted free agent. Today we break Mulbah down in detail.
The 22-year old Mulbah is listed at 6’4” and 306 pounds. He racked up 75 tackles, eight tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks over the past two seasons after transferring from Penn State.
Background
Mulbah came to the US when he was 12 after his family won a visa lottery, enabling them to escape an ongoing Ebola outbreak in their home nation of Liberia. He soon took up football (in addition to basketball and wrestling) and was a three-star high school recruit.
Initially, Mulbah went to Penn State but he didn’t get to play much. After redshirting the 2020 season, he had four tackles in six games in 2021. Then in 2022, he played in 13 games, but mostly just on special teams as he didn’t record any statistics.
Having opted to transfer, Mulbah headed to West Virginia and came off the bench for them as he recorded 25 tackles, three tackles for loss and a half sack in 13 games. He earned his first career start in the team’s bowl game.
In 2024, he won a starting role and eventually started all 13 games. He racked up 50 tackles, which was fifth in the nation for all defensive tackles and second among Power Five schools. That was headlined by a 13-tackle performance against Cincinnati; an almost unheard-of level of production from a nose tackle.
In addition to the 50 tackles, Mulbah was also credited with five tackles for loss including one sack.
Having not been invited to the NFL scouting combine or the Senior Bowl, Mulbah participated in the Hula Bowl instead. He was not widely expected to be selected in April.
After Mulbah went undrafted, the Jets signed him to an undrafted free agency deal with $100K guaranteed.
Let’s move on to some more in-depth analysis of what Mulbah brings to the table as a player, based on extensive research and film study.
Measurables/Athleticism
Mulbah was just 270 pounds coming out of high school, but he was listed at 315 pounds by his senior year. He weighed in at 309 at his pro day, where his workout numbers were solid.
He ran a 5.07 in the 40-yard dash and managed 28 bench press reps with solid agility numbers for his size and good explosiveness numbers.
Mulbah can also squat just under 600 pounds.
Usage
Mulbah saw action on the interior in both four and three-man fronts during his career. Penn State mostly had four-man fronts but West Virginia played a lot of 3-4, so he had a lot more work at the nose tackle position over the last few years.
Motor
Although he can sometimes show signs of fatigue late in games, Mulbah battles hard in the trenches and will work hard in pursuit.
Until last year, he had never played more than 25...
