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Monday, April 24, 2017

2017 NFL Draft: Offensive Linemen

Offensive (side of the ball, not upsetting content) hog mollie time. And, it’s pretty rough. I think you’re going to have to take flyers on body and athleticism types and even then you’re probably looking spot starters and players that can play multiple positions. Only three stats in this one: 3-cone, short shuttle, and broad jump. The two agility drills are the most important for offensive linemen, and the broad jump talks to hip explosion.

Tackles

1)     Garrett Bolles, Jr, Utah, 6’ 5” 297 lbs – Starter (7.2)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.29, Short Shuttle: 4.55, Broad Jump: 9’ 7”
Garrett Bolles gives you reason to be concerned with limited experience at Utah, but he’s a complete athlete, got better as the year went on, and has that length that you’d want from bookend tackle at the NFL level.

2)     Forrest Lamp, Sr, WKU, 6’ 4” 309 lbs – Starter (7.1)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.55, Short Shuttle: 4.62, Broad Jump: 9’ 3”
Lamp is the most pro ready of the offensive linemen, but he may be more fit to move inside and dominate there for a decade. If I were running a team I’d try him at tackle first, because A) he’s athletic enough, and B) he handled the Alabama edge players in there match-up and for that I think it’s worth the try at tackle (as you’ll see lower he’s my top rated guard).

3)     Taylor Moton, Sr, Western Michigan, 6’ 5” 319 lbs – Expected Starter (7.0)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.73, Short Shuttle: 4.58, Broad Jump: 9’ 1”
Moton was really good at Western Michigan and was the best lineman in the Cotton Bowl over both Ramczyk and his line mate who looks to be a 1st round pick next season. Moton is just solid all around and in an  offensive line draft that’s pretty shallow a player as solid as Moton with his athletic numbers is a valuable asset to have on your team.

4)     Ryan Ramczyk, Jr, Wisconsin, 6’ 6” 310 lbs – Expected Starter (6.9)
Stats – 3-Cone: N/a, Short Shuttle: N/a, Broad Jump: N/a
Ramczyk would be battling Bolles for top tackle in the draft if he hadn’t been held out of working out this offseason with a hip injury. A for UW-Steven Point Pointer Ramczyk is a great story but injury concerns will almost certainly hold him down a bit.

5) Connor McDermott, Sr, UCLA, 6’ 8” 307 lbs – Expected Starter (6.8)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.52, Short Shuttle: 4.58, Broad Jump: 8’ 9”
McDermott impressed against Garrett early in the season and has the power and athleticism to be a starting tackle in the league. A long lanky guy he’ll need to bulk up at the next level but he has all the tools to be a good starter at the next level.

6) Cam Robinson, Jr, Alabama, 6’ 6” 322 lbs – Expected Starter (6.5)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.81, Short Shuttle: 4.82, Broad Jump: 8’ 10”
Robinson has the recruiting pedigree and started all three years at Alabama at left tackle. He’s had some struggles at times and his testing numbers leave a bit to be desired. All that being said, he’s the tackle that worries me most that I’ve misgraded him because the talent is there and he wouldn’t be the first to finally put it all together in the league.

7) Corey Levin, Sr, UT Chattanooga, 6’ 4” 307 lbs – Expected Starter (6.3)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.55, Short Shuttle: 4.73, Broad Jump: 8’ 10”
A small school prospect Levin is an athletic specimen who’s biggest concern is ability to translate his skills to the best competition in the world every down in the NFL.

8) William Holden, Sr, Vanderbilt, 6’ 7” 311 lbs – Expected Starter (6.1)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.71, Short Shuttle: 4.72, Broad Jump: 9’ 3”
Holden is flying under-the-radar in the process leading up to the draft but the SEC product doesn’t leave much to be desired. He checks the agility boxes and had the third highest broad jump of the group. Holden is going to go day two or very early day three and be a nice addition to the depth of someone’s offensive line.

9) Daniel Brunskill, Sr, San Diego State, 6’ 5” 273 lbs – Potential Starter (5.9)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.64, Short Shuttle: 4.78, Broad Jump: 9’1”
Brunskill and guard SIragusa lead the way for Donnel Pumphrey to break a lot of records at San Diego State. Brunskill, undersized for the position, is a former tight end who moved to tackle recently. He’s a bit of a project but the history of this transition before you get drafted is pretty good. Brunskill checks almost every both athletically and should be an intriguing piece for o-line coaches league-wide.

10) Aviante Collins, Sr, TCU, 6’ 4” 295 lbs – Potential Starter (5.8)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.29, Short Shuttle: 4.55, Broad Jump: 9’ 7”
Aviante Collins is the guy who boomed athletically at the draft with a 4.81 40 yard dash at 295 pounds. Collins has inconsistencies on tape at TCU, but I think his athletic profile is well worth a look in a tackle class that doesn’t have the highest ceiling.

Guards

1)     Forrest Lamp, Sr, WKU, 6’ 4” 309 lbs – Starter (7.5)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.55, Short Shuttle: 4.62, Broad Jump: 9’ 3”
Talked about Lamp above, rating him a bit higher here because arm length isn’t a concern at guard and he’s plenty powerful for the position.

2)     Nico Siragusa, Sr, San Diego State, 6’ 4” 319 lbs – Starter (7.2)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.71, Short Shuttle: 4.56, Broad Jump 9’ 2”
Siragusa a road grader who is going to start at guard and improve a run game year one. Add that to agility times that suggest he’ll be fine on the move when pulling and you have a very good day two pick to help your offensive line.

3)     Dan Feeney, Sr, Indiana, 6’ 4” 305 lbs – Starter (7.1)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.52, Short Shuttle: 4.68, Broad Jump: 8’ 5”
Feeney is the next in a line of pretty good line prospects to come out of Indiana and he has the chance to be a very good internal offensive lineman in the NFL. He’s good on the move, his broad jump concerns me a bit, but overall his profile suggest he’ll be just fine at the next level.
4)     Taylor Moton, Sr, Western Michigan, 6’ 5” 319 lbs – Expected Starter (7.0)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.73, Short Shuttle: 4.58, Broad Jump: 9’ 1”
Moton grades out evenly between guard and tackle. Talked about him above.

5)     Dion Dawkins, Sr, Temple, 6’ 4” 314 lbs – Expected Starter (6.6)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.30, Short Shuttle: 4.78, Broad Jump: 8’ 8”
Dawkins played tackle at Temple, but I think his best chance for success is to move inside at the next level. Dawkins blocks through the whistle and has a bit of dog to his game. He needs to clean up some footwork issues, but he’s got the traits to be a good guard at the next level.

6)     Geoff Gray, Sr, Manitoba, 6’ 6” 315 lbs – Expected Starter (6.5)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.70, Short Shuttle: 4.69, Broad Jump: 9’ 6”
Gray is good, but the only thing I want to tell you about him is that he’s going to be a top five pick in the CFL draft.

7)     Corey Levin, Sr, UT Chattanooga, 6’ 4” 307 lbs – Expected Starter (6.5)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.55, Short Shuttle: 4.73, Broad Jump: 8’ 10”
Spoke about Levin above.

8)     Benny McGowan, Sr, Michigan State, 6’ 3” 324 lbs – Expected Starter (6.5)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.70, Short Shuttle: 4.60, Broad Jump: 8’ 3”
McGowan’s agility scores are some of the best of the bunch, but the broad jump is scary low for the former spartan.

9)     Corey Whitaker, Sr, Nebraska, 6’ 4” 298 lbs – Expected Starter (6.8)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.49, Short Shuttle: 4.62, Broad Jump: 8’ 9”
Whitaker started only one year at Nebraska, but he played well in his time out there and has an athletic profile to drool over. He’s my athletic flyer from a power 5 school.

10)  Andrew Wylie, Sr, Eastern Michigan, 6’ 5” 304 lbs – Expected Starter (6.4)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.46, Short Shuttle: 4.76, Broad Jump: 9’ 7”
Wylie is my small school freak athlete inside. His worst time was his shuttle, but even that was reasonably above average.

Centers

1)     Chase Roullier, Sr, Wyoming, 6’ 4’ 312 lbs – Expected Starter (7.0)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.60, Short Shuttle: 4.47, Broad Jump: 8’ 7”
Roullier gets my top spot over Efflein is because of his athletic profile. Outside of the broad jump, Roullier is significantly better than Efflein and his tape is pretty good. You’ll notice I pretty good because no one in this class blows me away.

2)     Pat Efflein, Sr, Ohio State, 6’ 3” 303 lbs – Expected Starter (6.8)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.94, Short Shuttle: 4.71, Broad Jump: 8’ 3”
Efflein falls because of his testing. I still think he’s going to be solid for a long time, but I have concerns about his feet and the fact that he’s on the short side for that threshold.

3)     Kyle Fuller, Sr, Baylor, 6’ 5” 307 lbs – Potential Starter (6.0)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.71, Short Shuttle: 4.84, Broad Jump: 8’ 0”
Fuller is 80% of Efflein and that should tell you how fast this draft falls off at center. He plays with power pretty well downhill, but needs to anchor much better in the pass game. He gets pushed back into his QBs lap too often. Add that to meh athleticism, you get a player that should be rosterable, but needs to improve at the next level to be a solid contributor.

4)     Ethan Pocic, Sr, LSU, 6’ 6” 310 lbs – Potential Starter (5.9)
Stats – 3-Cone: 7.89, Short Shuttle: 4.81, Broad Jump: 8’ 11”
Pocic started 27 games at starter for LSU and was a good college lineman, but there are flaws here that worry me. Watching the Alabama game and he’s playing in his own backfield most of the game, gets lost in space too often, and allows the defender to disengage and make a play too often. Match this up with his agility scores and I have concern about his efficacy in the NFL.

5)     J.J. Dielman, Sr, Utah, 6’ 5” 309 lbs – Potential Starter (5.7)
Stats – 3-Cone: N/a, Short Shuttle: N/a, Broad Jump: N/a
Loved his film, and the injuries are a concern, but in a weak class I’ll put the guy I liked when I watched him in my top 5 at the position.


Not the deepest year for linemen but there are some intriguing options and a few players I think will be important pieces for many years. We’ll look at their adversaries in my next piece.

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