Meaningless April? Not this year: 2015 Indians Preview
March 25, 2015Mike Pettine ranked 28 out of NFL coaches (and that’s OK)
March 25, 2015We are just over a month away from the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Over the course of the last few weeks, I have been examining my top five players at each position in the draft. Today, I continue on the offensive side of the ball by looking at the interior offensive line. Here were my top five offensive linemen in last year’s draft.
The interior offensive line is not a high notoriety position, but these linemen are very important to the success of the entire offense (as the Browns can testify). This draft has a few talented interior linemen who could start right away and be difference makers in the NFL. The group also has players who are versatile to play multiple positions on the offensive line. But overall, the interior offensive linemen class is not very deep this year. So here are my top five interior offensive linemen in the 2015 NFL Draft.
1. Brandon Scherff, Iowa
|
Iowa’s Brandon Scherff played both left tackle and left guard in his college career, but I believe he is best suited as a guard. I look at him as a player similar to Joel Bitonio, who played tackle in college, but fits better as a dominant guard in the NFL. The best part of his game is his run blocking ability. He has great strength and leverage to plow back defenders and make holes for the running game. His initial punch off the line is very good, allowing him to shock the defender and gain leverage against him (as you can see below from #68). He has solid hand placement to keep rushers at bay. He has good size for a guard at 6-foot-5, 319-pounds. He moves well and can get to the second level to block downfield. He is a hard-nosed player who will give his full effort. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. says, “Overall, he is dominant in the run game — the guy who will just try to drive a defender into the parking lot — and has made strides as a pass-blocker.”
Scherff’s biggest weakness is his pass protection. He does not handle speed rushers well because of his stiff hips. He can allow speed rushers to get past him if they can change directions quickly, highlighting his struggle to move his hips. To defend against speed rushers, he can over-compensate and lose technique including stopping his feet to not get beat on change of direction moves. But, I believe this weakness can be relieved with the move inside. He will not face the elite speed rushers inside. His strength will be a better match inside.
2. Cameron Erving, Florida State
Cameron Erving of Florida State is another player with versatility because he played center and left tackle in college. He is a very athletic lineman with good size at 6-foot-5, 313-pounds and long arms. He is very quick off the ball and can get in position faster then most defenders. He has quick feet to move and stay in front of rushers. His athletic ability allows him to be a good run blocker. He can move in space well to reach blocks at the second level or in pulling situations. He has strong hands to keep control of defenders and move them around (as you can see below). His hand placement is also good allowing him to best utilize his strong hands. His versatility is another huge plus for the talented lineman. NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein says, “Has the length and foot quickness to play tackle, but film work shows that he will have a much more successful career at center. Possesses skill set and temperament to show rapid development.”
Erving must improve his technique to fully play to the level of his physical abilities. He tends to lean over in blocking, which can cause him to lose balance and let the defender get away from him. His legs are not terribly strong, so he leans to push defenders back rather than using his legs to do it. His upper body does a lot of the work in blocking, so he must gain strength in his legs and learn to rely on his legs to block. But, these technique issues are all correctible with coaching. His athletic ability, size and versatility can allow him to be a very talented lineman in the NFL.
3. Laken Tomlinson, Duke
Laken Tomlinson of Duke is a bruising offensive guard with a big body at 6-foot-3, 323-pounds. He is a strong human being with the ability to move defenders out of the way. He is a good run blocker with the ability to give a huge punch to start moving the defender. He has strong legs, so he gets good leverage to push through his lower body against defenders. He is a smart player with the ability to read the defense and switch who he is blocking in the middle of the play. He is best suited as straight-line blocker, who can make holes with his strength to move defenders out of the way (as you can see in the video below). He is a tough player, who will not stop until the whistle. Draftbreakdown.com’s Bryan Perez says, “Tomlinson’s overall game lacks any special element, but he is plenty strong and athletic enough to suggest starting potential in the NFL. He projects as an in-line, power player with some upside in space, but he’ll have to improve his ability to finish on the second level.”
Tomlinson struggles in space because of his lack of athleticism. He can lean too much when he is trying to track down a block, resulting in him becoming unbalanced. This weakness can hurt him in pass protection, especially against faster defenders. He also can struggle with maintaining blocks, occasionally falling off blocks because of lack of athleticism and shorter arms. He is also not very versatile, fitting specifically at right guard. But with these weaknesses, I believe his strength and run blocking ability will fit well inside against the big defenders he will face in the NFL.
4. A.J. Cann, South Carolina
South Carolina’s A.J. Cann is another straight-line offensive guard, who can play well in the run game. He has a big lower body that helps him stand his ground and not often get pushed back. He has good size at 6-foot-3, 313-pounds. His hands are strong allowing him to keep hold of defenders and not allow them to get away (as you can see #50 doing below). He has good awareness to change who he is blocking while amidst in the play. He moves well for his size, which helps him to play well in pulling situations and screen plays. His ability to move also helps him in pass protection to keep in front of rushers. He will fit in a straight-line blocking scheme. NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein says, “He is best-suited to a power scheme. Cann has the plug-and-play traits that could make him an instant starter.”
Cann does not have dominating strength or a huge initial punch. He is often slow off the ball and when he does get out of his stance, he does have a powerful punch to get defenders off balance. He is strong enough to stand his ground, but he does not make any push against defenders consistently. In space, he tends to lean forward to reach defenders, which can lead to him missing blocks. His pass protection is not a strength because of his slower ability to change directions. Spin moves can highlight this weakness when he tries to move his hips to the other direction. He is also strictly just an offensive guard. But, for a team looking for a guard, Cann is a lineman who can run block and has the ability to move for his size to be solid in pass protection.
5. Hroniss Grasu, Oregon
Oregon’s Hroniss Grasu is an athletic center who can stand his ground against bigger defensive linemen. What he lacks in size at 6-foot-3, 297-pounds, he makes up for it with his athleticism and agility. He can get off the snap very quickly and get into position before defenders. He can move around and get into blocking position very fast and fluidly. This helps him in pass protection when he needs to react quickly to a rusher. He has good awareness to switch who he is blocking during the play to best protect the quarterback. He can get to the second level in running plays. He has good natural strength and can take on bull rushes pretty well. For a lighter lineman, he can really stand his ground in the trenches (as you can see below). He has great form in his blocking stance that allows him to stand tough in the trenches. Walterfootball.com’s Charlie Campbell says, “Grasu is a quick and athletic center who was a perfect fit in Oregon’s high-paced attack. He moves well and did a fantastic job as a run-blocker while being very reliable in pass protection.”
Grasu is not the strongest linemen, so he could add some weight and strength to his frame. He can be susceptible to getting bull rushed when he is on the move. His strength and size has trouble in short yardage situations when he must go head on with bigger defensive linemen. He also needs to work on his hand placement. He hands can get too wide on defenders, which allows defenders to break away easier from his grasp. But, overall his athletic ability and natural strength should make him into a very good center in the NFL, with his best fit with a zone blocking scheme team.
16 Comments
My outside the Top-5…
BJ Finney – Kansas State
John Miller – Louisville
Jarvis Harrison – Texas A&M
I’m going to use this quiet time of year to issue my top 5 Gilberts:
1. Dan Gilbert
2. Gilbert Gottfried
3. Joe Gilbert
4. Gilbert Grape
5. Gilbert Arenas
I’m better than Gilbert Gottfried!
I saw CB.E’s comment on the feed and came here specifically to write that in. Gottfried gave us Iago, but that was far too long ago to keep him so high on the list.
Finney – probably center-only guy as he’s not as athletic or has stoutness to hold point. great technique though.
Miller – pure power guy with slow feet, not for ZBS
Harrison – red flags on work ethic and desire. weight fluctuations. otherwise, he’s a good power+quickness fit for ZBS.
———–
Mark Glowinski (WVU) – Strength and quickness to be ZBS OG. Needs some pass protection technique work as WVU plays the standup spread.
Ali Marpet (Hobart) – DIII player who was offensive player of the year in his conference and was first DIII player ever invited to Senior Bowl. No way to properly judge him and he is said to have bad habits, but definitely worth a strong push to get as an UDFA or last round pick (and is ZBS-specific type guy).
Greg Mancz (Toledo) – Nearly impossible to find anything technically wrong with his game. The issue is if he is big and strong enough to handle NFL guys. If our team thinks they can take a year and build up his strength, then I’d love to have him.
Chad Hamilton (Coastal Carolina) – the only tape out there shows him dominating, but at the FCS level. He seemingly has the speed and quickness to be a ZBS guy. So, another potential late rounder.
Crap. Good thing I’m not a scout.
good post MG … i am partial to all the toledo boys & mancz is no exception. i see him as a late round selection.
LMAO !!
hi Joe … nice informative reporting , as always.
after the first few guys, everyone has major red flags this year in some form or another.
Agree. Definitely not the surest group I have seen over the last few years
Thanks
How many 1st overall picks does Nick Gilbert need to give the Cavs to crack your list?
He fell to #11 on the more comprehensive list of Gilberts I work on periodically. Fair or not, I blame him for Anthony Bennett.
But, Anthony Bennett got us Kevin Love #LaCanfora’d
http://blippitt.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Gilbert-Gottfried-AFLAC.gif