Category: Prospect Profiles

2024 NFL draft prospect room to improve: Notre Dame OT Joe Alt

Breaking down where Notre Dame OT Joe Alt can improve his game in the 2023 college season as a 2024 NFL draft prospect

Joe Alt enters the 2023 college season as one of the favorites to be the first offensive lineman selected in the 2024 NFL draft. The Notre Dame left tackle has shown impressive quickness, great length, solid technical mastery and upside to grow even more.

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Alt still has a couple of areas where he can improve upon his game to make himself an even more appealing prospect in the upcoming season. After watching five Notre Dame games from 2022 (Ohio State, North Carolina, USC, Stanford, Clemson), here are two facets where Alt can improve.

Driving power

Alt is a very impressive athlete for being 6-foot-8, and he moves quite well for a taller OT. He does have some struggles in creating movement in the run game when tasked with heads-up blocking or working solo on a stouter defender.

Part of the issue is out of his control; he’s too long to generate a lot of force against defenders who have a natural leverage advantage against him and understand how to use it. Taller NFL vets like Taylor Decker and Mike McGlinchey have had to overcome similar issues coming out of college as top-20 overall picks. Alt generally bends well but doesn’t always do so when having to reach at extension for the initial block.

Some of Alt’s struggles in this area are a propensity to stop driving his feet while engaged. He often tries to create movement with more shoulder torque and initial pop from his long (and impressive) punch. But after that initial horn-locking, Alt doesn’t always churn the feet or engage his lower body to drive and attack. It’s reminiscent of another first-round OT from the past, Jack Conklin. When Conklin remembered to keep the feet active, he was very good for both the Titans and Browns. When he didn’t, he had some real struggles against the superior power of the EDGE defenders in the NFL.

Inside shoulder in pass protection

Alt did not allow a single sack in the games I watched. In fact, Notre Dame had him credited with a clean sack slate all season. But he does show some vulnerability with his inside (right) shoulder when facing stand-up rushers who can avoid the initial punch.

This is related to the aforementioned length. There is a point of diminishing returns for length at tackle, and Alt approaches it. When he fires out those long arms, it naturally takes him a tick longer to reset and readjust to the defender than it does for a guy who is “just” 6-foot-6. Alt showed a tendency to exacerbate this by leaning out over his toes instead of sliding his inside foot forward when outside rushers tried to cross his face or spin inside.

2024 NFL draft prospect Room to Improve: USC safety Calen Bullock

Highlighting where USC safety Calen Bullock can improve his game in the 2023 college season as a 2024 NFL draft prospect

Next up in the summer scouting series is a player who has appeared in quite a few “too early” mock drafts in the 20-40 overall range.

After breaking down fellow Trojan Caleb Williams, I turned my attention to USC safety Calen Bullock. Viewing the same four games (UCLA, Tulane, Utah and Oregon State), I came away with a few areas where Bullock can help himself in the upcoming season in terms of NFL draft stock.

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2024 draft prospect Room to Improve: Georgia TE Brock Bowers

Bowers is a very skilled receiver but has a few area where he can improve for Georgia as a 2024 NFL draft prospect

Up next in the Room to Improve series for the 2024 NFL draft prospects is the reigning Mackey Award winner as the nation’s top tight end, Brock Bowers of the Georgia Bulldogs.

Bowers has quickly proven himself as an outstanding receiving threat in his first two seasons in Athens. What can he do to help augment his potential NFL draft stock in the upcoming college season?

I use this series to preemptively nitpick prospects and see where I want prospects to improve in the upcoming college season. It’s a series I did back in the day as part of the Draft Breakdown (RIP) team, and I’m reviving it here as the Room to Improve series for the 2024 NFL draft.

For Bowers, I watched Georgia’s games against Oregon, Samford, Kent State, Auburn, LSU and Ohio State from the 2022 national championship season.

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5 late-round prospects who deserve more love in the 2023 NFL draft

Our Jeff Risdon offers up 5 Day 3 prospects who deserve more love in the 2023 NFL draft

It can be hard to remember that the NFL draft extends out to seven rounds. Much of the focus goes to the first couple of rounds, the realm where teams are selecting mostly players that fans watched excel in college and all-star games. The later rounds don’t get as much recognition, often featuring prospects that are more under the national radar.

Here are five players who generally project in the final rounds of the draft, or perhaps even as a priority free agent, who should be ranked higher or shown more pre-draft love.

Adetomiwa Adebawore continues his outstanding offseason at Northwestern’s pro day

Northwestern DT Adetomiwa Adebawore is both an athletic handful for blockers and a mouthful for announcers

It’s a real mouthful to say his name. Adetomiwa Adebawore takes a little practice to pronounce. It’s even harder to slow down the Northwestern defensive lineman and his momentum up the 2023 NFL draft boards.

After Adebawore’s performance on Tuesday at Northwestern’s pro day, his name should be on the lips of every NFL talent evaluator.

Adebawore continued his torrid offseason at the Wildcats’ pro day. Measuring 6-foot-2 and 282 pounds at the NFL Scouting Combine, the freakish level of athleticism he showed in Indianapolis was on full display in Evanston, too. Other than being undersized, Adebawore is a supremely athletic lineman with outstanding testing scores. He’s faster and more agile than several linebackers in this draft class.

During the Senior Bowl, Adebawore thrived while playing more of a DT role than he did at Northwestern, where he spent more time playing as a supersized end. His initial burst, hand and foot quickness and ability to sink under taller blockers allowed him to dominate as a 3T. He’s got some anchor strength and understands how to use his more compact build to win the leverage battle, and his ability to smoke past slow-footed interior blockers makes those attributes more than good enough.

That’s his optimal NFL usage — think Grady Jarrett of the Falcons or Geno Atkins from the Bengals a few years ago. Atkins went in the fourth round in 2010, while Jarrett was a fifth-rounder in 2015. With his athleticism and youthful promise (he just turned 22), expect to hear his name on Day 2 of the NFL draft.

By the way, it’s pronounced add-E-TOMMY-wah add-E-BARR-eh.

 

2022 NFL draft: 3 QB prospects with breakout potential

Breaking down a trio of quarterback prospects who could improve their stock for the 2022 NFL draft with a strong showing in 2021

The 2021 NFL draft is only two months in the rearview mirror, but that doesn’t mean it’s too early to prepare for next year’s draft.

Five quarterbacks were taken in the first round, marking just the second time the feat has been accomplished in the 21st century. While the 2022 draft may not be as highly-touted at the position heading into the upcoming season, there is not shortage of quarterback talent.

The likes of Spencer Rattler and Sam Howell have been consistently ranked among the top returning quarterbacks in college football. Kedon Slovis, JT Daniels and Matt Corral have also seen plenty of hype as gifted, Power 5 signal-callers. Outside of the Power 5, Malik Willis, Carson Strong and Desmond Ridder have made their fair shares of appearances in the first rounds of early 2022 mock drafts.

However, there’s always a quarterback or two that breaks out with a stellar season and shoots up draft boards. While it’s difficult to predict said breakout candidates with incredible precision, there are a handful of quarterbacks with major sleeper potential.

Here are three quarterbacks who could shoot up boards in the 2022 NFL draft:

2020 NFL draft: Cameron Dantzler scouting report

Everything NFL draft fans need to know about Mississippi State cornerback prospect Cameron Dantzler

Cameron Dantzler | CB | Mississippi State

Elevator Pitch

Dantzler is an enticing press-man cornerback with impressive length and ideal physicality who plays with good route anticipatory skills. He’s not a fantastic athlete, but he offers value as a boundary defender with solid starting upside at the next level.

Vitals

Height | 6-2

Weight | 188

College Bio Page

Career Stats

Strengths

If you like length at the cornerback position, you’ll love Dantzler’s game.

A tall and lanky cornerback who possesses the height necessary to match up with ‘X’ receivers on the boundary, Dantzler brings plenty of physical upside. Despite being somewhat skinny for his height, he plays with impressive physicality. He packs a solid jab in quick-jam press coverage, timing and placing his strikes with precision and then executing them with force. That physicality is maintained through a receiver’s stem, and Dantzler also does a good job of fighting with his opponents to make sure he doesn’t get boxed out on 50/50 balls or route that break across the middle of the field. He is a feisty and competitive player who brings plenty of swagger at the cornerback position, which is an encouraging sign for his professional prospects.

Dantzler does a good job of anticipating routes and mirroring his opponents’ movements. He positions himself well to make a play on the ball and prevent receivers from attacking leverage points against him. He does a great job of sniffing out screens and has the closing speed as a tackler and the motor to accelerate downhill and blow up the play. His ball skills show up through his adjustments to the ball and his ability to attack the ball in the air, as well as his ability to attack a receiver’s hands to break up the pass.

Weaknesses

For the physicality and awareness Dantzler brings, he doesn’t have top-notch athletic abilities. He plays with solid fluidity in coverage, but he can be burned by double moves and has average deep speed when covering a vertical route. He can improve in his ability to sink his hips a bit more when he changes direction, and he can work on his burst coming out of his breaks in short-area situations. His 4.64 40-yard dash at the Combine was a bit underwhelming, too.

Dantzler could also improve as a tackler, as he doesn’t play with spectacular form or play strength in that regard. While he has shown effort in run support, his style of play combined with his lanky frame might make it tougher to consistently bring down ball-carriers at the next level. He could stand to add on a bit more bulk, as his frame is a bit too wiry at this stage in his career.

Projection: Day 2

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2020 NFL draft: Saahdiq Charles scouting report

Everything NFL draft fans need to know about LSU offensive tackle prospect Saahdiq Charles

Saahdiq Charles | OT | LSU

Elevator Pitch

Charles is an athletic offensive tackle prospect who possesses intriguing quickness, flexibility and footwork for someone his size. He could stand to work on his technique and strength a bit, and his suspension this past year may need some digging into, but the potential is palpable in his skill set.

Vitals

Height | 6-4

Weight | 321

College Bio Page

Strengths

Charles’ athletic abilities should see him high in demand after the first tier of offensive tackles comes off the board in this year’s class.

A nimble lineman who moves around better than most his size, Charles has very good lateral quickness and possesses impressive footwork and body control when moving around. He changes direction well, allowing him to counter speed rushes and adjust his set points to close off the possibility of a defender bouncing inside against him. His acceleration climbing to the second level is impressive, and he has the athleticism and awareness to make adjustments and position himself to take on incoming defenders or blitzes. He has shown some potential in his flexibility, as he can bend pretty well when he maintains the composure to do so.

A three-year starter who has only been playing as an offensive lineman for four years, Charles possesses an enticing experience-room to grow combination and is continually getting better as he adjusts to the position. He has some experience as a guard too, which may help him get additional playing time early on in his career. His athletic abilities, as well as the flashes of potential he’s shown when he gets his technique down, give him a high ceiling at the next level.

Weaknesses

Charles weighed significantly more at the Combine than he was listed as at LSU, and while he did need to pack on weight, it remains to be seen if that weight gain will translate to added play strength. On tape, he didn’t pack much of a punch at the point of attack and didn’t have enough of a mauler playing style to drive defenders into the dirt. He struggles at times with recovering from speed-to-power conversions against him, and his overall core strength is pretty average.

Part of his power struggles stem from his technique, as he doesn’t play with optimal pad level and can do better at maintaining leverage. He can also improve the consistency in his hand placement and can allow defenders inside his frame a bit too easily. His ability to re-set his hands isn’t all that great yet, and he has a tendency to lunge from time to time. Charles was suspended for six games in 2019 for disciplinary reasons, and while the exact cause of the suspension is unknown, teams will certainly have to do some digging in that regard.

Projection: 3rd-4th Round

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2020 NFL draft: Matt Peart scouting report

Everything NFL draft fans need to know about UConn offensive tackle prospect Matt Peart

Matt Peart | OT | UConn

Elevator Pitch

A high-ceiling tackle prospect with a lengthy frame and commendable athleticism for his size, Peart has the physical tools to be a high-quality offensive lineman at the next level. Though he’s pretty raw and can add some more muscle to his frame, the upside he offers should help his draft stock a bit.

Vitals

Height | 6-7

Weight | 318

College Bio Page

Strengths

Coaches like length at the offensive tackle position, and Peart has that in spades.

A giant who measured with the longest arms at the Combine, Peart has fantastic measurables for his position. His arms alone give him plenty of range as a blocker, but that length is complemented by impressive speed and agility. He moves well laterally in pass protection and is light on his feet when changing direction. He has the burst coming out of his stance – as well as sustainable speed – to keep up with athletic edge rushers off the snap. When climbing to the second level, he accelerates quickly and has the body control to maintain blocks while on the move, which also helps out in down-blocking situations.

Peart also has shown that he can play with a nasty edge at times, demonstrating flashes of grip strength that can overwhelm opposing defenders. He offers versatility along the offensive line, having played as both a tackle and a guard at UConn. He was also a four-year starter, so he has plenty of experience and plenty of tape to go off of, and his growth as a blocker is apparent.

Weaknesses

Though his athletic upside will see Peart drafted highly, his rawness as a blocker will more than likely prevent him from going higher than Day 2. He has a skinny frame and doesn’t possess much raw power in his lower body. That underwhelming strength is affected more so by his subpar pad level, as he doesn’t do a great job of sinking his hips and staying low to get his weight underneath him. It’s not a matter of flexibility with him, as he is a quality athlete, but rather composure. He fails to generate significant force or drive in his legs.

Peart can also stand to improve his hand placement a bit. While he has shown some flashes in that regard, he can be more consistent at places his strikes correctly and making sure not to lunge at opposing defenders. He weighed in heavier at the Combine than he ever did at UConn, but time will tell if that weight was fluctuated, or if it wasn’t, if that weight translates to more power.

Projection: Day 3

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2020 NFL draft: Isaiah Wilson scouting report

Everything NFL draft fans need to know about Georgia offensive tackle prospect Isaiah Wilson

Isaiah Wilson | OT | Georgia

Elevator Pitch

Wilson is a massive individual who brings plenty of raw power, nastiness and potential at the next level. He’s a work in progress, but the upside is there for him to be a solid starter at the next level.

Vitals

Height | 6-6

Weight | 350

College Bio Page

Strengths

You don’t even need to watch Wilson’s tape to determine one of his strengths; one look at him tells the story.

Wilson is absolutely huge, even by offensive line standards. The second-heaviest player to attend the Combine this year, the Georgia product has a hulking frame with a wide chest, a strong lower body and broad shoulders. That bulk correlates to his play strength, as he packs a powerful punch at the point of attack. He has consistent grip strength and is able to overwhelm defenders at the point of attack. Once he grips onto an opponent, he has the drive in his lower body and the nasty edge in his game to knock them backwards and finish them off.

With the run-heavy offense Georgia tends to run, Wilson has plenty of experience blocking in the ground game and excels there the most. He has some potential as a pass blocker though, as he has shown solid lateral quickness and footwork for someone as big as he is. When he gets his hands placed correctly, he does a solid job of finishing the defender off and locking that defender out of the play entirely.

Weaknesses

Wilson is definitely a work in progress and will likely require a year on the bench. He doesn’t play with good body control and can struggle maintaining his balance, whether it be when he advances to the second level or when he lunges forward and mistimes his jabs. His hand placement can be hit or miss, which can allow defenders to slip underneath him. That can be difficult for him to counter, seeing as he doesn’t play with stellar pad level or flexibility in his lower half.

Though it isn’t a surprise considering how big he is, Wilson is a bit stiff-hipped and struggles with adjusting his set points and rotating to square up to the defender in pass protection. There are times where he loses to an edge rusher going forward with a speed rush, so he enters recovery mode and begins running instead of shuffling along with them. He’s also declaring as a redshirt sophomore, so there is some slight inexperience there, even though he was a two-year starter at Georgia.

Projection: Day 2

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