7. Robert Hunt, OT/IOL, Louisiana-Lafayette
Height: 6’5″ Weight: 322
40-Yard Dash: N/A
Bench Press: N/A
Vertical Jump: N/A
Broad Jump: N/A
3-Cone Drill: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: N/A
60-Yard Shuttle: N/A
Bio: There are some prospects who enter college having played for massive high school programs, or like Cesar Ruiz for the prestigious IMG Academy. Then there is Robert Hunt. The Louisiana-Lafayette offensive lineman played for Burkeville High School in Texas, a program that had just 18 players on its entire roster. While in high school, Hunt experienced victory just twice.
He was a two-star recruit coming out of Burkeville, and his only offer was ULL. But he was a four-year starter for the Ragin’ Cajuns, first at left guard and then eventually at right tackle.
Stat to Know: Hunt allowed just one sack last season from the right tackle spot, and one additional quarterback hurry. What makes this all the more impressive is that ULL’s starting quarterback was left-handed, meaning Hunt served as the blindside protection last year.
Strengths: At the outset, it is important to note that Hunt is looking to play offensive tackle in the NFL, and could stick in the league at that position. However, his size is ideal for the guard position, and given his experience at guard he is considered an interior lineman for our purposes.
As previously mentioned, Hunt was the right tackle for an offense that featured a left-handed passer, making him the blind side protector last season. In that role he showed good awareness for stunts, twists and blitzes, moved extremely well laterally both in pass protection and on zone blocking designs, and showed the ability to anchor well against pass rushers. He also has great footwork from both an athletic and a technique perspective. Take, for example, this play against Appalachian State from last season:
Hunt is on the backside of an outside zone running play, and he executes a hinge block to cut off the backside pursuit. He flashes a downhill block first, chopping his feet a yard or two past the line of scrimmage. But he has the athleticism to then double back and hinge on the backside defensive end, cutting him off from a pursuit angle. A technically sound block.
Hunt also has what some may call “throw you out of the club” power. An homage to Rob Gronkowski, Hunt has the ability to drive block defenders out of the broadcast view of the play.
To get a feel for how he might fare at guard you can look back at his 2017 games. While he was obviously younger and not as experienced back then, there are some great traits to see from him. He was extremely active in pass protection, always looking for work and deftly able to use his hands to protect his quarterback. He handled blitzes well when aligned as a guard, and showed the footwork and athleticism to work combination blocks and/or climb immediately to the second level, where he could swallow up linebackers and erase them from the play.
Like this, from his 2017 game against Texas State:
Hunt gets to the second level, takes on the linebacker and you don’t see that defender when the play is over, as he blocks him through the whistle and almost back into the offensive backfield.
Weaknesses: At times Hunt can get beaten to the inside when tasked with pass protection, and this happened both as a guard and as a tackle. When he uses a quick or short set in protection, he would open up to the outside and leave the inside lane vulnerable, and failed to slide quickly enough to cut off the defender. While he can generate tremendous power with his upper body, at times he relies on it too much, and gets a bit over his skis both in pass protection and in run blocking. There is also an injury history to consider, as Hunt played only 412 snaps last season due to a groin injury that ended his season and required sports hernia surgery.
Conclusion: What moves Hunt up the board a bit is his positional flexibility combined with what he demonstrated on the field over his ULL career. He has the power and punch that can make him a stout interior player, but also showed that he can be a tackle at the next level with some of his technical prowess as well as his awareness at the position. Given that combination, he should be a very enticing prospect as the second day of the draft unfolds.
Comparison: Joe Haeg was another prospect who had the versatility to play both guard and tackle, and that similar flexibility makes Hunt an attractive option to teams. The technical prowess that Hunt brings, especially with his footwork, might be ahead of where Haeg was coming out, but they are similar players in many respects.