Tag: Blake Fisher

Lions draft prospect of the day: Blake Fisher, OT, Notre Dame

Fisher gets overshadowed by linemate Joe Alt, but he’s a very promising prospect in his own right

Today’s Lions Draft Prospect of the Day is overshadowed by a more prominent teammate in this class but is a very strong prospect in his own right. 

The focus for these potential Lions prospects is on players who should hold some appeal for Detroit in the draft. Not all will be top-100 players. This one figures to be, even if not all current projections reflect that. 

Blake Fisher, OT, Notre Dame

Height: 6-foot-6

Weight: 310 pounds (measured at NFL Scouting Combine)

Notre Dame’s starting right tackle for the past two seasons, playing opposite likely top-10 pick Joe Alt on the left side, Fisher started out playing left tackle for the Fighting Irish. He was the first true freshman to start the season opener at left tackle. Unfortunately, he tore his right meniscus in that game and missed the rest of the season. Fisher has stayed healthy and grew into a legit prospect in the last two years.

Fisher turned 21 in March. He met with the Lions at the combine and also during Notre Dame’s pro day.

 

What I like

  • Long build with arms over 34″ and large hands
  • Quick feet and lateral range in both the run game and pass protection
  • Has some jolt to his punch
  • Really good hip/shoulder coordination and fluidity for a taller tackle
  • Understands how to expand his angles without lunging or losing balance
  • Really good at pulling and engaging in space on the move
  • Keeps nice spacing and coordination on combo and duo blocks
  • Very rarely fooled by the pass rush; good football IQ
  • Decent anchor strength and he does a great job keeping his feet active while engaged
  • Technical consistency improved quite a bit as 2023 progressed
  • Plays with confidence and passion

What worries me going into the NFL

  • Will play too tall at times, negating his length and power advantages
  • Takes time to reset his long arms and recover if beaten initially
  • More of an occupier (but very adept at it) than a true people mover in the run game
  • Last guy moving at the snap too often, though that did improve as his career progressed

Overall

Fisher has optimal length and good athleticism to play either tackle spot. While he played right tackle for the Fighting Irish, he might project better as a left tackle in the NFL Fisher has nice feet and good foundational discipline, though he sometimes gets too tall. Most of his negatives are as much functions of inexperience as they are technical flaws, and his athletic upside gives Fisher a higher ceiling than most Day 2 tackles.

All the feedback I got from NFL sources after Notre Dame’s pro day was that Fisher will indeed be a Day 2 pick, perhaps quite a bit earlier than current projections would indicate. For the Lions, he’s an ideal developmental tackle who can potentially adapt at guard if needed. The ability to play right or left tackle and move well enough to play any scheme makes him a very appealing sleeper–as much of a sleeper as a Notre Dame lineman can be.

 

Patriots reportedly hosting OT prospect on top-30 visit Friday

The Patriots are hosting a potential OT draft prospect on a top-30 visit on Friday

The New England Patriots are reportedly hosting Notre Dame offensive tackle Blake Fisher on a top-30 visit on Friday, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Fisher could fill a glaring need for the Patriots along an offensive front that looked like one of the worst in the league down the stretch last season. Granted, the group was hampered with a slew of injuries, but the lack of quality depth and youth came back to bite them in the end.

The Patriots are hosting Fisher, along with North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye, who could be within reach with the team owning the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft.

Former Patriots quarterback Mac Jones’ struggles were well-documented, but a big reason for his problems under center was the lack of consistency in pass protection. If New England does decide to take another quarterback in the first round, they must do a better job of keeping a cleaner pocket.

Going after a talented offensive tackle like Fisher, who is projected as a Day 2 target, would be a major step towards doing so.

Unpacking Future Packers: No. 42, Notre Dame OT Blake Fisher

Up next in the Unpacking Future Packers draft preview series is Notre Dame offensive tackle Blake Fisher.

The Unpacking Future Packers Countdown is a countdown of 100 prospects that could be selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 2024 NFL draft.

The 2024 NFL Draft is loaded with offensive tackle talent. With Rasheed Walker and Zach Tom on the roster, the Green Bay Packers don’t have a pressing need at the position. 

With those two entrenched as the two starting tackles, the Packers need to find their swing tackle. 

A potential prospect that the Packers could target in the upcoming draft is Blake Fisher. The Notre Dame offensive tackle checks in at No. 42 in the Unpacking Future Packers Countdown.

A four-star recruit from Indiana, Fisher finished his career at South Bend with 27 career starts at right tackle. 

“Fisher’s presence can’t be understated,” Liam Gaudet, the senior editor for The Irish Tribune, said. “He’s certainly a leader and has been since his commitment to Notre Dame years ago. He was one of the first commits in his class to take the reins and start recruiting other talent to South Bend, so he’s a Notre Dame man through and through. He’s beloved by his fellow teammates who are likely sad to see him go, but happy that he’s chasing his dreams a season early.”

At 6-5 with 34-inch arms, Fisher looks the part of an NFL offensive tackle. He has the frame that NFL teams are looking for and has the tools in the shed to develop into a cornerstone piece along the offensive line. 

“Fisher’s athleticism is his greatest strength and is part of the reason he was so highly touted out of high school,” Gaudet said. “At 6-6 and 310-pounds, he put together a quality combine that played to his strengths – his agility despite his size. With some polishing, he’ll translate into a quality tackle at the next level.”

Fisher pops out of his stance in pass protection and has the lateral quickness to protect the corner. With his length, he’s able to get into the chest plate of defenders to stop them in their tracks. He showed improved awareness in pass protection during his tenure at South Bend. 

“Fisher’s work in pass protection has vastly improved since he first arrived on campus,” Gaudet said. “He proved that he can protect well against quality opposition this year, but would like to see him improve off the ball. As mentioned, his athleticism allows him to be great when he needs to be a mobile blocker, especially when pulling or getting downfield. Another year at Notre Dame would have helped him round out his technical skills from a pure blocking standpoint.”

Fisher has good movement skills and is powerful at the point of contact. He’s a people mover as a run blocker. He’s comfortable getting out in space and knocking defenders out of the way. 

“Fisher is a versatile blocker in the run game, and never takes a play off,” Gaudet said. “He’s very good at keeping his eyes downfield and pushing toward the second level once his assignment is accounted for.”

Fit with the Packers

The Packers need to add depth behind Walker and Tom. Considering the fact that the Packers haven’t drafted an offensive lineman in the first round for 13 years, there is a good shot they wait until Day 2 or Day 3 to add an offensive tackle. If that’s the case, Fisher checks a lot of boxes with his age (21), frame and athleticism. 

“I’d draft Fisher simply for his value based on the depth of talent at the tackle position this year,” Gaudet said. “This is a guy who is likely a late first-rounder if he stays another season, but will likely be a steal due to the depth of the class. With a developmental curve of about a season or two, this is a starting NFL tackle.”

The Packers are a Walker or Tom injury away from having a glaring hole at left or right tackle. They need to fortify the offensive line and adding a player like Fisher would go a long way in ensuring that the offensive line wouldn’t turn from strength to weakness if an injury happened to Tom or Walker. 

Offensive line coaches flocked to Notre Dame’s pro day

The OTs were the headliners, but some other Fighting Irish prospects had very impressive performances at the pro day, too

One of the biggest stops on the pro day tour on Thursday was in South Bend for Notre Dame’s workout. All 32 NFL teams were represented in some capacity to check out 13 Fighting Irish prospects.

The primary attraction was the two offensive tackles, Joe Alt and Blake Fisher. Eight offensive line coaches attended the workout to catch Alt, likely the first offensive tackle to be selected, and Fisher, a likely Day 2 pick.

The OL coaches in attendance:

Bears

Broncos

Chargers

Eagles

Giants

Jaguars

Jets

Patriots

The duo did not disappoint:

Running back Audric Estime and safety Thomas Harper also tested very well. Harper in particular showed off incredible athleticism that could help get him drafted in April:

The GMs from the Cowboys, Commanders and Packers were also in attendance.

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49ers hit 2 biggest needs in 2-round projections from Draft Wire

The 49ers added a super-athletic DE and an experienced RT in this Draft Wire two-round mock draft:

The 49ers have a handful of things to fix on their roster heading into 2024, but offensive tackle and defensive end are the two positions that really stand out as needs going into free agency and the draft. Perhaps they find enough free agency help that they can cross one off their draft priorities, but that doesn’t seem likely given the price of quality DE and OT play. Luckily they can check both boxes in the draft if things shake out the way they do in a two-round mock by our friends at the Draft Wire following the combine.

In the two-round projections the 49ers begin at DE and select Penn State’s Chop Robinson No. 31 overall. It doesn’t seem likely Robinson drops all the way to the end of Round 1, particularly after he blew up the combine with size and athletic testing that haven’t been seen since former 49ers TE Vernon Davis.

His production in college wasn’t great – 11.5 sacks in 30 games – but his highs on tape have all the earmarks of a productive NFL pass rusher. Robinson’s burst off the line is outstanding and his bend to get around the corner and find a straight line to the quarterback is elite. There’s some development to be done as a pass rusher which may lead to him dropping in the draft, but he’s a good enough prospect that the 49ers would likely skip on OT to snag the pass rush help.

The good news for the 49ers is they didn’t have to wait long to find OT help. At their next pick, No. 63 overall, they go with Notre Dame’s Blake Fisher.

Fisher isn’t as good as his fellow Notre Dame alum Joe Alt, but he’s plenty athletic at 6-6, 310 pounds to find success in the NFL. He also started 27 games, including 25 in his last two seasons, all at right tackle for the Fighting Irish. That experience should help his transition to the pros, but his success isn’t a slam dunk. He’s improved as a pass blocker, but his consistency as a run blocker will need to come around if he’s going to be a long-term starter in the NFL.

Still, he should at worst provide competition at RT and some quality, developmental depth. It wouldn’t be the worst thing if Fisher wound up following the same path as Aaron Banks, another 49ers second-round pick from Notre Dame. Banks sat his rookie year before becoming a very effective starter in Year 2. That kind of track would be fine for San Francisco given their long-term need at that spot.

If the 49ers can bolster their pass rush and their RT depth in the first two rounds it would be hard to come away with qualms about how San Francisco attacked the draft.

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Watch: Two former Notre Dame star offensive tackles having fun at NFL combine

Alt asking Fisher the tough questions at the NFL combine

For both former Notre Dame offensive tackles [autotag]Joe Alt[/autotag] and [autotag]Blake Fisher[/autotag], this weekend will go a long ways for NFL teams to make its decision on where to draft them.

The NFL combine is a right of passage for most soon to be drafted players, but it’s not all business for them. Many of them have a good time during media availability and it seems like Alt was having himself a great time in asking Fisher one of the most important question: what is his go-to post-practice order from Door Dash?

Alt’s follow-up questions were just as important, the dipping sauces that Fisher would request along with his order from Wing Stop. See their funny interaction below.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (Formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

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Steelers meet with ‘powerful’ OT Blake Fisher at NFL combine

The Steelers are in the market for an offensive tackle, but just how high they’ll take one is anybody’s guess.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are in the market for an offensive tackle, but just how high they’ll take one is anybody’s guess.

They met with a mix of early and later-round offensive tackle prospects at the NFL scouting combine on Saturday: J.C. Latham (Alabama), Amarius Mims (Georgia), Graham Barton (Duke), Troy Fautanu (Washington) and Blake Fisher (Notre Dame).

“There’s a great vibe,” Fisher said from the podium at the NFL Combine. “You know, Coach Tomlin and everybody else in there and Omar Khan GM. Really, it was really a really good interview in there. Felt really good coming out of there as well.”

Projected to go in the fourth round (where Moore was selected), Fisher, 20, is a project who isn’t seen as an immediate starter in most scouting circles. But he has the promise to develop into one down the road.

“Overall, Fisher is a young, long and powerful blocker with good athletic ability who can be an asset in the zone run game at tackle,” Bleacher Report NFL scout Brandon Thorn noted. “He has more of a boom-or-bust element to his game as a pass protector that will require a plan for development before becoming a consistent starter, but he has the runway and traits for that to happen within his rookie contract.”

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Colts stockpile upside in Draft Wire’s 4-round mock

Here are the Colts’ picks from Draft Wire’s latest mock.

The Indianapolis Colts are still months away from the 2024 NFL draft, but the discussions of who they will select have been well underway.

Thankfully, our friends over at Draft Wire put together a four-round mock draft ahead of Super Bowl LVIII. In that mock, the Colts selected plenty of talent with upside on both sides of the ball.

From an exciting addition to the receiver room to some intriguing upside on defense, here’s how that mock draft went for the Colts:

Full 7-round 2024 NFL mock draft: Patriots go all in on elite offensive weapons

The Patriots prioritize elite offensive weapons in this full seven-round 2024 NFL mock draft

Barring any decisions to trade back or trade up on the board, the New England Patriots are officially locked into pick No. 3 in the 2024 NFL draft.

There are reports the team could wait until after the draft to name a new general manager to keep continuity with the scouting department and the work they have already done.

However, one thing is clear: The Patriots need more talent across the board, and it starts in the NFL draft, where they can get the most bang for their buck with low cost, high impact players.

Here is our latest full seven-round 2024 NFL mock draft for the Patriots:

Who is missing from Notre Dame in Sun Bowl via opt-out?

These names could be in the Sun Bowl, but they won’t be.

It’s become increasingly common for college football players to opt out of inconsequential bowl games for one reason or another. With the College Football Playoff field tripling in size next year, that could solve the problem a bit, at least as far as the number of team this practice impacts. This is the future of college football, even if you don’t agree with it.

With Notre Dame facing Oregon State in the Sun Bowl, several Irish players are missing, either having entered the transfer portal or choosing to focus on preparing for the NFL draft. That means many of the Irish’s leaders in each major statistical category will be absent, so it’s not worth listing a bunch of names that won’t play.

Instead, we’re going to list the percentage of each major statistic that will be missing from the Irish during the final game of the season because of opt-outs. Hopefully, this won’t discourage you from watching the game too much: