School: Clemson

Position: EDGE

Year: Junior

The Good: Even before getting into his tape, Myles Murphy is an impressive prospect on paper. A former five-star recruit, Murphy checks in at 6’5”, 268lbs with nearly 34” arms. And then the tape is pretty sweet too! Murphy has a rare combination of top-flight burst and power, and with good bend too he’s proven that he can either go through or around just about any OT. Murphy has the most developed arsenal of pass rush moves of the EDGE prospects that I’ve evaluated to date, and some of them are truly legit. Murphy has the makings of an elite run defender too. He plays physical and sets an extremely firm edge. Murphy also is a hyper aware and instinctual player with a great motor.

The Bad: Murphy is pretty exclusively a DE in the traditional mold, as he’s not as natural from a stand-up position nor lined up inside in a gap. When Clemson did try to add some versatility to Murphy’s profile by experimenting with him in looks closer to a 3-4 DE, Murphy could give up too much ground at the point of attack. He’s also not particularly slippery, so he’s not the type to sidestep a guard in the half-second following the snap; just about every pass rush from Murphy involves heavy contact before he threatens pressure. Murphy’s pad level isn’t necessarily a concern, but he can stand to get more consistent with it and weed out reps of attacking too high from his game.   

The Bottom Line: Myles Murphy is a really good prospect, and I’m disappointed to see his stock apparently fall as many top insiders around the NFL continue to drop him down in mock drafts; Mel Kiper didn’t even include Murphy in Round 1 in his most recent version. I guess I somewhat get it…Murphy isn’t as flashy as a TJ Watt or as versatile as a JJ Watt. But this is a dude with proven production, no-doubt NFL size and traits, and a birthdate in 2002! Murphy’s Draft process has some similarities to that of George Karlaftis’ from one year ago, who fell to Pick 30 then proceeded to become a regular player on the Chiefs’ Super Bowl winning team. If Murphy isn’t spicy enough and has truly fallen out of favor with many teams around the league, then there’s going to be one lucky team in the back half of Round 1 that lands a Day 1 starter at DE with serious upside. 

Grade: Mid First Round

Pro Comp: Bradley Chubb

Games Watched:

• Georgia 2021
• Boston College 2021
• Wake Forest 2021
• NC State 2022
• Florida State 2022
• Syracuse 2022

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Texas Tech

Position: EDGE

Year: Redshirt Senior

The Good: Tyree Wilson, to put it scientifically, is a freakazoid. At 6’6”, 271lbs with 35.625” arms and a Top 5 wingspan on record across all NFL Draft prospects (granted, wingspan measurements only go back a few years), Wilson is the definition of a “get off the bus” prospect. Wilson has proven on tape that he can overwhelm offensive linemen with his incomparable length and sheer size; his forced fumble against Kansas State was one of the most impressive plays of the college football season. Wilson has plenty of raw upper body strength, and he can contort his body to dip and bend well for a player of his stature. When there is nobody between Wilson and his target, he bursts with good closing speed too. 

The Bad: I specify that Wilson has “closing speed” because he doesn’t play with much general speed; I think he’s actually lucking out with his foot injury because he showed up to the Combine to get measured and then opted out of all movement-based testing drills. Wilson isn’t smooth in his change of direction either, and he lacks explosion around the edge. Wilson’s explosiveness altogether is a huge concern; his get-off is really slow from every alignment and from there he plays top heavy without much leg drive. That doesn’t help him out defending the run, where Wilson is more likely to make a splashy run stop than routinely set a hard edge or stand up the blocker in front of him. His DC in the NFL will almost be starting from scratch with Wilson’s hand usage, and he’s not the surest tackler either.  

The Bottom Line: I am…mystified by Tyree Wilson’s apparent Draft stock. Like on face level, this dude is about to turn 23, is nursing a broken foot, and had his breakout season as a fifth-year senior. And then I don’t even really like the tape from that season! From a standpoint of measurables, is Tyree Wilson a unique prospect? Absolutely; I already mentioned the wingspan tidbit. But from the standpoint of production – which is obviously more important – I feel like there are a few of these monstrous DE/DT hybrid types available every year now either by way of the Draft or free agency. And in recent Draft history, they haven’t panned out too well! (Looking at you, Payton Turner.) I don’t even like writing up Tyree Wilson as an EDGE because I barely view him that way anymore, and I think any team that drafts him with hopes of landing the next Chandler Jones will be disappointed. There is certainly value in having a player in your DL rotation who can take some snaps outside on early downs then kick inside to mismatch IOL players on every passing down, but in the Top 10 of the Draft?! Part of me is almost hoping that the chatter of Wilson going as high as Pick 3 to Arizona is a smokescreen; remember when Jermaine Johnson was getting projected to the Jets at Pick 4 as recently as the week of the Draft last year? (He went 26th and the Jets traded up for him.) I think Tyree Wilson can have a nice career, even with some serious development required in his immediate future, but man…the “bust” potential is uncomfortably high for me.

Grade: Second Round

Pro Comp: Charles Omenihu

Games Watched:

• Oklahoma 2021
• Mississippi State 2021
• Houston 2022
• NC State 2022
• Texas 2022
• Kansas State 2022

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Alabama

Position: EDGE

Year: Junior

The Good: Anderson is one of the more famous defensive players in recent college football history, and you don’t rack up 34.5 career sacks plus a Top 5 Heisman Trophy finish without a ton of game to back up the fame. Anderson is a hyena on a football field, playing with a relentless motor and violently shedding the blocks of anyone who gets between him and the QB or ballcarrier. Anderson has dynamite closing speed and shows great burst coming off the edge, and he packs plenty of pop in his hands to go along with his explosiveness. Anderson shoots through any glimmer of light that opens up in a gap on the offensive line, and he has the quick feet to sidestep any obstacles in his path. Despite weighing in on the lighter end for EDGE prospects, Anderson is tremendous against the run – particularly as a backside run defender – and he’s far more stout aligned as a traditional DL than his size suggests. Anderson has the contact balance to stand up any lineman, and he’s twitched up enough to destroy any IOL who’s tasked with blocking him on a passing play. As a pass rusher, Anderson’s instincts shine in his ability to quickly attack the weak shoulders of leaning OTs. 

The Bad: Sticking with Anderson’s pass rushing, it currently exists with a relatively shocking lack of refinement given his experience. His pash rush plan is too heavily composed of speed-to-power right now, and when Anderson attempts to add wrinkles into his rushes he’s typically slow to get into them. Once Anderson is locked into OTs, he’ll never stop driving his legs but Anderson doesn’t showcase much in the way of skill-based counters. Anderson is tight-hipped too, so while he can burn around the edge he’s not the type to bend around it. Anderson’s size isn’t an issue per se – as I wrote earlier – but he’s not much of a people-mover and he can get himself into trouble engaging with larger OLs.

The Bottom Line: Will Anderson, still 21 years old, is an extremely productive, skilled, and high-effort prospect at a premium position. There isn’t too much to opine about him; he’s a surefire pick for the top half of Round 1 in any NFL Draft. I will say that Anderson isn’t a perfect prospect per my grading; I actually had a slightly higher grade on Kayvon Thibodeaux last year. But he’s scheme proof with a high floor and high ceiling, and for that reason he reminds me of Aidan Hutchison from a year ago – even if they are stylistically different from one another. Detroit did the right thing taking Hutchinson at Pick 2 last year; we’ll see who makes the same good call on Anderson.

Grade: Top 10 Pick

Pro Comp: Terrell Suggs

Games Watched:

• Georgia 2021
• Cincinnati 2021
• Georgia 2021 (National Championship Game)
• Texas 2022
• Texas A&M 2022
• Tennessee 2022
• LSU 2022

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Louisiana (2019-2021), Florida (2022)

Position: OG

Year: Senior

The Good: Torrence is a wide and heavy man at the OG position, and he’s as tough for defensive linemen to get around as his 330lbs weight suggests. He’s an OG only but Torrence has the build of an OT, right down to his nearly 34” arms (96th percentile wingspan) that he utilizes well. The strength of Torrence’s game is his literal strength, especially in his vicegrip hands that are some of the largest ever measured at the Combine. Torrence comes into the Draft battle tested and he’s got a nasty streak in his play style too; there should be minimal concerns about his adaptability to the NFL.

The Bad: Torrence is plainly a mediocre athlete at a position where athleticism transfers far better from college to the NFL than one might think, and it’s particularly apparent in his tape that he lacks both high-end quickness and explosion. His lackluster performances in relevant Combine drills would make Torrence a historical outlier as a high draft pick with his testing results. Torrence is plenty capable in solo protection lined up across from one defender, but he didn’t work as well in tandem with his RTs when defenses would throw combined pass rush looks at the both of them. Torrence naturally is not at his best working in tight spaces either.

The Bottom Line: It’s typically a good thing when prospects hit the NFL Draft with extensive experience already beneath their belts, but it’s a tad concerning in Torrence’s case because he’s an athletically limited player who was more reliable than dominant on tape. Granted I only watched one game of Torrence’s tape from his 2021 junior season with the Ragin’ Cajuns, but I figured he’d be more of a bulldozer against Sun Belt competition. At 23 years old, it’s fair to surmise that Torrence is maxed out. I also wish I felt more optimistic about his scheme versatility at the NFL level, but even his transfer to a better conference didn’t appease concerns considering that Torrence followed Billy Napier and his OL-friendly offense to Florida. Don’t get me wrong: Torrence was legitimately a great lineman at both Louisiana and Florida, but the consensus OG1 in a Draft class is typically a more well-rounded prospect than him. 

Grade: Third Round

Pro Comp: Larry Warford

Games Watched:

• Appalachian State 2021
• Utah 2022
• Georgia 2022
• Senior Bowl

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Ohio State

Position: OT

Year: Senior

The Good: Jones is truly as big as it gets. His 6’8”, 374lbs frame is eye-popping on tape, but perhaps more stunning is his arm length of 36.375” – Top 10 for OL going back to at least 2011 – and hand size of 11.625” – Top 3 among OL prospects in the same time frame. Jones maximizes his wingspan and has the grip strength that you’d expect from mitts of his dimensions. Jones isn’t exactly a ballerina in cleats but he’s more nimble for his size than I was ready for, which shows up in pass protection and his capable downfield blocking. Jones is a stronger combo blocker too and is a proven finisher.

The Bad: If Dawand Jones had impressive balance then we might be talking about the second coming of Jonathan Ogden here, but that’s certainly not the case. Jones finds himself on the ground a ton by the end of plays. A lot of the aforementioned positives about Jones can be accompanied with a “yeah, but…” Like, Jones possesses insane length but can be too dependent on it, and he’s more light-footed than expected but is still quite slow and lacks burst off the snap. Jones also doesn’t really play up to his weight, in the sense that he doesn’t redirect guys in the run game nor hold his ground versus powerful pass rushers as well as I would’ve thought. Jones developed into one of the better pass protectors in the Big 10 but the gaps in his repertoire – vulnerability to inside quickness, too much hop in his sets, etc. – will be hit with a magnifying glass at the NFL level.

The Bottom Line: For a dude who tipped the scales and maxed out the tape measures in record fashion, I actually view Dawand Jones as one of the more straightforward prospects in this class. Jones isn’t much alike to Mekhi Becton as a prospect from three years ago, given that Becton dropped jaws with his Combine performance in a way that Jones didn’t even approach; it shouldn’t be overlooked that Jones’ 10-yard split time of 1.92 seconds is REALLY bad. But at the same time, Jones hits the Draft as a more refined OT than even Becton and certainly more than other recent behemoths like Daniel Faalele. (Jones looked dominant in limited action at the Senior Bowl.) His outlier size will naturally come along with plenty of penalties and injury scares, but Jones is Day 1 ready for the NFL at either left or right tackle and it’s a safe projection that he’ll be good-not-great at it. 

Grade: Second Round

Pro Comp: Trent Brown

Games Watched:

• Purdue 2021
• Notre Dame 2022
• Iowa 2022
• Michigan 2022
• Senior Bowl

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Oklahoma

Position: OT

Year: Junior

The Good: Harrison is an incredibly graceful mover for a dude who looks the part of an NFL left tackle at 315lbs with 34” arms. Harrison is natural at maximizing all of the length that he’s got, and he can get himself locked into any defender in a flash. Harrison is an incredibly efficient pass protector; he’s tough to run around or run through, and Oklahoma routinely left him on island to deal with opposing pass rushers in space by himself. Harrison has active hands too, so he’s good at neutralizing pass rushers before they even get into their moves. Harrison moves very well downfield; he’s already a lethal combo blocker who could excel in a zone blocking scheme. He’s not the biggest OT prospect but he has the right punishing mentality.

The Bad: I just wrote that Harrison isn’t the biggest OT prospect in regard to his ability to still finish, but conversely his lack of top size shows in his relative inability to move defenders against their will. To this point in Harrison’s career, defenders have been able to shed him more easily than you’d like to see for a potential Round 1 tackle; he needs to sustain better in the run game and develop a generally firmer grip. For Harrison to remain an elite pass blocker at the next level, I’d like to see him play with more consistent knee bend and work on removing wasted steps from the beginning of his sets.

The Bottom Line: Harrison is really good! I was pleasantly surprised watching his tape, given that he’s usually ranked around the OT5 or OT6 in this class. That might be near the range that he eventually settles for me too, but that has way more to do with the depth of this OT class than Harrison’s game. If someone chose to rank him as OT2, they’d receive no firm objection from me. For a kid who was born in 2002 (!!), Harrison has a lion’s share of experience under his belt, and the Big-12 has toughened up a ton compared to the conference it was even a half-decade ago. Still, Harrison will benefit from increased exposure to EDGEs who will hit him with more counters and rush moves, and Oklahoma’s offense did feature a lot of quick game without elongated pass reps. Normally I don’t like to compare prospects to players who only recently entered the league, but Harrison just reminds me too much of Charles Cross. I have the same grade on Harrison as I did on Cross one year ago, who had a somewhat rocky rookie season with the Seahawks but still definitely appears to be a promising young left tackle.

Grade: Late First Round / Early Second Round

Pro Comp: Charles Cross

Games Watched:

• Baylor 2021
• Nebraska 2022
• Kansas State 2022
• TCU 2022

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Tennessee

Position: OT

Year: Senior

The Good: Wright is one of the bigger OT prospects in this Draft at 333lbs, and he’s also one of the most athletic. He put up great testing numbers in terms of both explosiveness and speed at the Combine, and his tape backs that up. Wright can erupt out of his stance and has a deceptive amount of burst, and he has full control over his gears between patience and explosion. Wright is a savvy pass protector with quick hands and smooth, deliberate feet in his sets. He has the skillset to match and mirror against any type of pass rusher, and Wright can also knock over any defender that he lands his hands on. He has brick wall strength and a finishing mentality.

The Bad: Wright’s stout build makes him nearly impossible to run through, but it also limits his bend and balance. A recurring issue for Wright on film is losing EDGEs at the arc of their rushes and tipping over from there. Wright certainly has the tools to account for speed around the corner, but that does leave him vulnerable to inside quickness. Wright is more of a fast than agile runner, which limits him in tight spaces and might render him more scheme-specific than other OTs. He’s further along as a pass blocker than run blocker too; Wright tends to punch more than sustain in the run game.

The Bottom Line: In an OT class with multiple peers of his ranked near the top based more on potential than production, Wright is as battle-tested as it gets. He made 42 starts at Tennessee and has already dealt with and overcome his fair share of adversity – Wright was essentially demoted as UT’s left tackle following the 2021 season. Wright also faced and excelled against competition that included Will Anderson, BJ Ojulari, and Calijah Kancey in the regular season, and then the likes of Will McDonald in the Senior Bowl. Wright is a former five-star recruit and excellent athlete in his own right too, and his proven combination of precision and power is rare for a college kid. He might not be cut out for every offense and he’s probably a RT only, but Wright’s arrow is pointing up at the right time and I’m right here contributing to his hype.

Grade: Mid First Round

Pro Comp: Jawaan Taylor

Games Watched:

• Pitt 2022
• Florida 2022
• LSU 2022
• Alabama 2022
• Senior Bowl

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Georgia

Position: OT

Year: Redshirt Sophomore

The Good: Jones has a supreme amount of natural talent, as made clear by his stellar showing at the NFL Combine. There wasn’t necessarily any offensive lineman with a freak show performance at the Combine this year, but Jones might have been the best of the group with a position-leading 4.97 40-yard dash at a well-carried 311lbs. Jones also measured in longer than expected at 6’5” with nearly 35” arms, and he’s good about maximizing his length on tape. Jones is a naturally quick OT, both as a runner in open space and with his hand activity across from pass rushers. He possesses “move against your will” type of raw power and an extremely strong grip with his hands.

The Bad: Jones only has one full season of starting experience under his belt, and it shows. For a likely first rounder, there remains a potentially staggering amount of work ahead for Jones’ next coaching staff. Jones will have to get better at centering his hands and sustaining blocks in both the pass and run games, and I’d like to see him finish more consistently in the run game as well. As a pass protector, Jones needs to improve his anchor if he’s going to stand a chance against speed-to-power rushes at the next level. He also has a bad habit of locking up and sinking his head at the arc of pass rushes, leaving him vulnerable to both speed around his outside shoulder and counter moves. There’s also way too much action with Jones’ feet right now. He needs to generally calm them down off the snap in pass sets, and he also has a weird kick step when pulling inside that he’ll want to ditch.

The Bottom Line: It’s never a dumb strategy to bet on talent in the NFL Draft, and in the right spot I’d endorse it for Jones. I just can’t get there with his projection as a top-to-middle of Round 1 type of prospect. You might have to wait until Year 3 of his career to see the light at the end of the tunnel for Jones, and I’m not even sure what position will best suit him in the NFL; I have a good feeling that it won’t be left tackle, so it’s a toss-up between right tackle or guard. I wrote this in Paris Johnson’s ‘Bottom Line’ too that the college-to-NFL transition for offensive tackles is particularly brutal, and you only get rookies on 4-5 year contracts. Leaving Georgia’s friendly confines will make it even tougher for Jones, and even once it pans out for him I’m not sure I see the same potential ceiling for him as I do for Johnson – let alone a Tristan Wirfs type of mega-prospect who didn’t have it all figured out yet in college either.

Grade: Second Round

Pro Comp: Tytus Howard

Games Watched:

• Tennessee 2021
• South Carolina 2022
• Missouri 2022
• Florida 2022
• LSU 2022

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Ohio State

Position: OT

Year: Junior

The Good: As much as any prospect in this upcoming NFL Draft, Paris Johnson Jr. has the physical look of the epitome of his position. Johnson has a 6’6”, 313lbs frame and his arms measured at 36⅛” at the Combine – within the Top 10 at the position over the last decade. For that reason, he’ll likely receive comps to recent high picks at the left tackle position with similarly long builds like Andrew Thomas and Ronnie Stanley. On the field, Johnson plays light on his feet and has enough functional strength to stand up bull rushers. He’s a swift blocker who combo blocks well, and he is at his best in the power run game when Johnson can square up the man in front of him and push him backwards. I get the sense in watching his tape that Johnson is a smart and hard-working player; pad level could be a concern for his height but Johnson is consistent in getting low to earn it. 

The Bad: Johnson will still be 21 years old on the night of the NFL Draft, and he plays like it. He has a ways to go with his technique, both with his feet and hands. Johnson has a recurring problem with oversetting out of his stance right now – which is common for young tackles – and he can get his skis crossed shuffling in pass protection. He isn’t an effective run blocker on the move yet; Johnson usually will just throw his front shoulder at the defender and hope that’s enough. He needs to improve at landing his hands in both the run and pass games, and Johnson doesn’t strike his hands in unison enough either. I think it will benefit Johnson to land with a team that has him gain some weight and encourages him to play with more ferocity. 313lbs skews to the lighter side of NFL OTs, and Johnson was too passive and on his heels playing on Ohio State’s line. 

The Bottom Line: I understand why Johnson has already declared for the Draft – he’s going to be selected in the Round 1 with his length and athleticism – but he’s the type of OL prospect that I would’ve loved to stay at college for another year to further refine his game. The transition from college to the NFL is as tough for offensive tackles as it is for just about any other position, and Johnson still has plenty of development left ahead of him. He’s almost certainly going to take his lumps as a rookie, so whatever team selects Johnson early in the Draft will bank on him being mentally tough enough to shake off his early struggles – like the aforementioned Andrew Thomas has with the Giants. That is way easier said than done; Thomas was a blue-chip and far better prospect than Johnson in my opinion, and he had the fallback of kicking inside to guard that I don’t necessarily see as an option in the NFL for Johnson. (Johnson did start at right guard during his sophomore year for the Buckeyes, but I wasn’t overly impressed by what I saw from him there.) The good news for Johnson is that I thought he improved as his junior season went along; his game against Penn State was simultaneously the last and best of his that I watched. I like Johnson and he has the tools that you can’t teach at left tackle, but he’s currently being pegged in the top half of Round 1 in mock drafts and that would be too much of a gamble for my liking.

Grade: Late First Round / Early Second Round

Pro Comp: Cam Robinson

Games Watched:

• Oregon 2021
• Notre Dame 2022
• Wisconsin 2022
• Iowa 2022
• Penn State 2022

Plays That Matter [LINK]

School: Northwestern

Position: OT

Year: Junior

The Good: Skoronski is only 21 years old and yet has three full years of starting experience in the Big 10 under his belt. His body type is more stout than the typical left tackle; his physical resemblance isn’t far off from Rashawn Slater, the incumbent LT at Northwestern. With that though, Skoronski has a sturdy base and has proven on tape that he can reset his balance and recover in reps where he loses early ground. Skoronski’s feet, instincts, and positioning are all excellent. He’s a menace when given opportunities to pull, seal, and down block. In pass protection, Skoronski handles speed around the edge well, and he has enough core strength to anchor against most pass rushers. He’s clearly in tune with his technique and a student of the finer things that go into offensive line play. Skoronski never disappoints with pad level and his pass sets improved over time; you even see him working new things into his game during live reps.

The Bad: The main drawback against Skoronski is his size, with both suboptimal arm length and a relative lack of raw power. I don’t care all that much about length in his case, but the power issue does show up when Skoronski is lined up across from high-end pass rushers; that clip of him getting flattened by Lukas Van Ness has reached viral status on NFL Draft Twitter. As a run blocker on the move, Skoronski sustains more than he drives and finishes, and he can occasionally get off-balance when attacking forward. Skoronski has the style of a mauler in that he grips his man and fights until the whistle – which is largely a good thing – though the drawbacks are that he’s not as natural when defenders are able to counter against him, and he can allow too much inside leverage when he overly locks into a man on the edge. Also, and I assume this is something that Skoronski is well aware of and lives with for his best technique, but there is a little too much obvious pre-snap variance between his run and pass sets.

The Bottom Line: Even if those ‘Good’ and ‘Bad’ sections have similar word counts, don’t be fooled; Skoronski is a beast. It’s really easy to nitpick offensive linemen, and in Skoronski’s case the pros outweigh the cons. At his ripe age with big-time experience and plenty of talent and technique to go along with it, Skoronski shouldn’t wait long to hear his name called on Draft Day. I absolutely believe he can – and should – stay at tackle in the NFL too despite chatter of kicking him inside. And though it’s not like Northwestern had a roster full of quitters by the end of the season, it’s noteworthy that Skoronski not only stuck by the program but played his ass off until the final game of the Wildcats’ 1-11 season in 2022. 

Though I’ve generally avoided pontificating on specific landing spots for prospects in these profiles, I can’t believe the Bears aren’t working harder to manipulate the Draft board and position themselves to take Skoronski. All of the talk is about Chicago trading back and staying within range for Will Anderson and Jalen Carter – and I’m familiar with their work – but landing a bigger trade haul and still leaving with the local kid at a premium position sounds like the ideal outcome to me.

Grade: Top 10 Pick

Pro Comp: Ryan Ramczyk

Games Watched:

• Michigan State 2021
• Wisconsin 2021
• Nebraska 2022
• Penn State 2022
• Wisconsin 2022
• Ohio State 2022

Plays That Matter [LINK]