Every year there are players who never meet expectations. Most of those expectations are based on potential. Some of those players show glimpses of it but fail to deliver on consistent basis. This happens because it can be easy to see what a player can be, but overlooking where they currently are in that development and the limitations they have.
As we continue to look at the interior offensive line, here are a group of four players who have limitations to their game and if over-drafted might struggle to meet the expected potential.
Tre’ Jackson, Guard, FSU
Tre’ Jackson is a guard some people have going as high as the second or third round in the upcoming draft. However, we see that as a reach for Jackson who is not a bad player by any means, but he is clearly below the other top prospects at the guard position. The main limitation of Jackson is that he lacks explosion on his blocks. While he weighed in at 330 pounds the power and explosion needed to control blocks was not there, often times Jackson gets knocked back in the run game where you would expect him to be a handful for defensive lineman.
With all the negatives of Jackson’s play, there are positives as well. For starters, he has good awareness in pass protection where he can recognize stunts and has his head on a swivel to find any players who are delaying their blitz to come through the A- or B-gap. Also when Jackson is leading out the runner on pulls he has good movement skills to he used in a power scheme in the NFL.
Signature Stats: Against the Power 5 teams Jackson had a 97.7 Pass Blocking Efficiency with 16 total pressures allowed.
John Miller, Guard, Louisville
The Louisville guard is player who we are cautious about after his play in 2014. John Miller is a guard who played around 300 pounds and there was little movement on his blocks. Instead, he would try and seal them simply by getting in the way instead of working to widen a bigger hole. With an undersized guard it is expected that they would make up for the lack of power with excellent movement skills and this is where he was at his best.
Miller was able to pull and locate linebackers in space, but again he was unable to create much movement. The lack of movement might not be a big concern in college, but against big faster NFL players this will become an issue as they will be in better position. It’s reasonable to expect the defenders to be able to shed him and cause problems in the running game.
In the passing game, Miller struggles with speed rushes to the outside and for someone who is on the lighter side, this is a bad sign since he will also struggle against power. However, Miller could have struggled because he was overcompensating for the Louisville center who was poor even for college standards.
Signature Stats: For Guards who played over 215 passing snaps Miller finished 64th out of 85 guards in Pass Blocking Efficiency at 96.6.
Reese Dismukes, Center, Auburn
Over last season Dismukes was an effective blocker, especially in the run game where he was 11th in Run Blocking Efficiency with 91.3% of all his blocks being non-negative plays. However, a lot of this is due to the scheme that the Tigers ran with some type of option on over 80% of plays. This led to defensive lineman being indecisive as they had to respect the A-gap due to Auburn regularly attacking that spot with their run game.
In all of that, Dismukes ended up having a ton of blocks that where very easy seals and instead of getting any movement he basically stood in the way and did little else. Because he does not get much movement in the run game against defenders who have no clue where the run is going, this is a concern as that he lacks the power needed for the NFL. Dismukes does a good job at the second level as he understands where to go with the angles needed to prevent linebackers from getting involved. However, at both the second level and at the line of scrimmage, defenders can shed him far too easily.
When Dismukes is in pass protection he does a good job of being in the right place, but his physical limitations let him down. If he is able to get stronger that will be his best chance since he gets his body into the right spots. The limitations of his physical strength and length don’t allow him dominate the way he puts himself into position to.
Signature Stat: Dismukes allowed no more than one pressure a game.
Andy Gallik, Center, Boston College
Of all the players on the ‘Buyer Beware' section, Andy Gallik is the one that I struggle to see at the next level. His lack of speed shows up on tape (at the NFL Combine he ran a 5.5 40) when Gallik gets to the second level he struggles to locate linebackers when they change direction on him — that often leaves him as he lunges. What makes this more concerning is that he doesn’t make up for his lack of athleticism with power.
Far too often Gallik is moved into the point of attack causing the running back to find an alternate hole to run through. Gallik’s concerning lack of athleticism and power showed up anytime he had to play against legitimate NFL prospects, and even when he played against lesser talent, his tape was underwhelming.
Signature Stat: Gallik had a 97.8 PBE the same as Cameron Erving.
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