1. Quentin Nelson (Notre Dame)– A productive and all-around offensive tackle is extremely rare to come by nowadays, so when you do have one, you keep them and hold onto them for as long as possible. That’s what coach Brian Kelly had the luxury of having in Quentin Nelson for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The first thing you notice about this kid is how built he is. He stands tall at 6’5 and weighs in at 329 pounds. Scouts have stated that he’s built like a safe! He plays with very wide hips, a broad chest, powerful limbs and he’s always known for playing with extreme power. It takes more than one defender to really win a one on one battle with him. He squares up with the best of them and comes out of his blocks with good pad level and he’s extremely aggressive at the point of attack and he’s not satisfied until he’s imposing his will.
2. Orlando Brown (Oklahoma)– He has such a bright future ahead of him and any team that decides to draft him will be getting a star in the making. When he entered college, he was a redshirt freshman and sat behind a few seniors. In 2015, he finally got his shot to show what he was made of and he took full advantage of it and showed why he was a top 30 offensive tackle prospect. Standing at 6’8, he displays a massive frame and outstanding arm length which makes him a challenge to get around. He can seal down blocks himself with his huge frame. He’s the definition of a nasty finisher who is always looking to intimidate and overpower the man across from him. He had active yet physical hands in pass protection and in run blocking. He can completely derail a pass rusher’s plan of attack with just one jab and he’s finished. He’s a good recovery blocker due to the length he displays and the strength he has.
3. Isaiah Wynn (Georgia)– The one thing you have to admire about some of these offensive linemen is their versatility to play all over the line and though he’s built to be an all-pro offensive guard, Isaiah is a guy that can also play both tackle positions. He was a member of an offensive line that helped open holes for Nick Chubb and Sony Michel and protected quarterback Jake Fromm of the Georgia Bulldogs. This is the golden rule of football: The lowest man will always win his battle and when you square up, it’s all yours from there and Isaiah is always looking to finish his blocks. He stays intact with his blocks and never falls off. He shows great initial quickness and has good body control, balance and the footwork to handle counter rush moves and plays with disciplined hand usage keeping them inside the opponent’s frame in both run and pass protections.
4. Billy Price (Ohio State)– Before moving over to the offensive line, he was the co-defensive player of the year in Ohio as a high school senior. When he was a redshirt freshman, he made the change and became a full-time offensive linemen. He was a member of the 2014 Ohio State Buckeyes team that won the National Championship. He shows quick explosiveness and strength and he plays the position with core strength and contact balance. He has terrific bend and flexibility when he’s drive blocking and he generates a push against much bigger players. He also has experience starting as a guard or center.
5. Kolton Miller (UCLA)– He was chosen to play left tackle and protect Josh Rosen’s blind side and he played in all 13 games for the Bruins and received all Pac-12 second team honors. He plays with 1,000 percent effort on each play and also shows a high desire and hustle to dominate his blocker. He’s very well-proportioned with great height and length (stands tall at 6’9 and arms are 34 1/8 in length) and has very powerful hands that can lock in on a defender and once he’s locked his hands in, the defender stands no chance. He displays good footwork to shuffle against counter spins and inside changes. When he catches a pass rusher, he quickly slides them out of the picture.
