OL Scouting Notebook - 2022 NFL Combine

Photo by Tyler Wise

Now that the 2022 NFL Combine is in the books, I want to unload my notes from the week in Indianapolis that I spent talking with various people in and around the league. I’ll also share my notes from the interviews, workouts and drills.

Thursday - Weigh-in Notes

• Central Michigan T Bernhard Raimann - Raimann’s arm length came in at 33 inches at the Senior Bowl and 32 7/8 at the Combine. Left tackle Rashawn Slater measured in at 33 inches at the Combine last year and was a Second Team All-Pro as a rookie in 2021, but Slater is also an exceptional case and an absolute technician. The reality is that having 33 inch arms and under at tackle is a rarity and an obstacle to overcome rather than an asset for Raimann.

• Nebraska C Cam Jurgens - Jurgens was a player I noted would shine at the Combine because of the athletic ability he would display in the workouts, but I did not expect him to do it at 303 pounds (13 pounds over his listed playing weight of 290). That was a major plus for him leaving Indy.

• Boston College G Zion Johnson - Johnson was my top-rated guard entering the Combine and exceeded even my expectations throughout the week. Johnson measured in with 33 7/8 inch arms at the Senior Bowl and 34 inches at the Combine, which is elite length at guard. With how phenomenal he was on film, this was another cherry on top in addition to an outstanding workout.

• Alabama T Evan Neal - Neal didn’t partake in the workout in Indianapolis but did weigh in at an extraordinarily lean 337 pounds that generated major buzz across the league when this picture of him was released.

• N.C. State T Ikem Ekwonu - Ekwonu measuring in and hitting the coveted 34 inch arm length mark helped quiet some of the concerns of the old-school scouting community that see that as a cut-off to play tackle in the NFL. It doesn’t hurt an evaluation when a tackle hits that number, so that was a win for Ickey.

• Minnesota T Daniel Faalele - Faalele came in weighing 384 pounds, down three pounds from the 387 he weighed in at during the Senior Bowl. Even though Faalele visibly carries his weight exceptionally well, there’s a concern he’s too heavy due to how tardy he can be to transfer his weight on the field and redirect laterally. There is a legitimate question about how much weight he can lose and maintain as a pro to maximize his ability to deal with edge-rushers on an island in the NFL.

• Iowa C Tyler Linderbaum - Linderbaum had size concerns entering the off-season process and his weigh-in didn’t do a lot to quiet those rumblings despite weighing in six pounds over (296) his listed playing weight (290). Linderbaum measured in with 31 1/8 inch arms, which is well below the average for centers in the NFL. This likely shrinks his margin for error as a pro, adding to the importance of him playing with pristine technique to prevent getting stacked off of blocks in the run game and walked back in his anchor in pass protection.

• Arizona State C Dohnovan West - West’s overall weigh-in was one I was very interested in because of his 300 pound listed playing weight and some struggles against premier length (UCLA DT Otito Ogbonnia). He didn’t quite hit 300 (296) but was close enough to not raise a concern and helped himself by hitting the 33-inch arm length mark.

Thursday - OL Interviews

Rather than try and work through the scrum to get in a question on the bigger names like Evan Neal, Ikem Ekwonu and Tyler Linderbaum, I decided to engage with lesser known prospects and some of “my guys” from the class.

The interviews were broken up into four groups: Groups 4a, 4b, 5a and 5b.

Group 4a began at 8:00 a.m. local time and Boston College G Zion Johnson, perhaps the guy I have been higher on than anyone since early January, was scheduled to speak. Johnson had a fairly large crowd around him but with Kenyon Green and Linderbaum also in this first group, the attention was spread out.

I wound up staying with Johnson for the bulk of this group’s time at the podium taking in the Q&A session with media members. Johnson was articulate and engaging towards the media in the interview. He explained how beneficial the process was of getting a chance to take snaps at center in Mobile after never seeing live game reps there in college, detailed his journey from 0-star recruit and former golfer to Davidson college (including an incredible transformation with his build from 225 pounds at Davidson to a lean 312 pounds at the combine), then to Boston College and expressed tremendous gratitude towards his former OL coach Matt Applebaum. Applebaum was Johnson’s position coach at Davidson and Boston College, so they shared a special bond over the years (Applebaum recently accepted the Dolphins job).

Johnson’s comfort level at the podium wound up being a bit foreshadowing of the excellent performance he had working out on Friday, but more on that shortly.

I had just enough time to find a mid-round player I really enjoyed on film in UTSA T Spencer Burford to ask him about his uncanny ability to utilize something called a ‘circle’ technique in pass protection. Losing with a late outside hand strike is almost an epidemic in the college and pro game for tackles due to how well rushers are able to set up their moves, with the cross-chop essentially being designed to take advantage of late outside strikes from tackles. So when I studied Burford’s game and saw how well he was able to time and place his outside hand in pass-protection, it left an impression. Here he is breaking it down in detail:

Brandon Thorn @BrandonThornNFL

I talked to Spencer Burford about using the outside hand at tackle and mentioned how well he uses the “circle” technique. He expanded on it and gave a great answer.

Group 4b began at 8:30 a.m. and consisted of names such as Ikem Ekwonu, Charles Cross and Daniel Faalele.