hawknation2014
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pehawk":2bmk3yom said:hawknation2014":2bmk3yom said:Constructing an OL like Dallas has is easier said than done. Three of their linemen are First Round picks, and they amazingly hit on all three.
Of the 19 offensive tackles drafted in 2014, none of them have looked 'great.' The four selected in the First Round have all struggled.
Jake Matthews has looked terrible as both a run blocker and pass protector. Matthews has allowed a league-high 39 pressures, including six sacks, and has yet to have a positive game as a run blocker. Most of time, he has been manhandled like a rag doll.
Ja'Wuan James has allowed 31 pressures and has not had an impact as a run blocker.
Greg Robinson had some solid games at left guard, but has looked average at best since being moved outside to tackle.
Taylor Lewan has been solid but not spectacular. He and Justin Britt are the only rookie OTs out of 19 who have really flashed in the run game.
The only rookie center who has played great this year is Green Bay's 5th Rounder Corey Linsley. I thought Mebane and Co. would eat Linsley's lunch in the opener, but he held his own and looks to have an extremely bright future. The rest of this class's centers have been average (Bryan Stork and Chris Watt) to awful (Marcus Martin and Jonotthan Harrison).
Guard is one of the bright areas in this rookie class. Joel Bitonio and Zach Martin have played like Pro Bowlers. Bitionio has the highest run blocking grade PFF has awarded a rookie since Mike Iupati in 2010. He has also allowed just nine pressures and no sacks. The Seahawks have to be kicking themselves that they didn't take Bitonio at No. 32.
Good write up.
I actually like the OL in this order from 2014;
1) Zach Martin
2) Taylor Lewan
3) Justin Britt
Mathews will be fine, just fine. He's in a very tough spot, but, he'll be fine. Don't know much about Bitonio.
Another thing to remember about Dallas is they have the pass blocking equivalent of Tom Cable in Bill Callahan. He's pretty good. And it's not right to judge anyone that plays a Tucker defense. They seemed to be playing a prevent zone, with a three man rush, in the first quarter. It was bizarre.
My ranking of rookie linemen would be similar, but I would include Linsley and Bitonio.
These five would make a damn good line:
(1) LG Joel Bitinio
(2) RG Zach Martin
(3) C Corey Linsley
(4) LT Taylor Lewan
(5) RT Justin Britt