The NFL Draft is a little more than two weeks away and the Las Vegas Raiders are widely expected to address the team’s offensive line. The Raiders could use a starter at right tackle and spending the 13th overall pick at that spot could be a ‘two birds, one stone’ situation as that could allow Thayer Munford Jr. to slide over to right guard.
Below is a ranking of Las Vegas’ top options at right tackle. One note, Our Lady’s Joe Alt is excluded from the list below since he only played left tackle in college and will likely be off the board before the Silver and Black have a chance to take him.
1) JC Latham, Alabama
At nearly 6-foot-6 and over 340 pounds with 35 1/8-inch arms, Latham has the ideal size for a right tackle. He also has good knee bend to play with leverage and keeps his feet moving through contact to move defenders out of the way, creating rushing lanes. Additionally, Latham’s get-off and feet help him stay in front of edge rushers in pass protection.
He does get a little over-aggressive in the running game by ducking his head, leading to him missing blocks occasionally. But the Alabama product didn’t turn 21 years old until February, so that technical flaw can easily be cleaned up and he has a high ceiling at the next level.
2) Taliese Fuaga, Oregon State
To be honest, picking between Latham and Fuaga was the hardest decision to make on this list. Both guys are massive human beings — Fuaga stands at nearly 6-foot-6 and 324 pounds — who can dominate as run blockers. The former Beaver also has an excellent track record in pass protection with zero sacks allowed at Oregon Stateaccording to Pro Football Focus.
Ultimately, the deciding factor is Latham has better feet in pass protection to avoid getting beat on the high side of the rush, and that’s one of my biggest concerns with Fuaga’s transition to the next level. But the margin is razor thin so the Raiders can’t go wrong with either guy, in my opinion.
3) Olumuyiwa Fashanu, Penn State
Olumuyiwa Fashanu
Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Fashanu was a stud in pass protection during his college career, surrendering just 17 pressures with zero sacks and just one quarterback hit on 697 opportunities, per PFF. That’s primarily due to his impressive athleticism, exemplified by a 9.58 RAS out of 10.
However, the former Nittany Lion isn’t a great run-blocker and only has experience playing on the left side of the line. He has the athletic ability to flip side of the center, but Antonio Pierce has talked about getting back to a physical brand of football and Fashanu doesn’t fit that description, pushing him down the board.
4) Troy Fautanu, Washington
Of all the big men on this list, Fautanu is the “smallest” at just under 6-foot-4 and 317 pounds. Still, he can move people in the running game and would be a good fit in a zone-based rushing attack that the Raiders are rumored to run under Luke Getsy.
Similar to Fashanu, the Washington product’s experience is almost exclusively at left tackle which, combined with his size, are the biggest reasons why he’s ranked lower.
If you’re looking for a more detailed breakdown of Fautanu, Marcus Johnson dives into his game on the episode of Tape Don’t Lie below.
5) Amarius Mims, Georgia
From the smallest guy on the list to the biggest, the 6-foot-8 and 340-pound Mims was built in a lab to play offensive line. It also doesn’t hurt that his arms are a little longer than 36 inches. He can move defensive linemen out of the way as a run blocker and has good feet in pass protection.
The problem is the former Bulldog is very inexperienced with just over 800 snaps during his three-year college career. Also, he suffered a couple of ankle injuries last season and is the biggest project of the five tackles listed here. Drafting Mims would be a gamble and while his traits are worth betting on, he’d be a better target if Las Vegas decided to trade back in the first round rather than stay at No. 13.
2024-04-09 21:45:00
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