NFL Draft Analyst Dane Brugler from The Athletic put out a 2nd round Mock Draft, and with it, he has Miami selecting…
Round 2, Pick #55: Zach Frazier, C/G – West Virginia
NFL.com Draft Profile
Overview
Sawed-off frame with short arms and terrific power once he gets locked in. Frazier’s lack of ideal arm length will be a problem for some evaluators and could cause him problems on the next level. Frazier has bulldozer drive strength in his lower half but allows his hands to do too much grabbing and hugging at times. He has quick eyes and a firm punch in pass protection, but because of his lack of length and recovery ability, he’s going to have issues if he’s forced to protect on an island. Frazier has the potential to be a good backup or eventual starter, but he needs to play with consistent inside hands and must stay tight to his targets in order to mitigate his physical deficiencies.
Strengths
- Wide, squared-off frame with muscular arms and exceptional core strength.
- Jolting upper-body power helps widen run lanes with down/secure blocks.
- Drives opposition into the ground with every opportunity he gets.
- Uses darting eyes and plus instincts to locate pressure points around him.
- Squeezes down toward A-gap blitzers with forceful positioning.
- Punches with good placement and above-average grip strength.
Weaknesses
- Powerful, but carries shorter arms, limiting his block radius.
- Loses inside hands as run blocker and ends up with too much hugging.
- Below-average reactive movement to moving targets in space.
- Needs to prove he can anchor with more shallow pass sets.
- Lack of length means goose is cooked once rusher beats him at his edge.
PFN Draft Profile
Strengths
- Low-cut offensive lineman with superb mass and an incredibly strong upper half.
- Nimble athlete with good blocking range in space and solid lateral mobility.
- Rapidly extends and loads his base off the snap to attain proper alignment.
- Former state champion wrestler with an excellent understanding of leverage.
- Has great hinge fluidity for his size, swiveling around to pick off LBs in space.
- Possesses stellar anchor strength and can stall out power rushes with his core.
- Has the strength to delay backside pursuit linemen and pry his way to the second level.
- Hands carry shock in pass protection and can knock adjacent linemen off balance.
- Relatively synergetic pass blocker who sequences his base and hands very well.
- Can quickly process stunts, realign base, and re-exert hands past initial extensions.
- Possesses good anchor placement and can quickly combat extensions and re-anchor.
- Robotically assignment-sound in the run game with excellent angle IQ and control.
- Can rotate his base while anchored to seal off defenders and drive them out of plays.
- Manhandles 1-on-1 run blocks off the snap with leg churn, leverage, and physicality.
- Able to torque through and finish defenders who sacrifice leverage trying to pry free.
Weaknesses
- Doesn’t quite have elite explosiveness or range in space.
- Doesn’t have superb recovery athleticism and can be lumbering on sharp redirections.
- Lack of elite length slightly detracts from his maximum knock-back power capacity.
- Sometimes gives up too much initial displacement against power.
- On occasion, can be late to help guards who let by initial disruption in the run game.
- At times, lurches past center of gravity as a moving blocker, eroding grip and balance.
- Can be baited into extending prematurely against blitzing linebackers.
- Sometimes rotates his hips too early in pass protection, allowing paths around his gaps.
- Sometimes widens his base too far, inhibiting his ability to recollect lateral positioning.
- Occasionally overshoots blocking angles working ahead of screens.
- Doesn’t quite have elite hip flexibility and sometimes experiences transition delays.
