2022 Draft Chatter

[Joe Bananas]

Ace just sent this to me

Minnesota offensive tackle Daniel Faalele tips NFL combine scales at 6-foot-8, 384 pounds

That is one big dude!

I've never heard of the guy so I looked him up.

PFF has him ranked number 83 overall on the Big Board. 12th overall Tackle.

I don't know if he can play, but I'd love to see him hanging around at the end of the third round.

Believe he's ranked high 80s. But someone that big cannot possibly move that fast. NFL edge rushers woild eat him up at tackle, I would think. Somewhat of an interesting prospect though. He's a road grader at rushing, but not sure how he would do against the pass.

[Bengals1]

Short arms. Definitely one of Jmble's turnoffs.....

Tyler Linderbaum’s arm length could drop him to Bengals’ first-round pick
Linderbaum is expected to be a first-round pick, but where in the first round?

By John Sheeran Mar 4, 2022

The same questions get asked every year about the NFL Scouting Combine, and they all revolve around what actually matters from the event.

Clubs get their first real interactions with college football’s top NFL Draft prospects. They conduct player interviews, have access to their medical reports, and watch them undergo athleticism testing.

Players also have to get measured, and those measurements matter to most teams depending on which positions they play.

For offensive linemen, arm length is usually highlighted as important. Players with shorter than average arms usually don’t get picked high in the draft, and success stories of linemen with below average arm length aren’t very prevalent.

This is now becoming a topic of conversation for Iowa Hawkeyes center and potential Cincinnati Bengals target Tyler Linderbaum.

Linderbaum, widely regarded as this year’s top center prospect, measured in Friday morning with 31.125” arms. That gives him one of the smallest arm lengths out of every offensive linemen since 2000.

Here is every OL since 2000 to measure in with sub 32" arms:

— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) March 4, 2022
While it seems like an inconsequential number, linemen with short arms usually don’t get drafted early. Nick Mangold (30.75”) and Alex Mack (31.5”) are rare exceptions as they were drafted 29th and 21st overall in their respective draft years. Both players ended up having great careers, and even Mack is still playing at the age of 36.

Garrett Bradbury (31.75”) is a more recent example as he was taken 18th overall by the Minnesota Vikings in the 2019 draft. Bradbury hasn’t eclipsed a Pro Football Focus grade of 61.4 in his three years with the Vikings thus far.

Having short arms is not a death sentence by any means for centers, specifically, as Mangold and Mack are living proof, but teams in general will avoid those players early in the first round. This may not bode well for Linderbaum if he hopes to be taken in the top half of the first round, despite his tape being almost universally praised.

If Linderbaum does slide all the way to the 31st pick, it is entirely debatable if the Bengals would even select him. The previous two centers Cincinnati drafted to start immediately were Russell Bodine and Billy Price. Neither player panned out, and both had relatively shorter arms (32.5” for Bodine and 32” for Price).

Again, the consensus says Linderbaum is a better player than both Bodine and Price ever were, but it is possible that the Bengals avoid a familiar risk by passing on Linderbaum.

Linderbaum’s measurements are the only thing we’ll see from him as he will not perform any of the athleticism drills in Indianapolis. His draft stock as a whole could be altered after this weekend.

[stripesincarolina]

I guess Linderbaum didn't watch the Brady Bunch growing up. Bobby Brady had a quick fix for that.

[Jmble]

The Athletic released it's first post-combine Mock Draft. They went two rounds but only gave commentary on the first.

31. Cincinnati Bengals — Tyler Linderbaum, OC, Iowa
No player has a wider variance of where he could be drafted than Linderbaum. Arguably one of the 15 best players in this draft, the former defensive lineman is a center only with below-average length and scheme versatility, which will limit his landing spots in round one. But he would be an absolute steal at this point in the draft for the Bengals.

63. Cincinnati Bengals — Abraham Lucas, OT, Washington State

[MeatHeadbengal]

The Athletic released it's first post-combine Mock Draft. They went two rounds but only gave commentary on the first.

31. Cincinnati Bengals — Tyler Linderbaum, OC, Iowa
No player has a wider variance of where he could be drafted than Linderbaum. Arguably one of the 15 best players in this draft, the former defensive lineman is a center only with below-average length and scheme versatility, which will limit his landing spots in round one. But he would be an absolute steal at this point in the draft for the Bengals.

63. Cincinnati Bengals — Abraham Lucas, OT, Washington State

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say unequivocally I do NOT want Linderbaum. Address these issues in FA so we can be flexible and not draft a T-Rex...

[skycruiser]

there's no way he's still going to be available at 31

[Bengals1]

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say unequivocally I do NOT want Linderbaum. Address these issues in FA so we can be flexible and not draft a T-Rex...

Meat made a paleontology reference!?!

Now I know his baby's posting for him....

[Bengals1]

31. Cincinnati Bengals — Tyler Linderbaum, OC, Iowa
No player has a wider variance of where he could be drafted than Linderbaum. Arguably one of the 15 best players in this draft, the former defensive lineman is a center only with below-average length and scheme versatility, which will limit his landing spots in round one. But he would be an absolute steal at this point in the draft for the Bengals.

That's it then. As soon as SoP hears the words "absolute steal" he'll run the card up there himself. Twenty minutes later Linderbaum will be a Bengal.

[Joe Bananas]

The Athletic released it's first post-combine Mock Draft. They went two rounds but only gave commentary on the first.

31. Cincinnati Bengals — Tyler Linderbaum, OC, Iowa
No player has a wider variance of where he could be drafted than Linderbaum. Arguably one of the 15 best players in this draft, the former defensive lineman is a center only with below-average length and scheme versatility, which will limit his landing spots in round one. But he would be an absolute steal at this point in the draft for the Bengals.

63. Cincinnati Bengals — Abraham Lucas, OT, Washington State

Lucas. Definitely a right tackle or guard. Played over 750 snaps at RT and the year before that, RG.

From PFF.

Lucas still needs some refinement in pass protection, but he's seen it all for the pass-heavy Cougars in his career. He has played in 2,195 pass-blocking snaps across four years at Washington State.

Career Highlights
0 pressures allowed on 78 pass-blocking snaps vs. Oregon State (2019)
0 pressures allowed against USC each of past two seasons

[MeatHeadbengal]

The Athletic released it's first post-combine Mock Draft. They went two rounds but only gave commentary on the first.

31. Cincinnati Bengals — Tyler Linderbaum, OC, Iowa
No player has a wider variance of where he could be drafted than Linderbaum. Arguably one of the 15 best players in this draft, the former defensive lineman is a center only with below-average length and scheme versatility, which will limit his landing spots in round one. But he would be an absolute steal at this point in the draft for the Bengals.

63. Cincinnati Bengals — Abraham Lucas, OT, Washington State

I absolutely hate how people just assume we should go O-line with our first and or second pick. I honestly believe we need to address the O-line issue in FA with proven guys and free us up to be able to pick BPA! I hate being pigeon holed into things!