Chiefs: Who’s the Top LOT and Will Veach Have a Shot at the LOT BPA?

David Bell

A recent article by Matt McMullen at Chiefs.com is called: “NFL Draft Positional Spotlight: Offensive Tackle” and I highly recommend it. In this piece McMullen says:

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“Depending on where you look, the various experts from around the web have identified a handful of offensive tackles who could potentially go in the first round. Two of those players – Northwestern’s Peter Skoronski and Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr. – are projected to be selected long before Kansas City is set to pick at No. 31 overall, and for the purpose of this Chiefs-specific breakdown, we won’t discuss those two.”

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Of course, I have no clue how this will turn out. I cannot see the Chiefs pursuing Peter Skoronski (#1 rated OT) or Dawand Jones. If Veach selected Skoronski, it would be with a view of Joe Thuney’s impending retirement because I see Skoronski moved inside to OG (as do many who follow the draft prospects). You don’t draft such a player in round 1 unless he is going to start. Ditto D. Jones. His length and weight I foresee as a problem –> a la Orlando Brown Jr..

The Need for OTs

This offseason, the need to replace both OTs arose. The Chiefs chose not to retain ROT Andrew Wylie, who signed with the Commanders. Although Wylie played well in 2022, especially in the post-season, the Chiefs didn’t want to “re-invest” in Wylie and he departed in free agency. The same thing occurred with Orlando Brown Jr.. Brett Veach did not use a tag to retain Brown either. I did not believe Wylie was a starter-quality OT but believe he was a good depth player at ROT. One NFL Executive determined the Chiefs made the right choice in not tagging Brown. The Athletic’s Mike Sando polled executives around the league about what they thought of all 32 NFL team’s additions and losses in free agency over the past several weeks. A comment from one of those executives on the Chiefs biggest offseason change was quite intriguing. Orlando Brown Jr. did not receive the franchise tag from Kansas City and this particular NFL executive credited the Chiefs for that decision.

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“I give them credit for not (franchise) tagging Orlando Brown and not spending dollars on him,” an exec said, “because he was probably the weakest link on their line last year. It seems like they figured out as long as you protect Mahomes, nothing else matters. It is probably true.”

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Brett Veach Out of the Free Agency Gates

To counter losing both Brown and Wylie, Brett Veach was aggressive as soon as the Free Agency Period opened. He signed Jawaan Taylor, ostensibly to replace Orlando Brown Jr. (then he signed Charles Omenihu to replace Frank Clark). Meanwhile, the Chiefs have three players earmarked for RT: Lucas Niang, Darian Kinnard, and Prince Tega-Wanogho. I still think that OT should be the Chief’s first-round pick, especially if they can get a player with experience at the LOT position. Keeping PMII upright, keeps the Chiefs offense rolling!

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My look at LOTs in the Draft

My goal was to look and see who might fall to the Chiefs at pick #31 or be available for Veach to trade up to be able to select. I came up with four players at the top of the ratings, three of whom played a LOT at the NCAA level.

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Paris Johnson Jr. (Ohio State)

Paris Johnson Jr. opted for Ohio State. As a Freshman, he saw action in 4 games with limited snaps.

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Paris Johnson – Elevenwarriors photo credit

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Johnson became a starting ROT as a sophomore, giving up no sacks. As a Junior, he switched to LOT and played in 12 games for 757 snaps. Johnson gave up 9 GB hurries, no QB hits, and only two sacks in his first year on the left side. In 2023 he is coming out early for the draft as is Anton Harrison.

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Paris Johnson, Jr data (Source NFLDraftbuzz)

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ESPN’s view of Johnson – Note the comparison to Harrison below):

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Again, Source: NFLDraftBuzz

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Here’s a 3 Minute Highlight video of Paris Johnson:

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Broderick Jones (GA)

I like Jones a bunch. He may be the most gifted physically talented and athletically gifted LOT among all potential draft picks according to a consensus scouting report.

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Broderick Jones – UGA Rivals Photo Credit

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As a Freshman, Jones played in 2 games, with limited snaps. As a sophomore in 2021, he played in 11 games — 434 snaps. Jones gave up 5 QB hurries, 1 QB hit, and 2 sacks. Most of the snaps were as a LOT. while playing most of his snaps at left tackle. As a Junior last year, Jones played in 13 games with 805 LOT snaps. He gave up 8 hurries, 1 QB hit, and 0 Sacks. Jones like Johnson and Harrison is coming out early, foregoing his Senior year.

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Source; NFLDraftBuzz

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Broderick Jones’ Athletic Matrix looks like this:

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Again, the source is NFLDraftBuzz

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Broderick Jones – Scouting Summary: “Broderick Jones is probably the best athlete in the entire offensive line class, he’s very strong, has elite core strength, cat-like quickness, and has the speed of a tight end. His upside is huge as a pass blocker, however, he isn’t nearly as good as a run blocker where he has struggled a little. This is most likely due to the fact that he hasn’t played as much as you would like and as a result looks a little raw technically. Overall Jones is a top-level prospect with serious potential to be a dominant pro player – he’ll be a first-round selection in the 2023 NFL Draft.” See his highlight film here (1:32):

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Anton Harrison LOT (OU)

Anton Harrison has been one of my four OTs in the draft who have LOT experience.

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Anton Harrison Photo – Flipboard photo credit

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The only drawback is his length at 6-foot-4. His heft is satisfactory at 315 LB, he moves smoothly and uses his feet well. He is a great choice for those reasons alone. On the other hand, if I disregard his height being 1 inch shorter than being in the ideal range (6-foot-5 – to – 6-foot-7) I am particularly pleased with his stat line at OU. Harrison boasts 34 1/8″ arms and 9 1/4″ hands. His 40-yard dash time was 4.98 (which is excellent) and he had a good shuttle time as well. His vertical was decent. Harrison recorded 24 bench press lifts at 225 pounds. Harrison has a pass-blocking grade of 92% and a run-blocking grade of 76%. NFLDraftBuzz.com rates Anton as mid-first round following Peter Skoronski, Paris Johnson, and Broderick Jones.

PFF had this to say about Harrison:

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“Harrison’s mirroring ability at 6-foot-5 [WRONG], 315 pounds is what earns him this spot on the list.He’s incredibly smooth as a pass protector, posting an 86.6 pass-blocking grade over the last two years that ranked tied for 10th among Power Five tackles. Harrison only gave up one knockdown (sack/hit) on 425 pass-blocking snaps this season. He won’t be a people-mover in the run game, but he’s nearly NFL-ready as a pass protector.”

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ESPN who has Harrison’s height at 6-foot-4 3/8… provides this view of Harrison:

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What’s even better is the 247Sports.com’s report and rating:

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The rating is for all OTs, not just LOT. What’s intriguing about Harrison is the fact that he is a top-notch QB protector. Here is his highlight film (1:59):

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Here is Harrison’s Athletic Matrix:

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So make a note:

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• In 2020, Harrison saw action in 9 games as a true Freshman. He played a total of 333 snaps for the Sooners. He allowed 4 QB hurries, 2 QB hits, and 1 sack.

• In his Sophomore year, Harrison played in 13 games for 671 snaps. He gave up 14 QB hurries, 2 Hits, and 1 sack. It gets better.

• As a Junior in 2022, Harrison played in 12 games for 862 snaps, he allowed 8 Hurries, no QB hits, and only 1 sack.

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That is a ton of experience at LOT (mostly), for any player coming to the NFL. Then compare that to Paris Johnson and Broderick Jones.

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Summation

I can anticipate that Peter Skoronski, Paris Johnson, and Broderick Jones most likely will precede Harrison in the draft. Harrison is ranked ahead of Dawand Jones, Darnell Wright, Matthew Bergeron, and Cody Mauch. Cody Mauch was also a starting LOT. His prospected ranking matches those players whom I listed above. Harrison, at NFLDraftBuzz, has an overall score is 87.7 which trails Broderick Jones who had a score of 88.5. If somehow Johnson or Jones drops into the KC purview, by all means, if they are the BPA, Veach should trade up to select the right player.

When I look at the OTs and their ranking (at present), Peter Skoronski gets the nod followed by Paris Johnson Jr.. Broderick Jones is 3rd in the rankings followed by Anton Harrison. Since I believe both Skoronski and Johnson will be drafted in the first 15 picks, I have quasi-eliminated them from consideration. Indeed, though Skoronski is a technician, but possessing short arms and a short wingspan, I believe he will move to the inside when drafted. I may be wrong about this, but my comparison player is Joe Thuney himself.

It appears to me that Paris Johnson reaps media and analyst attention because he attended Ohio State U.

I am a bit hard-pressed to come up with a draft board overall that has 4 OTs drafted in round one which may mean that Laddie’s Bump Method has taken hold. Consider the conclusion that 4 QBs will be drafted in the top 15. Add to those other logical players selected, for ex: Edge, WR, CB, or S. Even if another LOT (such as Johnson or Jones) doesn’t get bumped down… Harrison is a good choice.

All three players above fit the Chiefs mold. I will note that recent views of the draft, place Darnell Wright of UTenn close to the boundary between rounds 1 and 2. He also fits the Chiefs needs. I rank Broderick Jones higher than Paris Johnson, but that is just me. The Chiefs could go edge in round one and select an OT in round 2. That flexibility would be great for the Chiefs, especially if Harrison dropped to round 2.

As I noted, Johnson, Jones, and Mauch are the only other OTs in the top 10 who also started on the left side. Dawand Jones, Matthew Bergeron, and Cody Mauch are not round 1 draft picks in my view. Darnell Wright is approaching the threshold between rounds 1 and 2. Even if Veach selects an edge player or a wideout in round one, there will be viable picks available in round 2. I am keeping in perspective to get the BPA (on the Chiefs board), and that may not be an OT.

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David Bell — ArrowheadOne

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