A lot of Mock Drafts have the Redskins taking a skill position player in the second round, but what will those players do if they don't have the protection up front to be successful? The Redskins need to go O-Line in the second round.
Note: All scouting information comes from CBS Sports , NFL Combine Results Page, plus help from Walter Football, Ourlads, Drafttek, and DraftScout. Please check these sites out for all the work that they do in informing all of us laypeople about every possible college prospect.
Round 2 (44th Overall Selection): Billy Price C (Ohio State)
Height: 6'4" Weight: 305 lbs
It is concerning that Billy Price suffered a torn pectoral muscle while warming up for the bench press at the NFL Combine. The injury is said to be minor, though, and the Redskins should heed that advice and take a long hard look at Price if he is available at the 44th pick. Price was Co-Defensive Player of the Year as a high school senior in Ohio, but he was moved to offensive line when he got to Ohio State. He began his career as a Guard where he started all 15 games as a freshman on the 2014 National Championship Team. He filled in at left guard his sophomore year where he garnered Third Team All-Big Ten honors, and he moved to right guard the next year and was First Team All-Big Ten. Last year he was moved to center where he won the Remington Trophy as the Nation's top center and was First Team All-American. His meteoric rise throughout his college career is due to an impressive set of skills. Scouts note his incredible strength and ability to move defenders off the line of scrimmage. He has the ability to play in space and to hold his position on the line, and he has significant experience at both guard positions and center. Price sets a strong anchor in pass protection, and he plays with a mean streak to compliment his physicality. It is this mean streak, though, that brings the negative side of Price's game. Price tends to be too aggressive at times, and gets himself out of position by over lunging at the defender. Scouts note that Price may rely too heavily on his brute strength, which causes his footwork to go dead and allow more athletic rushers to get by him. Finally, his mean demeanor has given him the moniker of being a tough personality to deal with, but the Redskins need high level depth on the offensive line after what happened last year.
The Redskins offensive line became a MASH Unit by the end of last season, and it was a big reason why the Redskins had trouble running the football and protecting Kirk Cousins as the season progressed. Guys like Derrius Guice, Courtland Sutton, and Christian Kirk are good, but what happens if the offensive line cannot provide the protection to make these skill players successful? Price is the answer for people who wonder if Arie Kuandjio is up to the task of starting at Left Guard, and it gives the Redskins interior line a jolt of high level starting talent. Price's over aggressiveness is a concern, but that can be remedied through coaching. It is harder to coach up desire than it is to teach temperance, and Bill Callahan seems to be just the guy to work with Price on fixing some of the holes in his game. Alex Smith will need protection, and whatever running back starts for the Redskins will need holes to run through. Price brings all of that to the table, and he should be the guy the Redskins select with the 44th pick if he is there even if Guice is still available.
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