Welcome to Gaia! :: View User's Journal | Gaia Journals

Film room: 3 potential offensive tackle targets for the Dallas Cowboys in the 2021 NFL draft
There’s a real chance OT is the best value on the Cowboys’ board at each of their slots in the first three rounds. That’s how deep this position group is.
FILE - Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell (5 cool looks to block Wisconsin outside linebacker Zack Baun during the Rose Bowl game on Jan. 1, 2020, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
FILE - Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell (5 cool looks to block Wisconsin outside linebacker Zack Baun during the Rose Bowl game on Jan. 1, 2020, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)(Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
By John Owning

9:00 AM on Feb 24, 2021


It’s a good year to need an offensive tackle, which is one of the strongest position groups in the 2021 NFL draft.

With Tyron Smith and La’el Collins signed through 2024 on team-friendly deals, offensive tackle really isn’t one of the Cowboys’ bigger needs. Still, everyone saw how the offense was adversely affected by Smith and Collins’ extended absences last season, and how the offense deteriorated in Smith’s absence in previous years.


Featured on Dallas News
FEATURED ON DALLAS NEWSTracker
dslogo
DeSoto house fire claims lives of two children, ages 1 and 2
DeSoto Fire Chief Jerry Duffield explains how a house fire occurred on the 100 block of Wildwood…

The Cowboys have gone the veteran route to find contingency plans before, signing Cameron Fleming and Cameron Erving the past couple of years to fill the all-important swing tackle backup role (Erving, though, was somehow beat out by undrafted rookie Terence Steele in camp last year).

With the number of needs the Cowboys have on defense, they may choose to spend their free agent money on that side of the ball. This makes offensive tackle an even more feasible selection in the draft. The feasibility only increases if the offensive tackle prospect has the position flexibility to play guard — the rookie’s fastest avenue to the field would be to beat Connor Williams in a competition for the starting left guard spot.


There is no shortage of offensive tackle options for the Cowboys in this draft class. A common offseason mantra for NFL teams is to fill needs in free agency and find value in the draft. If the Cowboys do that, there’s a real chance offensive tackle is the best value on the board at each of their slots in the first three rounds.

That’s how deep this class is — there are potentially 10 different offensive tackles with top-50 grades.

I’ve discussed Northwestern’s Rashawn Slater and Virginia Tech’s Christian Darrisaw at length, so let’s take this opportunity to examine some other options in this class:

Penei Sewell, Oregon
As of now, the best-case scenario for the Cowboys in the first round would be for Oregon’s Penei Sewell to somehow fall to the 10th overall pick, similar to how CeeDee Lamb fell to Dallas at No. 17 last year.

The odds of lightning striking twice (and in consecutive years) may be long, but unpredictability is one of the reasons the NFL draft is among the biggest events on the sports calendar, so don’t get too confident in turning your nose up at the possibility of Sewell being there at No 10.

And what a blessing that would be for the Cowboys.

Although he opted out of the 2020 season, Sewell is one of the best prospects in this class. In 2019, he put together one of the most dominant seasons we’ve seen from an offensive tackle.


Sewell is a 6-6, 325-pound bulldozer in the run game, routinely displacing players at the first and second levels of the defense with inordinate power at the point of attack.

lol Sewell is soooo good in space. Eliminates the DB on the tunnel screen. Takes a great angle to the DB and unloads on him. pic.twitter.com/ElRCzyluf6

— John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 18, 2020
He also has athleticism and movement skills that enable him to thrive in space on screens and as a puller, showing an impressive ability to take proper angles to hit his targets in the open field.


Sewell is similarly effective in pass protection, allowing just seven pressures on 491 snaps and posting a 99.3% pass-blocking efficiency, the second-best mark in college football in 2019, according to Pro Football Focus. He explodes out of his stance, beating pass rushers to the junction point to play with balance and patience. And when Sewell gets his big paws on a defender, it’s over. He possesses fantastic grip strength and balance to strain and sustain blocks.

Sewell is a blue-chip prospect, but he’s not perfect. He displays some technical inefficiencies that could create issues for him in the NFL, namely his pad level. Sewell shows the necessary mobility and flexibility to play with proper pad level, but he still has a tendency to play too high. He got away with this at Oregon because of his otherworldly power and physical gifts in relation to the opposition, but that’s not going to cut it in the NFL. Sewell can also be a little slow to adjust his blocking assignments post-snap against slants and twists from defensive linemen, but that should improve with experience. He was just 19 years old the last time we saw him play.

He’s about as good as it gets for an offensive tackle prospect. That Sewell was arguably the most dominant player in college football before turning 20 bodes well for how he’ll play in the NFL.

Sewell would provide the Cowboys with an outstanding swing tackle option and probably beat out Williams to start at left guard. He’s so special, he would probably thrive there even though he never played guard in college.

Alijah Vera-Tucker, USC
If the Cowboys are looking for a tackle prospect with proven guard ability (or a guard with tackle ability), there may not be a better option than USC’s Alijah Vera-Tucker.

Vera-Tucker was one of college football’s best guards in 2019 before becoming one of the sport’s better tackles in 2020.

Another clean performance from #USC OT Alijah Vera-Tucker (LT #75) yesterday vs. Arizona. Hard to believe that it’s only his second career game playing tackle.

In a zone based blocking scheme, he could be an ideal fit at either guard or tackle. pic.twitter.com/RIFqgagCB8

— Jordan Reid (@Jordan_Reid) November 15, 2020
Whether at guard or tackle, Vera-Tucker was extremely effective in pass protection, showing the ability to thrive in a phone booth at both spots. His movement skills are evident on tape, as he does an excellent job of mirroring interior and edge defenders in pass protection with impressive and varied hand technique to boot. Vera-Tucker also recovers in pass protection, finding ways to regain balance to stymie a pass rusher after initially being put in a compromising position.

That said, Vera-Tucker did have some trouble last year against Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux, who is one of college football’s best young pass rushers. Six of the eight pressures Vera-Tucker gave up in 2020 were against the Ducks. He had a tough time dealing with Thibodeaux’s quick get-off, speed around the edge and cornering ability.

USC LT Alijah Vera-Tucker with a 3 for 1 special on this play. He’s playing at a very high level. pic.twitter.com/rwfhDnsXcG

— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) November 26, 2020
In the run game, Vera-Tucker shows the ability to add value in a variety of blocking schemes. He has the inherent power and plays with proper leverage to displace defensive tackles on double teams or edge defenders one-on-one in man-blocking schemes. Vera-Tucker has the lateral movement skills to reach and cut off shaded defenders in zone-blocking schemes. He’s also very effective at climbing to the second level and finding his targets when needed.

I believe Vera-Tucker can play tackle or guard in the NFL, but he projects a bit better inside. This makes him a really good fit for the Cowboys.

Dallas would be wise to develop Vera-Tucker’s skill set as a tackle so he can replace Smith or Collins if needed, but he’d be able to step in and win the starting left guard job right away.

Instead of moving a tackle prospect inside to guard initially — a la Laremy Tunsil, who played guard as a rookie before sliding outside to his more familiar tackle spot in Year 2 — Vera-Tucker is a guard who could eventually slide outside with some seasoning.

D’Ante Smith, OT, East Carolina
There will be a wealth of offensive tackles available in the top 50-75 picks, but the Cowboys could easily wait to grab a developmental prospect for the future, especially if they feel comfortable with their guard situation.

In that case, East Carolina’s D’Ante Smith would be an excellent selection.

So we need to talk about D’Ante Smith. pic.twitter.com/Uj9P5UmKBz

— Cory (@realcorykinnan) January 27, 2021
Smith measured in at a mighty impressive 6-5, 294 pounds with 35 1/4-inch arms during Senior Bowl week, and he didn’t disappoint when he took the field. The small-school prospect outperformed almost all of the offensive linemen from bigger programs. Smith finished with the second-highest win rate among tackles during one-on-one drills at Senior Bowl practices, and at times he even showed well at guard when playing there.

Too easy. D'Ante Smith can play. pic.twitter.com/pK9c4PRLpB

— John Owning (@JohnOwning) January 28, 2021
Smith is an impressive athlete for his size, possessing explosiveness out of his stance to beat rushers to the intersection point and lateral movement skills to mirror rushers up the arc and on inside moves. That athleticism pays dividends on screens and in the run game, as Smith can effortlessly pull and lead the way for ballcarriers in space. He also can work some intricate hand technique when playing with a proper base and balance.

Although he was up to 294 pounds at the Senior Bowl, Smith still lacks in the play strength department, especially in his lower half. He can struggle to anchor against power or generate movement at the point of attack in the run game. Smith’s struggles at anchoring have created a bad habit of him lunging with his strikes to try to blunt a bull rusher’s power, which inhibits his balance and leaves him vulnerable to counters.

He’s not as skilled or clean as the offensive tackles who will go on Day 1 or early Day 2, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Smith developed into a better NFL player than a few of them. With a prototypical frame, incredible length and outstanding movement skills, Smith is a moldable ball of clay who offensive line coaches will gravitate to because of his ceiling.

Smith would provide Cowboys O-line coach Joe Philbin with a developmental prospect who is more skilled and has a higher ceiling than either of the team’s current developmental tackles — Steele and Brandon Knight. The hope would be that D’Ante Smith could develop into a top-tier swing tackle, and potentially even a starter once Tyron Smith or Collins departs the team.

Potential Cowboys draft targets by position
Defensive tackle: NC State’s Alim McNeill, Ohio State’s Haskell Garrett, BYU’s Khyiris Tonga

Edge: Georgia’s Azeez Ojulari, Miami’s Jaelan Phillips, Pitt’s Rashad Weaver

Linebacker: Notre Dame’s Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Missouri’s Nick Bolton, LSU’s Jabril Cox

Cornerback: Alabama’s Patrick Surtain, Virginia Tech’s Caleb Farley, Georgia’s Tyson Campbell

Safety: UCF’s Richie Grant, TCU’s Trevon Moehrig, Florida State’s Hamsah Nasirildeen

===