By John Sarianides

Forrest Lamp, Dan Feeney and Dion Dawkins will all be drafted in the first two rounds. The rest of this of this guard class will probably go end of day and day three. This is a deep group with several starts that could potentially start in the future.

Here are our top ten guards for the 2017 draft.

1. Forrest Lamp, Western Kentucky, 6-4 309, NFL Comparison: Zach Martin
Strengths
-Lamp has a long, lean frame. He has a strong upper body and strong hands. Can root defenders on drive blocks.

– Solid short area pass blocker who plays with a good base and moves well lateral. Sets quick, punches and can recoil and adjust. Plays with a heavy inside leg and holds his ground against bull rushers.

-Moves well in space. Can run a scoop block down the line and come off and seal a backside, inside linebacker.

-Can skip pull and get up the hole on power plays. Comes through square, engages and finishes blocks.

-Plays with a mean streak. Wants to dominate.

Weaknesses
-Not a natural bender. Tends to come off high at times and exposes his breast plate.

-Has a tendency to over punch at times in pass pro and give up a side.

-Struggles at times with taking over a block on vertical double teams.

-Lacks the girth you want inside at guard.

-Limited frame in terms of weight gain.

Final Thoughts: Lamp has the potential to be a perennial pro bowler and the anchor of an offensive line. He is a sure fire top twenty pick in this draft. He will step in and start from day one.

2. Dan Feeney, Indiana, 6-4 305, NFL Comparison: T.J Lang
Strengths
-Strong run blocker at the point of attack. A natural bender who explodes into drive blocks and gets movement.

-Effective in short space. Can pull and root out a defender on a short trap. Moves well well enough that he can skip pull through and lead on a power play.

-Strong short area pass blocker who moves well laterally. Feeney can set, punch and re-direct a defender.

-Has a strong upper body. has the overall strength to anchor up against bigger shade and 2 technique defensive tackles.

-Plays with a nasty temperament.

Weaknesses
-Comes out of his stance too high at times and plays off balance.

-Top heavy. Needs to re-distribute his weight physically.

-More effective as a zone blocker than man blocker. Struggles with shade, speed guys who can beat him off the snap.

-Late at times to the second level off of scoop and vertical double teams.

-Gets caught out of position when hand fighting. Hand speed needs to improve.

Final Thoughts: Feeney is an old school tough guy is physical and technically sound. He will be a solid second round value for whichever team drafts him.

 

3. Dion Dawkins, Temple, 6-4 313, NFL Comparison: Marshall Yanda
Strengths
-Strong run blocker. Has good hands and the strength to dominate one on one blocks.

– Quick out of his stance. Sets up quickly in pass pro. Punches, recoils and can adjust his set with ease.

-Moves well laterally in a short area and can hold his own against bull rushes and speed rushers.

-Plays with a good base and balance. Doesn’t get caught out of position.

-Versatile. Can play guard or tackle. Has played in a multiple offense which emphasizes zone blocking and man-gap blocking schemes.

Weaknesses
-Over commits on his punch, especially in pass pro. Leans too much as a result.

-Not overly athletic on film despite testing well at the combine.

-Doesn’t move great in space. Can pull and get up the hole but he chases too much. Doesn’t end up in position to make his block.

-Needs to do a better job of bending. Plays high and it impacts his ability to take the right angles.

-Needs to play within the framework of his body. Blocks out his opponents pads too much.

Final Thoughts: Dawkins has value because he can play guard or tackle. Long term, his best position maybe guard because of his size. Which ever drafts him will probably look at him there first.

 

4. Dorain Johnson, Pitt, 6-5 300, NFL Comparison: Jack Mewhort
Strengths
-Johnson is a massive, old school phone booth guard is a strong run blocker at the point of attack. Has strong hands and once he gains position, he finishes.

-Effective first level blocker on vertical double teams. Moves well enough laterally to take over the block and finish.

-Moves well enough laterally that he can be effective on run reach blocks and scoop blocks.

-Solid short area pass blocker who sets up quickly, punches and recoils.

-Can anchor down versus bull rushers and cut the angle off for speed rushers.

Weaknesses
-Not a natural bender in the run game. Plays high.

-Sluggish out of his stance. Doesn’t snap out of the block smoothly.

-A little thinish. Needs to bulk up in order to play inside.

-Has a tendency to lean on defenders at times and loses blocks as a result.

-Needs to learn to use his length to his advantage inside.

Final Thoughts: Johnson offers versatility in that he can play guard and tackle. He is a good athlete who moves well in all four directions. He has pro bowl potential at the next level but he must get stronger in order to play inside.

 

5. Danny Isidora, Miami (Fla) 6-3 306, NFL Comparison: Xavier Sua-Filo
Strengths
-Isidora is a traditional guard physically. He has good arm length and a thick lower half. Has well balanced ankles meaning they are not too big or small.

-Moves well in all four directions. Isidora is effective coming off of a scoop block or a run reach block.

-Good short area pass blocker who moves well laterally and can punch, adjust and reset. Does a good job cutting the edge off a speed rusher with his pass set.

-Smart. Can identify pressures and twists and shows the ability to adjust in space.

-Effective on pulls. Can long trap a defensive end on counter plays and get up the hole consistently on a skip pull.

Weaknesses
-Lacks functional strength one on one. Isidora will struggle against 2 technique defensive tackles with size.

-Really struggled to hold up against bull and rip pass rushers at the Senior Bowl. Needs to prove he can drop his butt and anchor down against them.

-Despite his athleticism, he doesn’t always take great angles. Can get beat off the snap on a down block on occasion.

-Plays too fast at times. Olay blocks in space.

-Wastes a lot of motion. Part of the reason for that is he plays with a wide base. Needs to bring his feet in more (armpit width).

Final Thoughts:  Isidora is a starting caliber NFL guard but he needs to be tweaked fundamentally and needs to get stronger. The weakest part of his game is anchoring down against defensive lineman. If he can’t hold up in pass pro, he can’t play.

Next Five

6. Issac Asiata, Utah, 6-3 323, NFL Comparison: Larry Warford
Asiata is a classic phone booth guard. Plays with a wide base, has strong hands and can get movement at the point of attack. Asiata is a good short area pass blocker who can punch, recoil and adjust to a double move. Needs to play more under control. Struggles to seal at the second level. Has balance issues in space. Starting caliber talent despite that.

7. Nico Siragusa, San Diego State, 6-4 319, NFL Comparison: Mike Iupati
An absolute mauler in the run game. Has strong hands. Once he engages, he finishes his blocks. Moves well laterally and does a good job of taking advantage of his length, especially against speed rushers. Good short area pass blocker who can punch, reset and adjust. Has good enough feet to get out on the edge on a “Molly” block. Not a natural bender. Needs to play with a lower pad level. Another guard who has starter potential.

8. Zach Banner, USC, 6-8 353, NFL Comparison: Trent Brown
Banner is from the Kevin Gogan mold of guards. He is a massive human being. Has had weight issues in the past but if he can drop 20-25 pounds and play around 325-330, he could pretty good. Especially in a man gap scheme. As you can imagine, Banner is not a natural bender. Plays high and has a tendency to lose blocks. Good pass blocker once he engages but he will struggle with a shade tackle. A project at this point.

9. Jessamen Dunker, Tennessee State, 6-4 318, NFL Comparison: Orlando Franklin
Dunker moves well in space and can locate a defender, latch on and finish blocks. A wide body who has the functional strength to play inside and hold his own against 2 technique tackles. Good short area pass blocker who can anchor down against bull rushers but struggles against speed rushers. He will need a year of develop but Dunker could eventually develop into a starter.

10. Ben Braden, Michigan, 6-6 329, NFL Comparison: Quinton Spain
Braden is a physical run blocker who gets good movement at the point of attack but he is not a natural bender and he can be stiff at times. He has the functional strength to anchor down against bull rushers but his lack of flexibility could be a problem against speed rushers.