STRENGTHS
Eric is an athletic big man who shows the foot speed and quickness to get out of his stance and be used on sweeps and screens. He has excellent size and strength to handle bull rushes and big nose tackles playing over him. He shows the quick lateral agility to help out guards when blocking as well as the hand fighting talents to stymie that one gap attack lineman, who can get into the back field quickly and disrupt a play. He is smart and shows leadership skills through his play on the field and maturity. Eric is a powerful run blocker using excellent leverage out of his stance. He is a smart pass blocker using good footwork and mature hand techniques that a lot of centers coming out in the draft do not yet have. Eric reminds me a lot of former Jets center Nick Mangold.
CONCERNS
Eric is not perfect but he’s close. He is a better run blocker than he is a pass blocker but not by much. When he is pass blocking and does lose control he needs to learn to turn his hips and move his feet and push his man up the field so his QB can manipulate the pocket. At times he will lose his techniques and start to lunge when he gets beat but to improve all he needs is repetitions and this kid’s work ethic tells me in time, he will correct this issue.
TALENT BOARD ROUND 1.47
When I saw Eric in the Senior Bowl practices what impress me was his ability to be on balance and in control when run blocking or on the move and blocking in space on sweeps and screens. When I put on the film and watched how easily he handled those big Clemson Defensive linemen I knew this kid was one of the best offensive linemen in this draft. He has obvious natural strength and his footwork and overall balance when on the move, is unique for a player his size. Watching him in interviews at the senior bowl, he impressed me with his overall maturity and once again, never seemed to be off balance answering questions as if this was the norm for him and nothing was too big. If your team is looking for a center I don’t think they should look past the kid because no matter what offensive blocking scheme you could think up to use, Eric has the athletic talent, strength and maturity to handle it.
