Last year I scouted D.J. Fluker in order to gain some insight into him as a potential 2012 NFL Draft entrant but was mostly unimpressed; Fluker got a lot of early first-round hype midway through last season but his passive demeanor, his lack of balance, and his inability to sustain blocks raised question marks. Recently I re-watched the BCS National Championship Game and Fluker appears to have made strides from my previous viewing. Fluker probably doesn't deserve to be drafted in the first round and many of my prior concerns remain unaddressed but his overall size and his athleticism should interest teams looking for a developmental offensive tackle prospect; Fluker now ranks among my top offensive tackle prospects after coming away seriously disappointed in Louisiana State left tackle Chris Faulk. Based on what I've seen I'd grade Fluker as a second-round pick. Take a look at Alabama's offensive snaps from the championship game below and share your opinions on Fluker, who lines up at right tackle:

I've never been a Fluker. Just as overrated as Andre Smith was coming out. Neither Fluker or Faulk belong 1st round. They are all hype.

The Texas A&M tackles are the ones who deserve some love.

I agree that Fluker and Faulk are overrated and from what I've seen Luke Joeckel seems like a quality left tackle, but Andre Smith wasn't overrated as a prospect, he just had a high bust rate because of his conditioning. He was dominant on the field in college.

Again, MJ thanks for the videos. Really helps with the scouting. I'll check out Fluker later, but I watched Barret Jones.

He seemed to struggle in backpedalling in pass protection at OT. He also didn't sustain blocks in the run as much as I would want. Although when his side was bunched and he took more the role of the guard he seemed to do better. I think he would be better suited as a guard in the NFL. As an OT he would lose balance dealing with the speed off the edge and I saw some holding that he got away with.

I don't think I would take Barrret Jones in the first. More of a second round prospect. Opinions?

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Quote:

Originally Posted by killxswitch

Bill Polian is cancer wrapped in AIDS delivered in an XXL enema so please don't expect me to disagree with you.

Again, MJ thanks for the videos. Really helps with the scouting. I'll check out Fluker later, but I watched Barret Jones.

He seemed to struggle in backpedalling in pass protection at OT. He also didn't sustain blocks in the run as much as I would want. Although when his side was bunched and he took more the role of the guard he seemed to do better. I think he would be better suited as a guard in the NFL. As an OT he would lose balance dealing with the speed off the edge and I saw some holding that he got away with.

I don't think I would take Barrret Jones in the first. More of a second round prospect. Opinions?

I agree that he's a little bit overrated, mostly in terms of sustaining blocks and driving players back. I like him as a pulling guard and his versatility/character/intangibles are appealing but probably also over-inflate his draft stock. I wouldn't be surprised if he went in the second round, and that may be a better place for him. He's the type of prospect who is easy to fall in love with though.

I think whoever drafts Fluker needs to be fully aware of his strengths and limitations when they take him and what their expectations are. Make no bones about it, this guy is not going to be a stud pass protector at the next level. He is the definition of a heavy legged waist bender. His kick slide is very choppy and he over extends himself at the waist instead of bending his knees and keeping his body within his base. Look at this pic from the Tennessee game where he gets beaten by speed and can't recover giving up a pressure

However, you ask the guy to go into a power scheme and ask him to be a mauling run blocker and you have yourself a player. From the same game this first picture shows where the play starts and who is going to block down on

Now see where he ends up on the play

Despite this run only going for 1 yard Fluker has driven his guy (DL Maurice Couch) 6 yards off the ball.

If a team like Arizona or Chicago draft someone like Fluker to solve their pass rush problems then they will be disappointed. However any team who like to run power man locking would be smart to look no further than Fluker. I like his fit in San Diego, but not in the 1st

I like Fluker in Chicago. I agree with your assessment of him for the most part, but I think he can get (and has gotten) better. I think he has a shot to play LT, but he's not going to pass block at a pro bowl level. He has a chance to be adequate though, and has had some success against NFL caliber speed rushers (Mingo, Montgomery, Jarvis Jones, etc). But I also think he could be a near dominant OG for someone. As a Bears fan, I am resigned to the fact that the team likes Webb, and he's done a fine job the last couple weeks...so if they want to put Fluker at LG and let him maul people inside, I'm fine with that too.

Because he is not playing OT in the NFL. Is he too tall to play OG or is he so big at 6'6" 350lbs that he does not need leverage.

This guy is Orlando Franklin, who can play RT, but I think would be a beast at OG.

He's not too tall to play OG. Eric Steinbach was a pretty good OG in the NFL for almost a decade at 6'6". Faneca and Hutchinson were great OGs both at 6'5". Gene Upshaw 6'5". Bruce Matthews 6'5". Even Jonathan Ogden played his rookie year at LG at 6'8-6'9" ish. He's also not 350lbs. He's closer to 330-335. And weight doesn't appear to be an issue for him. Franklin is a good comparison, but I think Fluker's better, and I was a big Franklin fan.

I don't see why Fluker couldn't play OT in the NFL. He's likely going to be a RT, but I could see a team giving him a shot at LT and him being passable there. If Cordy Glenn can play LT, Fluker certainly can.

He's not too tall to play OG. Eric Steinbach was a pretty good OG in the NFL for almost a decade at 6'6". Faneca and Hutchinson were great OGs both at 6'5". Gene Upshaw 6'5". Bruce Matthews 6'5". Even Jonathan Ogden played his rookie year at LG at 6'8-6'9" ish. He's also not 350lbs. He's closer to 330-335. And weight doesn't appear to be an issue for him. Franklin is a good comparison, but I think Fluker's better, and I was a big Franklin fan.

I don't see why Fluker couldn't play OT in the NFL. He's likely going to be a RT, but I could see a team giving him a shot at LT and him being passable there. If Cordy Glenn can play LT, Fluker certainly can.

I agree with pretty much everything in this post. Cordy's success outside definitely has me thinking Fluker can play there too. That fact that with the exception of one or two plays, Mingo really didn't give him problems with his speed and he did a nice job vs. Damontre Moore from what I saw. I think he's a better athlete than he gets credit for. He's not a big, sloppy, overweight athlete, he's just a massive human being. He is somewhat heavy-footed but I think he's got decent agility and rawdawg mentioned, every bit the athlete Orlando Franklin is. He displays surprising flexibility for a guy as big as he is. I wouldn't be scared to try him out at tackle. He's incredibly powerful and one of the better run blockers in college football in the last couple of years. I wouldn't be scared to give him a shot at OT but at the same time, I don't think it's unreasonable to think he could be an elite guard in the NFL either.

sidebar: Bama's O-Line is so ridiculous. You know it's a good group when Barrett Jones is your worst starter.

Flucker can still get drafted very late in round 1. He'll play RT in the pros or possibly OG. He is not a LT prospect. the Texas A&M OT's are both far better prospects and can both play LT. Joeckel is a top 5 prospect while Matthews is a top 10 prospect.
Chance Warmack is the star of the Alabama OL and probably will go top 10. Jones is next in line, a top 20 as an OC/OG.