Phil Trautwein, 6'6" 310RT, Florida
Rankings: Pro Football Weekly: #53 offensive tackle. Rated as a free agent with a chance to be in an NFL training camp.
NFLDraftScout.com: #31 offensive tackle, #360 player overall; free agent grade.
Biography/Honors: 2008: first-team All-SEC. Team captain. Started all 12 games. Named to NFF Hampshire Honor Society.
2006: Named to SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll and second-team All-SEC. Started all 14 games.
Major: Graduated in December 2008 with a master’s in educational leadership.
Injuries: Missed entire 2007 season due to stress fracture in right foot.
Pro Day Stats: (not invited to NFL Combine)
* 23 bench presses (Jason Smith did 33 at the Combine)
* 5.36 40 with 1.84 and 3.00-second splits (JS: 5.09)
* 27-inch vertical leap (JS: 24)
* 8’2” broad jump (JS: 8’0”)
* did not run 3-cone drill or 20-yard shuttle
Positives: Converted tight end. Good athlete, with surprising lateral agility for his size, and solid pass protector. Good quickness off the snap. Quickly gets hands into defenders. Blocks with a wide base, keeps his feet moving and works hard to finish. Stays square and turns opponents out of the play. Long arms and quick feet. Plays nasty. Alert to pick up stunts and blitzes. Solid interior run-blocker. Was considered a rising prospect going into the 2008 season but a foot injury set him back. Has experience as a blocking tight end and special teams FG/PAT protection. Starter for two national championship teams with an incredible work ethic. The Rams considered drafting him. Productive tackle, not affected by the 2007 injury, who makes up for a lack of top athleticism with outstanding technique, especially footwork and positioning.
Negatives: Struggles with leverage and strength. Struggles to move his man off the line. Can get top-heavy in pass protection. Can get too upright and get caught by the bull rush. Gets exploited by speed rushers/linebackers. Gets overextended, leans, reaches, grabs too much. Doesn’t adjust well. Doesn’t use hands or sustain blocks well. Has to learn to keep his feet moving after he makes contact. Lacks burst to get to second level as run blocker.
Fun Fact: Phil was so infatuated with the idea of playing football for the Florida Gators as a high-schooler that he wore Gators gear on recruiting visits to other schools.
RamView: There sure are conflicting scouting reports out there about Phil Trautwein. He’s got excellent agility. He’s not very agile. He can’t handle bull rushers. He’s impervious to bull rushers. Good hands. Bad hands. Not athletic enough. Good athlete. The negatives have to amount to something or he wouldn’t have been passed up 256 different times on draft weekend. But Phil Trautwein’s also a guy who richly deserves a shot at making a pro team. He has the size and athleticism for his position (highly likely RT). Shoot, look at his pro day and you could say he’s more explosive in the lower body than Jason Smith! Plus Trautwein is another Steve Spagnuolo “four pillars” guy. If he doesn’t make the Rams, it won’t be because he didn’t work hard, or didn’t have the smarts, or didn’t know how to win, or was a bad influence in the locker room. It sounds like he’s fared well in minicamp so far. I think he’s got a real shot here. Thumbs up.
Sources: 2009 Pro Football Weekly Draft Preview, NFL.com, CBSSports.com, scout.com, SportsIllustrated.com, Philadelphia Inquirer, Wikipedia, War Room and, yes, the Independent Florida Alligator
photo from Courier-Post (NJ)
No comments:
Post a Comment