News: BTB: Cowboys 2015 Draft Targets: Florida OT Chaz Green

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Because there has been such a high correlation in recent years between the top collegians invited to Valley Ranch for pre-draft visits and who the Cowboys end up drafting, it's important to know as much as possible about these players. As a service to you, BTB offers a series of detailed scouting reports on these players, compiled from the work of top draft analysts. Today, we look at Florida OT Chaz Green

Chaz Green would be better known as an NFL prospect if not for his injury history. After redshirting in 2010, his first year in Gainesville, Chaz Green earned the starting right tackle job the following season and started the Gator's first eight games before an ankle injury put him on the shelf. Still, he conducted himself well enough to earn Freshman All-American honors. As as sophomore in 2012, he started ten games, missing three, and then missed the entire 2013 season after a camp injury prior to the opener. He returned in 2014 and started 11 games, splitting time between left and right tackle.

Green is an athletic, tough, and heady player - so much so that some scouts believe his best position git at the NFL level is center. He's not a deluxe athlete by any means, and must improve his strength and ability in pass protection, but Green is very consistent, playing with the body control, foot quickness and good movement skills. In fact, his quick feet make him a good fit for zone-blocking teams. So will the fact that he offers position versatility, with experience at both the left and right tackle spots.

Want to scout like a boss? Let's start by looking at his measurables:

Height Weight Arms Hands 40yd 10yd Bench Vert Broad 3Cone 20ss SPARQ (%)
6' 5" 314 33⅜" 10⅞" 5.16 1.75 21 29½" 106" 8.00 4.70 102.8 (45.7)​

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These suggest that Green is a below average athlete for an NFL offensive tackle. And here are his numbers in the form of a spider graph, courtesy of the folks at Mockdraftable.com:


Sadly, there are no highlights of Green's work at Florida, You can see his Combine workout, at least...

Let's see what our esteemed panel of scouts has to say about Green and his game


Gary Horton (ESPN.com) 15th-ranked OT; 136th overall:

Pass Protection: Flashes quick kick slide and ability to push speed rushers past quarterback. Strong punch. Jars smaller edge rushers when gets hands on them and delivers kill shot when turns to help inside. Stays in front of assignment for most part. Adequate mirror and balance. Flashes ability to dig in and recover but sets high and gives too much ground to speed to power a little too often. Top-heavy and vulnerable to pull moves. Inconsistent hand placement. Shorter arms are a concern and struggles with speed when footwork isn't sound.

Run Blocking : Quick enough to get into position and big enough to wall off assignment when plays with wide base. Drives legs and flashes ability to move defenders off the ball but plays high and base tends to narrow. Leans and ends up on the ground too much. Inconsistent hand placement. Doesn't extend and steer well enough even when gets hands inside. Inconsistent footwork but has lateral mobility and awareness to succeed in zone heavy scheme. Inconsistent angles but quick to second level and flashes ability to adjust to moving targets.

Awareness: Potential No. 3 swing tackle with experience playing on right and left. Above average locating second level assignments and tracking linebackers on combination blocks. Above average adjusting to line stunts as a run blocker. Good diagnose and reaction time in pass pro. Keeps head up and makes sound pre-snap reads. Picks up most line stunts and blitzes.

Toughness: Gets under defenders' skin with effort. Blocks to the echo of the whistle once locked and rides defenders downfield. Not an overly aggressive instigator and doesn't always play with ideal physicality. Rarely drives assignment into ground and doesn't lean or push off assignment when does.

Intangibles: Voted team captain by teammates in 2014. Above average work ethic and focused on the process of getting better.
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Nolan Nawrocki (NFL Draft 2015 Preview) 20th-ranked OT:

Strengths: Very good size. Good athletic ability. Takes good angles to seal and wall off. Plays hard and competes. Strong football character. Experienced, three-year starter in the Southeastern Conference. Versatile and had played on both edges.

Weaknesses: Soft run blocker. Is not stout. Lets defenders come up and underneath him and cross his face and struggles to anchor. Tends to play too upright. Gives up too much ground n pass protection - can be walked back against power. Raw footwork in his kickslide and vary inconsistent hand placement and overall technique. Average lateral agility for the left side - gave up too much pressure vs. Alabama. Durability has been an issue.

Future: A big, finesse swing tackle prospect that has struggled to stay healthy in college and lacks the ideal core strength for the front lines. Could be very well suited for a backup role in a zone-blocking scheme and has enough talent and desire to develop.

Draft projection: Late draftable pick
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Lance Zierlein (NFL.com) 12th-ranked OT; 126th overall:

Strengths: Plays with good footwork and overall pass-protection technique on his initial pass sets. Hand placement is adequate. Plays with open eyes and desired football intelligence. Has a feel for stunts, twists and blitzes and can pick them up. Good initial quickness to get to tough reach blocks and climbs smoothly to second-level blocks. Played left and right tackle at Florida. Might have the athleticism and functional strength to play all five O-line positions.

Weaknesses: Poor base blocker in the run game. Doesn't get the hip rotation needed after initial engagement and plays with lean over drive, despite some power in his legs. Stops his feet and loses defender against counter moves on pass rushes. Could use more time in weight room for added upper-body strength. Needs to carry hands higher in pass-pro setup. Missing a jarring punch to keep pass rusher from caving the edge. Scouts question functional strength to redirect defenders around edge or on inside moves.

Draft Projection: Round 5 or 6

NFL Comparison: Tanner Hawkinson
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Dane Brugler (NFL Draft Guide) 15th-ranked OT:

Strengths: Wide base in his kickslide with natural movement skills for the position...displays the footwork to set up shop in space, getting to the second level quickly and utilizing proper body position...excellent spatial awareness with a strong understanding f what's going on around him...quick eyes to recognize blitzes, picking up "B gap" pressures and linebackers on combos, anticipating where rushers are coming from - not fooled by much...patient and disciplined in his stance, not jumping offsides when rushers do..large, strong hands to meet defenders with a jolt...versatle experience, starting at both left and right tackle over his career...voted a senior captain...tough-minded and has battled back from multiple injuries, working hard off the field to develop the mental part of the game - highly thought of by the coaching staff.

Weaknesses: Doesn't play with overwhelming strength in the run game, lacking mauling qualities...room to add bulk and needs to improve his functional power to control blocks once engaged...bad habits as a run blocker, dropping his head and losing sight of his target...tends to stop his feet at the point of attack and needs to improve his grip timing to avoid holding calls..adequate length for the position, but doesn't consistently use his reach effectively...struggles to re-anchor, allowing his base to narrow against secondary moves...not a passive player, but doesn't play mean either...strong durability concerns, missing extended playing time over his career - multiple ankle injuries, including a sprain (Oct. 2011) that forced him to miss four games as a redshirt freshman and another sprain (Nov. 2014) as a senior; missed all of 2013 due to a torn labrum that required surgery (Aug. 2013).
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Most of our scouts have Green rated as the twelfth to the fifteenth best offensive tackle in this years draft (the outlier, Nawrocki, has him as the 20th best). In terms of round, I've seen him as high as the fourth (Zierlein has him 126th overall) and as low as the seventh round. Most reports I've seen see Green as a fifth- or sixth-rounder. I'm going to put him in the sixth round on my "little board," acknowledging that the Cowboys will either have to trade for a sixth rounder or pick Green in round five to secure his services.

If the Cowboys were to select him in either of those rounds, I'd be very pleased. His basic description - position versatility; a good fit as a backup in a ZBS scheme - is precisely what the Cowboys need from any offensive lineman they draft this year. As several of the scouts above attest, Green is probably better than his career or reports indicate, and he's a smart, mature, professional in his approach. That checks off all the boxes on Rabble's third-day OL checklist...

Next up: UCLA LB Eric Kendricks

@rabblerousr @BloggingTheBoys​

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