Top 10 offensive tackles in the 2019 NFL Draft

#9. David Edwards, Wisconsin

This 6’7”, 315-pound offensive tackle was an option quarterback in high school and started his collegiate career at tight-end before moving to the O-line heading into his second season in Madison. Edwards has started Wisconsin’s last 31 games at right tackle and was named a first-team All-American by the American Football Coaches Association last season while leading the way for stud running back Jonathan Taylor, who set a Freshman Big Ten rushing record in 2017 and won the Doak Walker award last year. He was also an Academic All-American in each of the last three years.

Edwards has a good jump off the snap, supreme athleticism and lateral agility for the tackle position. He likes to get on the move and run down the line in the zone-game while making sure to seal or cut off the backside on run plays. He has enough power to create movement at the point of attack, by getting his hands thrusting up underneath the pads of his opponent and winning the battle early on with his first step. Edwards might not just drive people off the ball consistently, but he gets that late push and turn to open up space for his back to run through. He pulled out in front on some toss plays for the Badgers and put hands on smaller bodies in space. Edwards excels at chipping the initial down-linemen and quickly working to the second level, where I’ve seen him drive a linebacker 15 yards downfield. Overall I think he looks very athletic in space and makes up a lot of ground on outside zone concepts, where he often times crosses the face of a down-linemen in the gap next to him.

The tall Badger tackle has the oily hips and quick feet to mirror defenders in protection while having the length to win with extended arms. Edwards uses short, choppy steps in his kick-slide which grab a lot of turf and he uses an early punch to control defenders. He is very effective on short sets that way and offers plenty of space for the quarterback to see downfield. There are a multitude of snaps where you think he is beat around the edge because his man gets a step on him, but somehow Edwards’ length saves him as he guides that guy just past the quarterback. Edwards also displays the hip flexibility to turn and ride rushers after early wins. He works well off twists and stunts, making transitions look seamless.

With that being said, Edwards completely whiffs on some blocks when he winds up his arms and ducks his head going into contact with defensive ends, who jump inside quickly. He can get driven backward when he raises his pads and a D-end goes straight through his chest. Ohio State’s Tyquan Lewis did that to him a couple of times in the 2017 conference championship game. Edwards leans over his toes way too far against power-rushers and is susceptible to push-pull moves. He will have to work on widening his kick-slides and being able to move with more speed around the edge, while also being more consistent with his hand timing.

Edwards might not be as technically sound as most offensive linemen coming out of Wisconsin, but he has already made some big strides and has plenty of potential to develop. There are some things that need to be cleaned up about his footwork and hand-positioning in the passing game, plus I think he needs to spend some more time in the weight to trust himself to anchor even if he gets more depth in his kick-slide, but that can be worked on. The best situation for him would be one where he can sit a year behind a veteran tackle and then slide in on the right side.