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Joe Haeg: North Dakota St. 2016 NFL Draft scouting report

By Sayre Bedinger

Jan 9, 2016; Frisco, TX, USA; North Dakota State Bison quarterback Carson Wentz (11) throws a pass in the first quarter against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks in the FCS Championship college football game at Toyota Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 9, 2016; Frisco, TX, USA; North Dakota State Bison quarterback Carson Wentz (11) throws a pass in the first quarter against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks in the FCS Championship college football game at Toyota Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports /
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2016 NFL Draft scouting report for North Dakota State offensive tackle Joe Haeg, one of the top FCS prospects in the country and a consensus All-American…

North Dakota State has one of the most dominant football programs in the storied history of college football, and the NFL scouts are starting to take notice. Left tackle Joe Haeg, a consensus All-American and Senior Bowl participant, is going to be competing for a starting job in the NFL as soon as 2016 if he can prove he can hold up against the power and strength of NFL pass rushers.

Let’s take a closer look at this excellent young prospect…

At A Glance

Name: Joe Haeg

Position: Left Tackle

Ht: 6-5

Wt: 293

Class: Senior

Age: 22

Career Highlights

Senior Bowl participant

1st Team FCS All-American

60 games played

Prospect Video

Translatable NFL Traits

Technician

After 60 games in college, with all the practices, all the big game situations…You might get pretty good at what you do, regardless of the level of competition.

Haeg knows his assignments. He knows his teammates’ assignments. He knows exactly where to be, when to be there, and he punishes people when he arrives at his spot. Gets out of his stance really well, plays with a great base, and does a great job of keeping his butt down, feet moving, and doesn’t get caught on his heels.

He controls the defensive lineman, not the other way around.

Athleticism

Lightly recruited out of high school because he was 235 pounds as a senior, Haeg obviously has great feet and moves really well for a tackle. You look at his athleticism in terms of his ability to get a block initially, move the defender out of the way and get to the second level in the running game, but also his ability to mirror pass rushers…

It’s impressive to watch how he notices tendencies in rushers and adjusts accordingly so he can use his athletic ability to win matchups.

Area for concern

Will he be able to handle the strength of NFL rushers? He’s added the required weight to play the offensive tackle position, but he could probably stand to add a little bit more strength and give NFL scouts and coaches a bit more peace of mind in that regard.

He did a great job of dominating at the FCS level, but everyone is going to be watching him closely at the Senior Bowl to see how he deals with even FBS athletes, much less dominant rushers in the NFL to be a starting left tackle in the league.

Overall Impressions

Ideally, you will get at least a year to work with this kid before you throw him into a starting lineup. He has skills that translate to the NFL right away, and he certainly wouldn’t be a sieve in my opinion, but the adjustments that he needs to make at the next level are such that a year to develop and possibly play in some heavy sets on a team that doesn’t need him immediately would be ideal.

I think he’s a solid top 100 player if you need a left tackle to develop. He has starter qualities.

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