Senior Bowl: Forrest Lamp quickly solidifying first round status
Western Kentucky offensive lineman Forrest Lamp had a phenomenal college career, and the nation is being exposed to him at this year’s Reese’s Senior Bowl…
The NFL Draft season just never seems to be ‘officially’ underway until Senior Bowl week. All 32 teams are congregating in Mobile, Alabama this week to watch 2017 NFL Draft prospects compete and show off their skills. One prospect expected to be a big name to watch is Western Kentucky’s Forrest Lamp, who is a projected first rounder by most.
Lamp was incredible at Western Kentucky, especially over the last two seasons. Perhaps his best work came on the biggest stage as he was phenomenal in shutting down a variety of Alabama Crimson Tide pass rushers.
On Tuesday at Senior Bowl practice, it was much of the same…
OL-DL 1-on-1s underway at South practice. @WKUFootball Forrest Lamp and @AlabamaFTBL Dalvin Tomlinson pic.twitter.com/11IgFZTSrB
— Reese's Senior Bowl (@seniorbowl) January 24, 2017
Lamp picked up where he left off against Alabama guys, but more importantly, has opened the eyes of the entire NFL community to the type of skills he has. Though he played left tackle in college, a switch to guard is rumored to be in his future as he didn’t have great arm length compared to the NFL’s ideal metrics.
To me, that’s not a big deal. Whether you play him at guard or tackle, Lamp is going to excel. He is so technically sound, and is capable of being dominant as a run blocker and in pass protection. One of the most respected in the business, Mike Mayock, had this to say about him:
NFL guru @MikeMayock loves Lamp.
— WKU Football (@WKUFootball) January 24, 2017
"He may be my favorite guy in this draft early on."https://t.co/OqTwUhKu05
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That’s pretty high praise in a great overall class, especially one that doesn’t really look all that good on the offensive line. Lamp has emerged as a favorite prospect of mine as well, showing a level of consistently high play that you want in a potential first round pick. Some liken his switch to guard in the pros to that of Zack Martin, who is an All-Pro caliber guard with the Cowboys.
Switching positions isn’t probably as easy for offensive linemen as we sometimes make it sound, but a player like Lamp would certainly be able to make the transition and play well in a different role than he had in college.
I love watching this kid play, and watching him all week at Senior Bowl practices is going to be an absolute treat.