2020 NFL Draft: USC OT Austin Jackson a surprise 1st rounder?

The 2020 NFL Draft is about to be pretty loaded at the offensive tackle position, and USC’s Austin Jackson is a sleeper 1st-rounder.

If you’re putting together a mock draft for the 2020 NFL Draft, you’d better not be leaving USC offensive tackle Austin Jackson off of it.

Jackson is a junior out of Phoenix, AZ, who is having a tremendous 2019 season for the Trojans and has seen his 2020 NFL Draft stock soar along with a number of other offensive tackles in the 2020 class.

This class has the potential to be absolutely loaded with guys like Iowa’s Tristan Wirfs, Georgia’s Andrew Thomas, and Alabama’s Jedrick Wills already getting hype as the possible top-ranked tackles in a talented group, and that doesn’t even include Wills’ talented teammate Alex Leatherwood, the starting left tackle for the Crimson Tide.

Jackson has not been a forgotten man, apparently, as some NFL teams hold him in extremely high regard.

According to Dane Brugler of The Athletic, one AFC Scout called Jackson a ‘blue-chip’ prospect and said he’s ‘every bit as good’ as Wirfs or Thomas.

This is not the type of year for puff posts and hyperbole, either. There is legit first-round hype around Jackson, so what kind of a game does he have? What are his strengths and weaknesses?

While every college tackle can clean up their technique and improve core strength, Jackson has absolute vines for arms and plays with a wide base and great feet.

NFL teams are always coveting tackles who can keep up with this wave of top-tier pass rushers, and Jackson’s fluid hip movement and pass protection skills are going to be highly desirable come time for the 2020 NFL Draft.

That is, assuming he declares.

There are no shortage of teams in need of tackle help, and Jackson would certainly not have to wait very long to hear his name called on draft night. He is a big, strong, athletic player who even blocked a kick in his freshman season for the Trojans.

There’s huge upside here and that’s becoming a common theme at the offensive tackle position ahead of the 2020 NFL Draft.