2021 NFL Draft: Penei Sewell is the best OT prospect in recent memory
Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell is not only going to be the top prospect at his position in the 2021 NFL Draft, but he is also the best OT prospect in recent memory.
As I have begun to really dig into the 2021 NFL Draft class the past few days, one prospect stands above the rest as a potential generational talent. While quarterbacks Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields are likely to get a bulk of the attention through the 2021 NFL Draft process, Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell stands out as my favorite prospect through the early scouting process.
His film is almost laughably dominant and I am incredibly excited to dig into the rest of his game. Sewell is an impressive athlete at the offensive tackle position who gets off of the ball quickly and moves extremely well in space. He is a dominant second-level blocker who always gets to the second-level defender under control.
Sewell also shows quick feet in pass protection, mirroring opposing edge rushers with absolute ease and showing extremely patient hands. Sewell simply does not over-extend himself as a pass rusher, always letting the defender come to him.
While his athleticism undoubtedly stands out on tape, Sewell’s power is arguably even more impressive. Not only is he incredibly powerful at the point of attack, but Sewell also shows incredible natural grip strength.
He does a great job of consistently getting his hands inside of the defender and latching on. In both the run game and pass protection, Sewell shows a strong initial punch and fantastic hand placement. Simply put, once he is engaged with the defender, it is game over.
While I am sure some flaws will show up the more I dig into Sewell’s game, so far he appears to be an absolutely dominant offensive tackle prospect who has massive upside at the next level. We are just moving on from the 2020 NFL Draft class that was loaded with impressive offensive tackle talent at the top of the draft. However, none of those guys are on the level of Sewell.
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He easily would have been OT1 in the most recent draft class and is the best offensive line prospect in recent memory. We at least have to go back to Quenton Nelson in 2018 to find anything close to a comparable offensive line talent and probably Trent Williams in 2010 to find an offensive tackle prospect on the same level of Sewell.
Simply put, this guy is absolutely elite and he is going to be incredibly fun to follow throughout the entire 2021 NFL Draft process.