Thread by @LBerry_40

The debate about which new #Bears draft pick OL will be the best is a fun one. I decided to do a small dive on Braxton Jones and Zach Thomas since they both played a common opponent. I’m no OL expert by any means but here’s what I gathered - a thread 🧵

Let’s start with Braxton Jones. At 6’5 and 310lbs with almost 36” arms Jones has the ideal frame for an NFL LT. In the clips below, he is number 77 and playing LT.

Here, Jones uses his speed and strength to completely overpower his man. Once his hands are engaged, he’s hard to shake and he washes his man 5+ yards down field

As you can see in the video above however, Jones tends to play upright instead of using his legs to drive through the opponent. In this game, Southern Utah barely ran, and when they did, Jones’ tape looked very similar: playing upright but strong hands when engaged.

Another clip of Jones in the run game. Again, his strong hands are on display, not letting the defender cross his face. Once he’s engaged he’s often able to move his defender with mostly upper body strength. Jones needs to play more “under” his pads to leverage stronger opponents

Jones upside however can clearly be seen in pass protection. He almost always takes a great kick step and is prepared to “punch” the defender to counter their move. His 36” arms make these traits desirable as a potential LT.

Here’s another clip of Jones setting up in pass protection. He sets himself up very well with the proper depth on his first two strides and makes the edge rusher take the long way around.

Here’s one last clip showing how quick Jones is off the ball and getting his feet set to block the edge rusher in pass protection.

However, here you can see where Jones struggles, the power rush. For a guy with long arms, he lets opponents get to his chest way too much and because he stands upright, he can be easily driven backwards.

Now let’s take a look at Zachary Thomas vs the same opponent. Thomas is 6’5 and 308lbs with about 34” arms. In the clips below he is number 76 and playing LT but is probably better suited at G in the NFL.

Thomas is an exceptional run blocker. He is third from the left in this clip and you can see how he takes a great first step and fires out low to wash the defender away. He tops the play by finishing the defender off.

Here’s another clip where his technique in the run game is just so much better than the defender. He fires out low and at a good angle to beat the defender across his face. He gets to the second level and again finishes his man.

It’s almost all game with Thomas where he fires out low and takes tremendous angles. Here he blocks his man to the second level and into the linebacker. He plays below his pads and completely out leverages his man.

Lastly in the run game, I want to point out Thomas’ ability as a puller. He’s the lead blocker here on toss and the defender makes his job easy. However, he’s athletic and good on his feet in space which translates well to playing G.

Now… why was Thomas a day 3 pick? Well… his pass blocking isn’t very good.

You can see that he never gets into a good kick step to counter the defender and the edge rusher is easily able to cross his face.

Again, Thomas never gets into a good position to anchor himself. He’s off balance the whole time and the defender is easily able to drive him toward the QB.

Lastly, from the rear angle of this play it’s easy to see that Thomas never gets set to counter a pass rush. He’s legs are churning constantly and in the wrong direction.

In conclusion of this thread, Jones and Thomas seem to have potential at completely opposite things. Jones has the size, athleticism, arm length and naturally nimble feet to be a solid pass protecting LT. If Jones can learn to play below his pads more and use his…

… arm length to his advantage, (which would also help in the run game) I could see him as being a potential Charles Leno type contributor. Look at the difference between Jones’ and Thomas’ pass sets.

Thomas on the other hand, is one of, if not, the best, run blockers in all…

…of college football. He has good size and athleticism and projects to be a guard in the NFL. What he was asked to do in college will also be a seamless fit with the #Bears from a system perspective. However, his pass protection is shaky at best. A move to guard might help…

…minimize himself in that aspect, but he still needs better footwork to be able to block NFL rushers.

Overall, I know Jones is the sexy pick to be the potential best player of this OL draft class for the #Bears, but I like the upside of Thomas more…

… I think Thomas’ ability in a zone scheme will give him an early leg up on the others, especially as the #Bears look to run the ball often. His ability as a finisher will fit in great with guys like Lucas Patrick and Teven Jenkins.

Thomas is my pick of the group of #Bears rookie OL to potentially win a starting job immediately although I still think it’s a long shot.

Hope you enjoyed reading my thread! Comment your thoughts below and if you enjoyed this post, follow me and retweet for more #Bears content!

@MichaelGus57 @Fields_BearsQB1 @ChiBears1985 @JoeGaither6 @PodGuyFuges @AJDesai4 @Timmah_Kutz @79illwill @Sulleymon @BShulkes @jgutie07 @adamrank @Fields_BearsQB1 @BIM_Pod @JordanTSilveira @black_42 @usaydkoshul

@thegeorgetwo @sameer5580 @OneandDundas