With the 23rd pick in the 2017 draft the Giants take OT/OG Dion Dawkins

[MightyGiants]

This pick will upset the draft purest who will argue the Giants reached in the draft to take him ala Justin Pugh.   They will say he is too short to play tackle at 6' 3 7/8"   they will say a tackle needs to be at least 6' 5"   They will ignore his snake like 35" arms or his great footwork and generally good form and punch.  They will say Temple is low-level competition

Those defending him will point to the fact that he plays offensive line the way it's supposed to be played so he will be on the field sooner rather than later.  They will say he is very versatile being able to play 4 out of 5 of the offensive line position.   They will point to scouts saying he is the closest thing to a sure thing in the draft offensive line class with no serious dings. 

I will point to what Greg Gabriel (former Giants and Bears scout and head of Bears scouting and my teacher) said about him in his pre-Combine draft guide (Dawkins did very well in the combine and will only push his draft stock higher)

Strong Points:  Good size and strength.  Plays with a nasty streak and likes to be physical.  Has some snap in his hips and on contact.  Able to get movement with run blocks.  Shows he can get to the second level. Gas a strong punch is pass protection.  Has good lateral agility, can mirror opponent and anchor.

Weak Points:  Can get lazy with his technique and make some mental mistakes (a number of false starts against Penn State).  Will drop his hands at times.  Has good lateral agility but doesn't always play with it.

The way we see it:  Dawkins has the talent to become a winning left tackle in the NFL.  Has some mental and technique errors but all are correctable with coaching and alertness.  He is a big strong guy with good athleticism, strength and power.  Has a lot of upside, just has to get rid of the mental mistakes and play to his ability.  Is a classic example of a young man who needs to land with the right coaching staff.  How he played at the Senior Bowl (note:  he played well and was praised) and how he interviews will be important.  A solid second-round pick if everything checks out. 


Now I scouted him and I see a guy with quick enough feet and ability to play LT.   I can see some saying he is second round talent, but I don't see him lasting to the Giants pick in the second round.  Heck, I doubt in this O-line starved league he makes it out of round one.    I see him as the one offensive tackle without a question mark or issue as the other top OTs all seem to have. 

The Giants take him in round one and put him in right away at either LT, RT or RG.  A starter from day one and a guy that instantly upgrades the Giants offensive line.  Some will be bitter and say over drafted but this will fill a HUGE need for the Giants and go a long way toward fixing the Giants broken offense.   

Besides, the only OTs I see on par with Dawkins are Ramczyk and Bolles and I see both of them gone when the Giants draft 23 an the Giants need a solid OT prospect who can start this season and Dawkins is the only other starter as a rookie OT I see in this draft class.

[Bob In PA]

Rich: Nice report; the ideal move would be trade down a few spots then take him, but we both know that's not likely to happen.

Nevertheless, the Giants should not pass up Christian McCaffrey if he is there at pick 23. 

I really don't care who else is available.

Passing on McCaffrey IMO would be equivalent to the teams who passed on Zeke Elliott last year.

Bob

[jerseyguy]

Rich: Nice report; the ideal move would be trade down a few spots then take him, but we both know that's not likely to happen.

Nevertheless, the Giants should not pass up Christian McCaffrey if he is there at pick 23. 

I really don't care who else is available.

Passing on McCaffrey IMO would be equivalent to the teams who passed on Zeke Elliott last year.

Bob

Bob I have never been someone who went along with the BPA theory since it might allow you to pass on someone you need to take someone you don't need, if that makes sense..For this reason I think it would be dumb to pass on a talent like McCaffrey if he's there when we pick..

[Jolly Blue Giant]

I too am on board with McCaffrey, but expect the unexpected from the Giants. I was a lone prognosticator last year when I actually predicted that we would go with Apple in the first....and I did so just because the Giants always do what isn't expected. I took a lot of heat and ridicule for making my prediction known.

With that said, I would be happy if the Giants took Dawkins as I have a lot of faith in Reese's picks in the first couple of rounds. He seems to be zeroed in on rounds 1 and 2...as good as anyone in the league. It's afterwards that he scares me even though I think he hit on all rounds last year.

The one guy who would play on the O-line that I have my eye on is Pat Elflein. He might fall through the cracks because he's listed as the top center on most analysts' boards rather than a guard, even though he is better suited as a guard and backup center. Unless a team is desperate for a center, he's likely to fall to the 2nd round. I think he'd be a very safe pick with little risk of him washing out. He wouldn't become an OT though, but with a draft filled with great players in all defensive positions and heavy in TE's and RB's, the pickins is slight in the offensive line area and the top rated seem to come with a significant amount of risk.

Anyway, here's his write up on NFL.com:


Pat Elflein (6'3", 303 lbs, 33 1/4" arms, 9 3/4" hands)

Overview

Elflein (pronounced ELF-line) naturally wanted to be a Buckeye after growing up in Pickerington, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus. The all-state pick (and four-year wrestler) was certainly coveted by Ohio State, as well. He didn't get on the field much in his first two years (redshirted in 2012, reserve with one start in 2013), but then met his promise starting as a sophomore. Elflein earned the first of his three first-team All-Big Ten seasons that year, starting three times at left guard and 12 on the right side. In 2015, he received second-team Associated Press All-American status while dominating at right guard in every game. The team needed him to move to center as a senior, and his play resulted in first-team All-American recognition from various media outlets.

Analysis

Strengths Thick lower body. Team captain renown for his outrageous work ethic. Strong leadership characteristics both verbally and by example. Looks for work when uncovered. Smartly alters assignment based on flow of the defense. Always under control in his movements. Patient pull blocker who stalks his target rather than rushing the block. Plus play strength and wrestling background gives him a leg up in hand-to-hand combat against big dogs inside. Quick to roll hips into block after first contact. Drives feet through contact and uses strong hands to stick like glue to the block. Reliable and effective in down blocks. Finisher looking to make a statement at the end of the play. Has mental part down. Recognizes twisting defensive tackles and greets them with aggressiveness. Hand placement is excellent. Strikes with upward blows squarely into the strike zone as run blocker. Pass-pro punch is compact with some heat behind it. Can anchor against bull rush. Winning history on high-caliber team. Versatile; proficient and successful at both center and guard.


Weaknesses

Not a ballerina with his feet. Footwork can be a little labored at times for the center position. Marginal twitch with short-area reaction time that is just average. A bit of a straight-line player in space. Struggles to come off initial block and body up against delayed, A-gap blitzers. Understands leverage but hip stiffness causes pad level to rise as play rolls along. Anticipates early bull rush and will drop an early anchor. Feet become heavy and limited, allowing athletic opponents to work around his edge and into backfield. Not always first with his hands. Gives away his chest to interior defenders with good hand quickness.

Sources Tell Us "You are getting a guy who will be great for your locker room and will get the rest of the offensive line on board. I think he could have the same fast impact on a team's running game that Zach Martin had in Dallas. Safe draft pick to me." -- NFC West scout

NFL Comparison Travis Frederick

Bottom Line

Elflein is a smart, tireless worker with a winning background and experience at all three interior offensive line spots. While his feet are just average, his core strength and wrestling background could make him a favorite of teams looking for more strength at the center position. Elflein will have occasional issues in pass protection, but his strength as a run blocker and ability to play with excellent hands and plus body control should make him one of the first interior linemen to come off the draft board.

[MightyGiants]

Guys,

I can understand and appreciate the assertion that McCaffrey would be a better player.  However, I subscribe to the school of thought that you need to build your line before you add skill players (with the exception of franchise QB).   The team can realistically get a starting caliber RG in round 2 and maybe three, they are not going to find any starting caliber OTs after they pick at 23.   

Drafting McCaffrey would be too similar to drafting David Wilson to run behind a poor line.  Zeke looked like such a great pick for the Cowboys because they had a great line to block for him.

[Bob In PA]

Bottom Line

Elflein is a smart, tireless worker with a winning background and experience at all three interior offensive line spots. While his feet are just average, his core strength and wrestling background could make him a favorite of teams looking for more strength at the center position. Elflein will have occasional issues in pass protection, but his strength as a run blocker and ability to play with excellent hands and plus body control should make him one of the first interior linemen to come off the draft board.

Jolly:  Great post.  You make an outstanding case for Elflein.  Now I'm going to feel bad if the Giants take McCaffrey. LOL

Before I got to your final paragraph (reproduced above), I did note your earlier remark about his wrestling experience and was already on-board. 

Wrestling experience is an outstanding quality to possess for good interior offensive line play, because the officials now uniformly allow holding by interior linemen.

Bob

[MightyGiants]

An important consideration of scouting is scheme fit.   The report on  Elflein is very good and I think he's a good gem (nice find JBG).  However, based on the scouting report, he is a power blocking C/G rather than a zone scheme.  The Giants use a stretch zone with lots of pulling by the guards and center.  The negatives about his lack of foot speed would be a killer in that system. 

[Ed Vette]

Unfortunately, the position the Giants are in is that they need O-Line help in my my opinion. If they agree and the rest of the teams in the draft believe so too then they tipped their hand. The first round pick really needs to be BPA. Not BPA at two positions. Two because if Hankins walks they need two. Before Newhouse was lost the #1 was DT. Now, it looks like a tie to me. 

[Bob In PA]

Unfortunately, the position the Giants are in is that they need O-Line help in my my opinion. If they agree and the rest of the teams in the draft believe so too then they tipped their hand. The first round pick really needs to be BPA. Not BPA at two positions. Two because if Hankins walks they need two. Before Newhouse was lost the #1 was DT. Now, it looks like a tie to me. 

Ed: Just guessing (from the circumstantial evidence) but I now believe the Giants intend to "compete" strongly to retain Big Hank.

If they felt he was a goner (due to other teams overpaying) they probably would have signed at least one free-agent OL they lost (to the Raiders/Broncos) or allowed to walk (Newhouse).

Bob

[Ed Vette]

Ed: Just guessing (from the circumstantial evidence) but I now believe the Giants intend to "compete" strongly to retain Big Hank.

If they felt he was a goner (due to other teams overpaying) they probably would have signed at least one free-agent OL they lost (to the Raiders/Broncos) or allowed to walk (Newhouse).

Bob

That makes sense to me.

[MightyGiants]

Some more comments on Dawkins

An AFC West scout believes Temple OL Dion Dawkins can play guard or tackle in the NFL.
"I don't know if I see him as a guard or a tackle yet, but I think he can play both," he said. "I like him because I think he could upgrade our pass protection inside if we did bump him to guard, but he's athletic enough to play right tackle, too." NFL.com's Lance Zierlein compares Dawkins to Joe Barksdale. "Shows some good initial quickness and a smooth kick-slide out of his stance, but might be better in short areas as a guard rather than in open space as a tackle," Zierlein wrote. "He's athletic enough to operate in space, but power appears to be his calling card." The analyst thinks Dawkins, a three-year starter, could be an early NFL starter. Mar 8 - 5:08 PM
Source: NFL.com

Dion Dawkins - T - Owls
NFL.com's Chad Reuter believes Temple OL Dion Dawkins is a first-round talent.
Reuter made the statement after re-watching the Senior Bowl, where Dawkins practiced at both tackle and guard. Many project Dawkins to the inside, displaying athleticism and power as a guard. Forrest Lamp and Dan Feeney are other interior prospects drawing first round love.
Source: Chad Reuter on Twitter Feb 8 - 10:46 AM


Dion Dawkins - T - Owls
Temple senior T Dion Dawkins accepted an invitation to the Resse's Senior Bowl.
Per ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr., Dawkins is a "dominant run blocker from his left tackle spot." The longtime Worldwide Leader scouting mouthpiece believes the 6-foot-5, 315-pounder could rise as high as the first round depending on how he tests out athletically come February's NFL Scouting Combine. Draft insider Tony Pauline was particularly impressed with his work in a September loss to Penn State, noting that Dawkins "looked terrific in pass protection." Pauline sees him as a Day 2 selection.
Source: Senior Bowl Wed, Dec 21, 2016 05:24:00 PM


Dion Dawkins - T - Owls
ESPN's Mel Kiper says Temple senior T Dion Dawkins is now his new No. 1 senior offensive tackle and further states that the prospect "could make my new Big Board in a couple weeks."
"He's a dominant run blocker from his left tackle spot, which is a rare sight these days," Kiper wrote. "You don't see many throwback run blockers who can explode at the snap and lock onto defenders in the current NFL." Dawkins did so in Temple's win at UCF on Saturday. "Dawkins (6-foot-5, 315 pounds) showed good leg drive and footwork and the ability to get to the second level with ease," Kiper wrote. "He uses his hands well to engage defenders and drive them off the ball. I don't see an issue with him sticking at left tackle in the NFL, and I think he has a chance to be a first-round pick depending on how he works out at the combine.
Source: ESPN Thu, Oct 20, 2016 07:15:00 PM


Dion Dawkins - T - Owls
In Saturday's loss to Penn State, Temple senior T Dion Dawkins "displayed a lot of athleticism, footwork and next level skill," writes TFY Draft Insider's Tony Pauline.
"He looked terrific in pass protection, easily sliding off the edge to shut down pass rushers," Pauline wrote. "While Dawkins needs to improve his run blocking strength he looked like the second day pick most scouts stamped him to be." The analyst has long been high on Dawkins.
Source: TFY Draft Insider Thu, Sep 22, 2016 04:34:00 PM


Dion Dawkins - T - Owls
Temple junior T Dion Dawkins is "a terrific pass protector with a nice degree of athleticism and foot quickness," notes TFY Draft Insider's Tony Pauline.
Pauline grades the third-year Dawkins as a Rd. 4 prospect. That's the highest preseason grade that he gave to any American Athletic Conference prospect. "My grade is based as much on Dawkins potential as his present playing skill," Pauline wrote.
Source: TFY Draft Insider Sun, Jun 28, 2015 04:47:00 PM

http://www.rotoworld.com/recent/cfb/134490/dion-dawkins

[Jolly Blue Giant]

I would love to have Dawkins on the Giants' team. I have to believe that the front office and scouts are doing their due diligence on him and have him on their board somewhere.

This is going to be an interesting draft this year as so many quality players are going to sift through the cracks. There will be damn good players on the board on day 3 as well. And I have to believe the Giants are looking at offensive players in the first half of the draft. Dawkins could very well end up in blue.

[MightyGiants]

I would love to have Dawkins on the Giants' team. I have to believe that the front office and scouts are doing their due diligence on him and have him on their board somewhere.

This is going to be an interesting draft this year as so many quality players are going to sift through the cracks. There will be damn good players on the board on day 3 as well. And I have to believe the Giants are looking at offensive players in the first half of the draft. Dawkins could very well end up in blue.

JBG,

I have a feeling the Giants (along with most of the teams in the league) have Dawkins ranked higher than the draftnik community.    There are two types of draftniks out there.  Those that do their own scouting and those that glean information from NFL scouting staffs.   In this case coming from Temple I would expect that those doing their own scouting are overwhelmed and haven't given him their fullest consideration.  Plus, as I mentioned earlier, some will see the 6' 5" -6' 4" will automatically put him at guard and not consider his long arms and great wingspan. 

Those that glean their information from NFL offices I suspect will be hearing nothing.  I think scouts are going to want to stay quiet about Dawkins and they hope he will fall into their laps in the second round.

However, if I am right and Dawkins can play LT....  how many LT prospects make it out of the first round of the draft?   

[4thand17]

I'm high on Dawkins too, as well as Moton. 

Never figured out the "overdrafted" thing.  The rap on Pugh was that he should have gone in the late 20's instead of 19?. Well we didn't have a pick in the late 20's. We picked him at 19 or waited to see if he would be around at 51 - which even the critics didn't think would happen.  So, if you liked him, the choice was 19 or nothing.

Same with Dawkins this year.  If you don't think he'll be around at 55 you take a potential left tackle at 23.

[MightyGiants]

I'm high on Dawkins too, as well as Moton. 

Never figured out the "overdrafted" thing.  The rap on Pugh was that he should have gone in the late 20's instead of 19?. Well we didn't have a pick in the late 20's. We picked him at 19 or waited to see if he would be around at 51 - which even the critics didn't think would happen.  So, if you liked him, the choice was 19 or nothing.

Same with Dawkins this year.  If you don't think he'll be around at 55 you take a potential left tackle at 23.

Exactly!

Some will argue you trade down.  Former front office guy and coach Pat Kirwan is very fond of reminding fans that you trade down when you have multiple targets and you don't if you are targeting one player.  It takes only one team that feels like you do, for the trade down to turn into a disaster

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