Mar 12, 2011
Position: OT Bench Reps: 33
Height/Weight: 6’5″ 358 NFL Comparison: Leonard Davis
10 Yard Split: 1.84 Projected Round: 2-3
My Take: Marcus Cannon has to be one of my favorite players in the draft. The first thing you’ll notice about him is that he’s enormous, but there’s so much more to him than that. He is someone who has played both tackle spots and has excelled at both, and many scouts project him as a guard at the next level. All the film I’ve seen on him, though, shows me no reason he won’t be a dominant RT.
First thing’s first, if Cannon was able to play left tackle as well as he did this past season on a team as good as TCU, it’s clear to me that although his spot may be as the right bookend in the pros, he certainly has the necessary skills to excel there. He was first team All-MWC each of the past seasons, at right tackle as a junior and left tackle as a senior. In his junior season, he did not allow a sack the whole year. I know most people don’t think of offensive lineman and production in the same breath, but to me that is production.
The biggest knock on him is his ability to handle the speed rush off the edge. Playing right tackle, that shouldn’t be a huge concern since most of the left ends in the league are more power rushers than speed rushers. Look at his junior year, he obviously holds up well against left ends. He does tend to lunge a little bit, but that can be corrected through coaching. He also put on 50 pounds in his time at TCU, so he could probably cut 10-20 pounds if he wanted to improve his quickness and still be left with more than enough bulk.
A good measuring stick for him was this year’s Rose Bowl. The clip above has most of the game, though it’s supposed to be a J.J. Watt video. Sorry I couldn’t do any better, there’s just no good videos of him to post. But watch it and you can see why Cannon is not quite considered a first round pick, but is still very highly thought of. In the game he went up against J.J. Watt, someone who will surely hear his name called on the first day of the draft and the type of player who Cannon can expect to face in the pros. For the most part, Cannon held his own. Watt did beat him here and there, but you have to expect that from a first round pick. He only ended up with three tackles and a pass deflection, chalk that up as a win for Cannon. Cannon was also had a very impressive down block, washing out the DT on Andy Dalton’s TD run. Overall, the game was a very good showing for Cannon.
What’s most impressive to me, though, is how good Cannon is in the running game. Obviously at that size he can get a good push when locked up on a man, but he does surprisingly well getting to the second level. For whatever reason he gets to the linebackers better than Rodney Hudson, who is over 50 pounds lighter. This is a more valuable skill on the right side. Everything I’ve said thus far suggests to me he has all the makings of a great right tackle.
Cannon actually made Bruce Feldman’s list of top ten workout warriors in 2009 (http://sports.espn.go.com). He was also on the TCU track team as an accomplished shot putter, which suggests he has exceptional core strength. It’s clear that Cannon is a well-rounded athlete, not just a sluggish mass.
I think Cannon deserves to be taken sometime by the middle of the second round. There’s a chance that he may lack just enough pass blocking to force him inside, but if that’s the case then he should have no problems whatsoever playing right guard, which also really plays to his strengths. Think of it as a similar move to the one made by Cowboys guard Leonard Davis, who didn’t pan out at tackle as a Cardinal but has ended up as a three time Pro Bowler at guard. I guess what I’m trying to say is that he should be a starter somewhere, it’s just a matter of where on the line is that spot. Any team who has more than one hole on their line should be very intrigued by his versatility and would be smart to take him and shore up one of those spots.
-Tom
Additional Game Film/Highlights:
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