Quenton Nelson looks like one of the draft’s more complete prospects.
Quenton Nelson is a tremendous guard prospect from Notre Dame. He is a mauler in the run game. He frequently picks up pancakes when playing lesser competition. He moves very well and is able to pull. He is also strong blocking in space. He does not get softer when blocking on the second level; he gets more aggressive. He also is a good pass blocker. He has a good base and can hold the point-of-attack when blocking. He has the upper body strength to beat defenders up high and has a strong enough base that he doesn’t get pushed low. He has a persistent nature to his game. Even if a defender gets to his side, he is able to keep them in check.
When looking at his weaknesses, there are not many to find. He does sometimes seem to get confused on stunts, but this is something that he can develop a sense of over time. I didn’t see him get beat on any, but it did seem to be a way to throw the left side of Notre Dame’s line off their game.
Nelson is a can’t miss prospect at guard. Teams will be able to plug him in at guard and he will succeed right away. He is a sure first-round pick. The problem he will run into in the draft is that he is guard and teams just don’t draft this position high. I don’t think a team should try and move him to tackle as he is such a good fit at guard. The positive sign for him is that teams are valuing the run game more and that bodes well for guards. I think he can succeed in a gap running scheme, but it might be a waste of his athleticism if he is not put into a zone running scheme.
