Lehigh LT Will Rackley, The Draft Study
What They’re Sayin
A member of their “All-Underrated Team” as a guard:
"Will Rackley is picking up steam heading into the 2011 NFL Draft. He drew quite the crowd of scouts at his pro-day and did not disappoint during the workout. He has three ideal characteristics of a successful interior lineman; a mean streak, strong work ethic, and ideal strength. Rackley could hear his name called a lot earlier than most expect."
"Lehigh’s Rackley is one of the most attractive small-school prospects in this draft class, having been named a three-time All-Patriot League selection. Rackley was a captain at Lehigh, where he majored in project design. The first-team FCS All-American has a brother who works as a music producer for the rapper T.I., and both parents are singers…..Evidence of his improved strength came at the NFL combine, where he tied for ninth among offensive linemen with 29 reps in the bench press. His combine was cut short by a left hip flexor injury that prevented him from participating in the 40-yard dash, but he had already made a name for himself with a strong performance in the East-West Shrine Game."
Sporting News(aol)
positive: Has good size and strong hands. Is an above-average athlete with solid initial quickness from his stance. Maintains excellent hand placement inside the frame of the defender with a vice grip to control his man. Shows ability to power slide with good balance in pass protection. Is durable.
negative: Has not faced much elite competition. Is content to just gain position and lock on, rather than use his functional strength to gain movement off the line of scrimmage as a run blocker. Struggles to adjust and sustain blocks on short pulls and on the second level. Lacks the lateral recovery ability to play on the edge in pass protect.
positive: Reasonably long arms… Can get good arm extensions but tends to pump them too much… Reasonably quick hands… Solid pass blocker… Reasonably quick… Very solid knee bend… Good short area lateral movement and slide… Redirects reasonably well… Stays square and keeps his legs moving through the block… Wide base and solid anchor… Nice pop in his punch but winds up a little… Very solid run blocker… Plays with solid leverage
negative: Inconsistent knee bend, gets a little too upright… Not very explosive, lacks any real suddenness to his game… Doesn’t fire out into his blocks… Not real quick getting in front of stunts and delayed blitzes… While he isn’t necessarily bad in space he does look a little stiff… Doesn’t breakdown especially well on the move.
Now, on to the film room