Eagles draft preview: Luke Joeckel could be O-line stalwart

Luke Joeckel has become the consensus No. 1 draft pick by default.

In a year in which there is as much uncertainty as ever about who will go where, and when even Chip Kelly is saying there isn't a "can't-miss" prospect, many analysts have begrudgingly slotted the Texas A&M tackle to the Kansas City Chiefs with the top overall selection.

Does that mean Joeckel won't develop into a Pro Bowl-caliber talent like many of the recent tackles taken among the first five picks? Hardly. But it could indicate that the Eagles have almost as good a shot at getting Joeckel as they would No. 1a tackle Eric Fisher of Central Michigan, or any other top-rated prospect.

There have been signs that Andy Reid will make Joeckel his first selection as Chiefs coach. But if he prefers Fisher or decides to pick a defensive player such as Oregon outside linebacker Dion Jordan or Utah defensive tackle Star Lotulelei, Joeckel could fall into Kelly's lap.

Joeckel, for his part, has said that he wants to be the top pick, but that it isn't a priority.

"I am definitely striving to be the No. 1 pick, going through this entire process and playing this season and all that kind of stuff," Joeckel said in February during the combine. "But my dream is to just play in the NFL."

The idea that the 21-year-old could go first picked up steam in the middle of last season when Texas A&M held its own playing in the Southeastern Conference for the first time. Joeckel helped keep Aggies quarterback Johnny Manziel mostly off his back in back-to-back victories over Mississippi State and Alabama.

A few weeks earlier, Joeckel had kept Louisiana State defensive end Barkevious Mingo, also slated to go in the first round, in check. ESPN's Jon Gruden, during a recently televised segment in which he watched film with Joeckel, isolated one play during that game when LSU blitzed and Joeckel knew that Mingo would take an inside route.

"That gets my heartbeat pumping," the typically overstated Gruden said.

Still, many see the athletically gifted Joeckel as the most technically sound blocker in the draft. He also isn't afraid to mix it up in the trenches.

"In fourth grade, we started playing tackle football," Joeckel told Gruden, "and the first thing my dad ever taught me - he was my coach - he said: 'You can be the nicest guy you want to be off the field. But when you step on that field, you've got to be the nastiest [expletive] out there.' "

Joeckel comes from a family of football players. His father, David, was an offensive lineman at Texas Tech. His grandfather, Reece Washington, played tight end, also at Texas Tech.

His fraternal twin, Matt, is a backup quarterback at Texas A&M. Luke played quarterback in junior high school, but he kept growing and was moved to the line. He now stands 6-foot-6, 306 pounds - 2 inches taller and 70 pounds heavier than his brother.

"The offensive line is what I was born to play," Luke Joeckel said. "I loved the physical aspect of it. You finish every play with a one-on-one block. There are not many other positions on the field like that."

Over the last 25 years, tackles selected in the top five of the draft have become Pro Bowl players more often than any other position group. Since 2008, four of the eight tackles chosen in the top 10 have earned Pro Bowl honors. Seven have become solid starters.

"I think it's hard to find really big men who can move, so when you get those guys, they're very clear," Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said. "It's not like you're projecting as much. . . . When you're in the college game, and you're an offensive lineman, you're doing all the same things you're going to have to do in the NFL game."

The Eagles have two stalwarts at tackle in Jason Peters and Todd Herremans. Both, however, are coming off injuries. Both will be older than 30 this season. If the Eagles took a tackle at No. 4 - Joeckel, Fisher, or Oklahoma's Lane Johnson - they could move Herremans from right tackle back to guard and have Peters' eventual replacement.

The Jaguars and Raiders, the teams that pick between Kansas City and the Eagles, could take Joeckel if the Chiefs pass. There's a minority opinion that has Joeckel dropping out of the top spot, but not past the Eagles.

That is, unless the Eagles, given Joeckel's stock, put the No. 4 pick up for auction.

Here are the top-rated tackles in the NFL draft and some others the Eagles could select in the later rounds:

                                           Projected

Player, college                     Ht.      Wt.   round

Luke Joeckel, Texas A&M          6-6    306       1

Eric Fisher, Central Michigan       6-7    306       1

Lane Johnson, Oklahoma          6-6    303      1

D.J. Fluker, Alabama                6-5    339       1

Menelik Watson, Florida St.          6-5    310       1-2

Justin Pugh, Syracuse             6-4    307       1-2

Terron Armstead, Ark.-Pine Bluff    6-5    306       2

Kyle Long, Oregon                6-6    313       2

Others

                                           Projected

Player, college                      Ht.      Wt.    round

David Bakhtiari, Colorado          6-4    299       3

David Quessenberry, San Jose St.    6-5    302       4

Reid Fragel, Ohio State            6-8    308       5-6

Dallas Thomas, Tennessee          6-5    300       5-6

- Jeff McLane
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Physical numbers

Height          Weight          Arm length      Hands

6-foot-6          306 lbs.          341/4 in.       101/8 in.

Combine results

40-yard dash: 5.30 seconds      Bench press: 27 reps

Vertical jump: 281/2 inches       Broad jump: 106 inches

3-cone drill: 7.40 seconds       20-yard shuttle: 4.68                                                    seconds

Skinny

Joeckel is your prototypical left tackle. He has ideal size, arm length, and athleticism to handle edge rushers. He is fluid and can move laterally to mirror defenders, and is one of the more technically sound blockers in the draft. He is quick to the second level in the run game and can block in space. Scouts see Joeckel as best suited to work in offenses that frequently use zone-blocking schemes. He is not overly powerful. Joeckel finished among the pack of offensive linemen in the bench press at the combine.

- Jeff McLane
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