Chris Paul NFL Draft 2022: Scouting Report for Tulsa IOL

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HEIGHT: 6’4″

WEIGHT: 324

POSITIVES

— Solid contact balance and core strength to strain and steer defenders once latched inside.

— Does a nice job keeping his head out of blocks and defenders at his fingertips in the run game on angle-drive blocks, creating leverage and sustaining at a high level.

— Shows some craftiness with his hands and works under defenders who utilize the long-arm as rushers and in the run game, using an effective Hamilton technique to take away leverage.

— Is at his best in pass protection on jump sets when he’s the aggressor and can get his hands on rushers early.

— Stays light on his hands to reset and refit when his hands get knocked off of blocks.

NEGATIVES

— High cut frame and below-average lateral quickness that results in middling ability to redirect to cut-off defenders crossing his face.

— Plays with a soft edge at tackle with limited range to protect the corner against most speed-rushers attacking from wide rush angles.

— Has a habit of oversetting and opening his hips early when rushers use stutters and hesitations to set up their moves, opening the door for quick wins inside.

— Laborious movement up to the second level off of combo blocks. Vulnerable to quick-trigger backers scraping and getting around him.

2021 STATISTICS

– 10 starts at right tackle.

NOTES

— Former 2-star offensive tackle prospect out of Jersey Village High School in Houston, Texas.

— Team captain and president of his high school class in 2016.

— Graduated with his bachelor’s degree in computer information systems in 2021 and is working on his MBA.

— Has two brothers who are both playing football; one at Northeastern State and another at Houston.

— 38 career starts; 18 at right tackle, 12 at left guard, eight at right guard and saw time at left tackle.

Got rolled up on against Tulane in 2021 on play three, causing him to miss the rest of the season (three total games).

— Invited and accepted an invite to the 2022 Senior Bowl.

OVERALL

Paul is a four-year starter with 38 career starts spread across right tackle (18), left guard (12) and right guard (8), including playing time at left tackle. Paul has played in the same system for the entirety of his career in head coach Philip Montgomery’s spread, multiple run scheme. He has a high cut frame with good arm length, a broad waist and chest.

Paul is an adequate pass-protector at tackle who excels setting aggressively on rushers to initiate first meaningful contact so he can work his hands inside and eliminate space. Paul does a solid job staying light on his hands to reset and refit on defenders from there, and he has the discipline to keep his head out of blocks, his eyes up and a to maintain a flat back. He shows a nice Hamilton technique to defeat the long-arm and will work in a flash or bait technique to switch things up. Paul’s aggressive nature leads to oversetting rushers, and he lacks the lateral quickness to redirect quickly enough to cut off inside counters. He also struggles protecting his edge when rushers attack the corner from wide rush angles, showing marginal range on an island that will necessitate a move inside as a pro.

He excels as a run-blocker using size, solid balance and use of hands to create leverage and gain control at the point of attack on kick out blocks and wash down defensive tackles on down blocks. Paul doesn’t show much power on contact, but he keeps defenders at his fingertips with his length and understands how to maintain leverage, strain and fight to stay attached to blocks through the whistle.

Overall, Paul has marginal athletic ability for a tackle and is clearly a guard at the next level, with a good understanding of how to create and maintain leverage on blocks thanks to solid core strength, balance and crafty use of hands. His middling burst, quickness and power will likely make him a career backup, but he has proven versatility across the line to offer an O-line room that should give him a chance of sticking on a roster.

GRADE: 5.9 (Backup/draftable – 6th-7th round)

PRO COMPARISON: Larry Borom

Written by B/R NFL Scout Brandon Thorn