Jason Poe NFL Draft 2022: Scouting Report for Mercer FB

Photo Credit: Mercer Sports Information Department

HEIGHT: 6’0⅝”

WEIGHT: 300

POSITIVES

— Shot out of a cannon as a puller, with the speed and range to connect at a high rate on smaller targets.

— Very good short-area quickness. Smoothly adjusts his track and aiming points on the move with fluid mirror ability in pass protection.

— Excellent natural leverage that he can use to get under and dig out opponents, with good grip strength to strain through contact once latched.

— Plays with good energy and competitive toughness to finish through the whistle.

NEGATIVES

— Sawed-off, short levers with erratic strike timing and placement.

— Plays at one speed with a charged-up, frenetic playing style that leads to unreliable body control and balance.

— Effortlessly stacked, pressed and slipped on attempted overtake and cut-off blocks.

— Will get knocked on his heels in pass protection due to most rushers being able to stab and establish first meaningful contact with ease.

2021 STATISTICS

– 10 starts at RG.

– Team captain.

NOTES

— Former 0-star recruit out of Fitzgerald High School in Georgia. Also lettered in track and weightlifting. Set the school record with a 390-pound bench press, per The Athletic.

— Began his college career at Hutchinson Community College in Kansas as a fullback before transferring to Division II Lenoir-Rhyne in North Carolina. Finished his career transferring to Mercer for the 2021 season.

— Won the Jacobs Blocking Trophy for the best offensive lineman in the South Atlantic Conference while at Lenoir-Rhyne during the 2018 and 2019 seasons.

— Finished his career with 37 total starts, all at right guard.

— Invited and accepted his invite to the College Gridiron Showcase in Fort Worth, Texas.

OVERALL

Jason Poe was a one-year starter at Mercer after playing at Division II Lenoir-Rhyne and Hutchinson Community College before that. He accumulated 37 combined starts over that span, all at right guard, including 10 in 2021 at Mercer.

Poe was a team captain inside Mercer’s Wishbone offensive scheme. He was primarily asked to down-block and pull as a run-blocker, with most of his appeal coming as a move-blocker.

Poe has a squatty, sawed-off frame with a lot of twitch and explosiveness in his movements, plus very good speed on the move. He uncorks and flies around the field as a puller to track down targets across the field and boasts solid power through contact to create knockdowns.

Poe uses his natural leverage to his advantage on down blocks and has enough grip strength once latched to uproot and sustain blocks against other stout, stubby body types. His quickness shows up when he’s mirroring rushers in pass protection, giving him a shot to recover and pinch off penetration to his edges.

Poe plays with a wild, uncontrolled style that results in erratic balance, and he is effortlessly stacked, shed and controlled in the run game when having to cut off or overtake bigger interior run defenders. He can create space off the line in pass protection, but he is a heavy two-hand striker with razor-thin margin for error.

Poe gets beaten far too quickly against moderately skilled rushers. He also struggles to protect his frame against the long-arm, too easily giving up first meaningful contact, getting knocked on his heels and off his base.

Overall, Poe is an athletic, physical spark plug on the move as a puller. He has the ability to make an immediate impact as a fullback sealing the edges or tracking down smaller defenders at the second level. His body type likely pigeonholes him to having to try center to stick on the offensive line, but he has enough juice and tenacity to carve out a role for a creative, diverse run game in the NFL.

GRADE: 5.4 (Backup/UDFA With Roster Potential)

PRO COMPARISON: Patrick Ricard

Written by B/R NFL Scout Brandon Thorn