Mid-round Match? Louisiana’s Max Mitchell may offer Cowboys solid alternative draft plan

With the departure of La’El Collins to the Cincinnati Bengals, an aging and what seems like a consistently injured Tyron Smith; it’s all but a foregone conclusion the Dallas Cowboys will be addressing the offensive line during draft weekend. The Cowboys seem prepared to make a move during the first two rounds, but if the board dictates they go elsewhere, Louisiana’s Max Mitchell certainly seems an intriguing mid-round option for them.

Mitchell wasn’t the most highly recruited player coming out of high school, only having a two-star pedigree. He saw action in all 14 games his freshman year in 2018. In 2019 he became a staple on the offensive line at started all 14 games. He helped lead the Rajun’ Cajuns to a year where they were dominant on the ground. Statistically, they ranked third nationally in yards per carry (6.28), fourth nationally in rushing touchdowns (42), sixth nationally in rushing yards per game (257.4), and seventh nationally in total rushing yards (3,604). In 20202, again he started in all 10 of his appearances and got experience at both tackle spots. We all know how much the Cowboys love positional flexibility, so does he fit with the Cowboys?

Measurables and Stats

Listed Height: 6-foot-6

Listed Weight: 307 pounds

Jersey Number: 74

Games Played (2021): 13

Film Study Information:

Games Watched: Troy (2019), ULM (2019), Coastal Carolina (2020), Texas (2021)

Best Game: Troy (2019)

Worst Game: ULM (2019)

Physical Skills Evaluation:

Balance: Can be top heavy at times when run blocking and leads to instances of his almost falling over, but it’s not on a consistent basis.

Hand Placement: Places his lands lower and strikes up to gain leverage. Doesn’t always cleanly land his initial hand strike, but if he doesn’t he is effective at using the defender’s momentum against them and washing them out of the play.

Power: Has flashes of being a violent player. Loves being a finisher, but it doesn’t always show up on film. You wont see him get overwhelmed by power much, if at all. Would like to see him add more violence to his game on a consistent basis.

Movement Skills: Explosive coming out of his stance at the line of scrimmage, and a good lateral mover.

Footwork/Foot Speed: Has a tendency to push out his feet towards the rusher, rather than gain depth in his pass protection arch. Does a good job of staying square with the pass rusher and remaining in-between him and the QB. Doesn’t generate a ton of torque with his kick slide and it hurts the depth he is able to gain.

Performance Evaluation:

Pass Protection: Only measured in at the combine with 46^th percentile arm length for offensive lineman, but it doesn’t show up on film. Is often the first one to initiate contact. Has occasional lapses of lunging and comes up whiffing at the defender. Can get off balance when picking up twists and stunts, but recovers before it affects the QB.

Football IQ: Keeps his head on a swivel when he is left uncovered, consistently picks up delayed blitzes effectively. Played both sides of the offensive line.

Anchor: Enters his kick slide already bent and half anchored in. Won’t see him drop his hips anymore and cement himself in the ground. This aspect of his game will need to be ironed out.

Flexibility: Has played left tackle and right tackle, didn’t see many instances of him being asked to flip his hips and seal off an edge for a running back.

Run Blocking: Will move people off the line of scrimmage a good three to five yards before they can anchor in. Length concerns pop up when he allows a defender to get hands inside of him.

Strengths:

Run blocking is his biggest strength that pops off the tape. He can drive his feet and move people off the line of scrimmage before they can anchor in. He is explosive coming out of his stance and brings positional flexibility with playing time at left and right tackle. He has flashes of good hand placement to gain leverage, but it isn’t consistent.

Weaknesses:

Lacks a real anchor, when he starts his kick slide, he gives the appearance he is already half anchored in and it hurts him, when gaining proper depth and you never see him cement himself in the ground to handle a bull rush. Opted out of the bench press which would explain a concern that I had after his film. His strength as a whole is a bit concerning, he will likely be bullied early on in his career, by power rushers. His feet can get crossed at times, and he has lapses of lunging. Needs to play with consistent violence in his game.

Fit with the Cowboys:

Mitchell would be a good swing and developmental tackle. He needs time to hone his technique, specifically his kick slide, his hand punch and his anchor. He also needs to develop more play strength.

With Tyron Smith entrenched as the left tackle, Terence Steele having the coaches trust on the right side and an unknown in Josh Ball, there appears to be time for that development to take place in Dallas.

Mitchell brings positional flexibility with playing experience at both left and right tackle . His best attribute is run blocking at the moment, and PFF agrees. He was ranked by PFF as one of the top run blockers in the entire 2021 class. He is a good lateral mover and can be an effective lead blocker.

Prospect Grade:

Final Grade:

\76.65, 3rd round player

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