Willie Beavers was the first offensive lineman taken by the Minnesota Vikings in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Offensive line has been an area of much concern this offseason both for fans and for the front office. On Saturday, the Vikings continued the process of addressing these concerns by drafting Western Michigan offensive tackle Willie Beavers with their fourth round selection, the 121st pick overall.
The 6-4, 324-pound Beavers was projected by most experts as a 3rd or 4th round pick so the Vikings got him right about where he was expected to go. Scouts give him high marks for athleticism and tenacity, but are not necessarily sold on his technique.
If you want to get really technical about it, here’s a section from NFL.com’s scouting report. This will make more sense to you if you’re an offensive line coach or a person who closely studies offensive linemen:
"Excessive movement post-snap. Body control would benefit from “quieter” approach with hands. Must learn to call himself and play with greater patience. Desire to get hands on defender quickly opens him up to lunging and missing when pass rushers don’t immediately burst upfield and into contact. Needs to play with more consistent pad level."
Pro Football Focus was fairly harsh in their assessment of Beavers:
"Beavers is a big and athletic tackle but his on-the-field performance will need to improve. He was our 118th-ranked OT in the draft class and posted the worst pass-blocking grade among all draft-eligible offensive tackles."
This appears to be a pick based largely on athleticism and upside. The Vikings have plenty of veteran options on their offensive line so there’s no pressure for Beavers to go in right away and get a lot of snaps.
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Then again, we said that exact same thing about T.J. Clemmings last year, and he ended up starting.
Hopefully this year the Vikings’ veteran linemen will stay healthy and the young, raw guys won’t have to step in. Beavers gives Minnesota another option as they head into the future. That future includes Matt Kalil, Andre Smith and Phil Loadholt all becoming free agents at the end of the 2016 season.
Update: Coach Mike Zimmer said on Sirius XM radio that Beavers will likely play guard for the Vikings.