Prospect Profile: J.C. Latham, OT, Alabama

Pass Protection

Has excellent anticipation at the snap and can get out of his stance quickly on pass protection duty. His pass protection is elite and he plays under control at all times. This comes from his elite hand usage, as both his timing and placement are excellent. He also fights well with his hands, so if a defender does manage to dislodge his grip with either hand, he’s able to counter and re-engage quickly. He has excellent, efficient feet and can mirror all types of rushers. He most often uses vertical sets and when he does this, what happens most often is that he works brilliantly with independent hands, gets latched and then traces the hoop well past the Quarterback, maintaining the integrity of the pocket. This is true for outside moves but he will also shut down inside moves, given how much of an easy mover he is but he also sees it coming and starts his power step early, knowing he has such a grasp of any outside moves that they might work back to.

He can also stop defenders coming through him in most circumstances. He’s thick in the pants and drops his weight especially well. Combine that with his excellent hand timing and placement and he stops most power moves, including effective speed to power moves, bull rushers and blitzers coming from distance, in their tracks. In some specific circumstances, when he facing a wide 9 alignment from an edge-rusher who has good hand usage and who threatens an inside move as part of the rep but works back to speed to power and gets two hands into his chest, then he can be rocked backwards. But even in these circumstances he can compete due to his ability to reset and re-anchor. In his pass pro he displays outstanding play strength due to the grip strength in his hands, the technique in both his hands and feet and the way he bends – he plays with leverage at all times; even against squatter, more powerful guys he can still be the low man. He deals with stunts and blitzers with ease and processes the game well.

Run Blocking

His run blocking is a different story to his pass protection. As a Gap blocker, he will work well with defenders directly in front of him. In this situation facing a 5 technique or a 4i, he will position, fit and finish the block well. When he has to move laterally, either inside to down block a 3 technique or outside to drive block a 7 or 9 technique, he will stop his feet on contact and ends up lunging at the defender, over-balancing, losing the rep emphatically. In space, he will be able to deploy his excellent hands and his power when he has an angle, using traffic and the direction of the run, set up against a guy in space. However, when he has to move further or when he doesn’t have an angle that’s advantageous, he will once again stop his feet on contact, widen his base and Linebackers who move well laterally will be able to wrong-foot him and get past the block without needing to use their hands. When reach blocking on the backside of Outside Zone, he can reach an undersized DL playing 4i but he can’t reach a 3 technique, even though he will make life difficult for him in pursuit. On combination blocks, he could time his release to the 2^nd level better, as he spends too much time at the line of scrimmage helping to seal the block there, and when he’s overtaking the block he can require help that prevents a release to the 2^nd level for his teammate.

SUMMARY
Elite pass protector, rarely in trouble against all types of rusher. Independent hands work is best in class. As a run blocker, he doesn’t always fit blocks well when he has to move laterally.

PRODUCTION
JR: 874 snaps at RT
SO: 874 snaps at RT
FR: 135 snaps at RG
INJURY: None

RAVENS FIT
Toughness 4
Intelligence 4
Versatility 3
Grit 4
Scheme 3