Nicholas Petit-Frere NFL Draft 2022: Scouting Report for Tennessee Titans' OT

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HEIGHT: 6'5 1/8"

WEIGHT: 316

HAND: 10 3/4"

ARM: 33 5/8"

WINGSPAN: 6'9 3/4"

40-YARD DASH: 5.14

3-CONE: DNP

SHUTTLE: DNP

VERTICAL: 24.5"

BROAD: 8'7"

POSITIVES

— Explodes out of his stance with impressive suddenness and has good foot quickness.

— Can get on top of rushers quickly in his jump set with the length to establish first meaningful contact.

— Excels on the backside of zone runs and closing space on targets at the second level thanks to his lateral quickness and athletic ability.

— Shows the competitive toughness and desire to drive and run his feet in the run game to finish.

NEGATIVES

— Choppy, loud feet with disjointed footwork in his pass sets that leave him persistently off with his landmarks, unbalanced and out of position against rushers who know how to set up their moves.

— Light in his pants with a tendency to play on his toes, lean and be susceptible to getting pulled off of his feet.

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— Fails to establish leverage and control with his hands, leaving him perpetually falling off blocks.

— Plays with a soft outside edge on an island in pass protection, giving easy access to the corner.

— Opens his hips, crosses over and runs up the arc to mirror, opening the door inside at the top of the quarterback's drop.

2021 STATISTICS

— 12 starts (11 at left tackle, 1 at right tackle)

— First-team All-Big Ten selection

NOTES

— Former 5-star recruit and No. 1 offensive tackle prospect in the nation out of Berkeley Prep in Tampa, Florida.

— 20 career starts (9 at right tackle, 11 at left tackle).

— Looks more comfortable on film at right tackle.

OVERALL

Nicholas Petit-Frere is a two-year starter who split his time nearly evenly between left and right tackle inside Ohio State's zone-heavy run scheme.

Petit-Frere has a lean, high-cut build with good length. He has twitchy and sudden initial movement out of his stance, with quick feet that serve him well on the backside of zone runs and firing out of his stance in pass protection.

Petit-Frere can get on top of rushers in a flash on jump sets and up to the second level on linebackers, with the length to establish first meaningful contact. He plays with good effort and competitive toughness to run his feet and finish blocks through the whistle.

While Petit-Frere's foot quickness and athletic ability are impressive, his movement patterns are disjointed, choppy and leave him routinely off-balance after contact due to a bad habit of playing on his toes. He struggles not to overset or open up his hips early against rushers who set him up with any kind of stutter or hesitation, and he has a soft outside edge that gives easy access to the corner.

His use of hands is messy and unreliable. He's often off with his timing and placement, which severely limits his ability to gain control and sustain blocks. He's also lacking sand and the lower-body strength to effectively drop an anchor against the bull rush.

Overall, Petit-Frere has the foot quickness, athletic ability and competitive toughness worth developing inside a zone-heavy scheme, but he needs a lot of work on his footwork, balance, play strength and hands before being counted on to hold up in pass protection. He is talented enough to consider adding as a high-end backup with the upside to become a starter in a year or two.

GRADE: 7.2 (High-Level Backup/Potential Starter - 3rd Round)

OVERALL RANK: 95

POSITION RANK: OT9

PRO COMPARISON: Geron Christian

Written by B/R NFL Scout Brandon Thorn