Ryan Pope NFL Draft Prospect Report

 

“It’s about playing through the whistle without getting caught”

Ryan Pope

Introduction

Ryan Pope is a swing tackle from San Diego State. Pope measured in at 6’7” and 320 pounds with 34 and 1/4 inch arms. He put up 25 reps on the bench press, which is pretty impressive for a guy with his arm length. Pope also had the biggest hands at 11 and 1/8 inches. He played in most games his redshirt sophomore year. Then Pope became a starter during his redshirt junior year. Finally, he was a full time starter his redshirt senior year.

Nastiness

I asked Ryan Pope to define nastiness as it relates to football. Pope told me it meant  finishing, being able to play through the whistle without getting caught and making people respect you.  

Positives

Pope brings a big chip on his shoulder, which I like. I experienced this first hand when I called San Diego State a small school. Pope responded by speaking about San Diego State with pride and how they consistently get ten wins and go to bowl games. He explained that they were usually the underdogs, and that helped him have that chip on his shoulder which he brought to the Combine. I explained that I was talking about a school outside of the power five conference and he understood. (Note to San Diego State grads reading this, I come from the University of Idaho, and while I love my school, I know that we are a truly small football school.)

 

As stated in the measurements, Pope has prototypical NFL tackle size. He is very agile for an offensive tackle as well. He moves his feet well, he’s quick, I can see him being a very good pass blocker. Pope also played both left and right tackle at San Diego State so he also has versatility which is important to teams. Another part of his versatility is the fact that he has played in a zone blocking scheme, a stretch scheme as well as a power blocking scheme.

Negatives

Pope is very raw when it comes to NFL skill level. He has all the tools, but hasn’t put them all together yet. He got called for holding a lot in college, that obviously needs to be cleaned up. Though Pope talks about his nastiness, I would like to see more from him in finishing blocks.

 

Ryan Pope projects as a late day three pick, even a possible UDFA. I think his size and athleticism will get him drafted, but it sounds like he’s going to be a very late pick. I like him more than most. Get him on a team with a good offensive line coach to clean up his mistakes and polish his skill set. Then I think he could legitimately develop into a starter.

 

Draft Dive Grade: 4th-5th Round

 

Likely Landing Spots: Based on my conversation with Pope about his meetings I think the Seattle Seahawks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles or the Indianapolis Colts are most likely.

Next up we drop some sick Bars.