2014 NFL Draft Scouting Report – Kevin Pamphile, OT Purdue

Oct 19, 2013; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans defensive end Shilique Calhoun (89) defends against Purdue Boilermakers offensive tackle Kevin Pamphile (64) during the 2nd half at Spartan Stadium. MSU won 14-0. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports

Kevin Pamphile has been one of the nicer surprises in college football this past season.  After only playing football in his senior year of high school and playing more basketball, he did not play his freshman year at Purdue.  He then was a defensive lineman that missed most of the season due to injury before moving to offensive tackle in his junior year, only played in four games as a reserve.  In his senior year, he became the starting left tackle for the final 9 games and while he was clearly still learning the position and really trying to pick it up as he was playing, he was able to help the Boilermakers and showed a great deal of promise, despite so little experience.

Pamphile is a terrific athlete and his basketball past shows up in how well he can move both with his feet and his overall speed.  He has a lot to learn, but he has the size and athletic ability to play as a tackle in the NFL.  Pamphile is a substantial project that could take a few years to develop, but if a team is willing to work with him and he can make the strides necessary, he can be an extremely versatile lineman that could be a great backup or become a starter.  Pamphile will likely be picked on day three of the draft, there is a chance he could go undrafted and be a sought after player as an undrafted free agent.

Vitals & Build

Pamphile measured 6’4 ½” 311lbs at his Pro Day.  He has a pretty good amount of strength but did carry some excess baggage around his midsection that could be cleaned up and improved.  Nevertheless, he has terrific feet, lateral agility and overall athleticism.  He was able to run in the 4.9’s and put up an impressive 1.69 10-yard split as well as 25 reps on the bench.  While he can continue to get better physically, much of his potential is going to be realized if/when he becomes more comfortable at his position, stops thinking about what he has to do and focuses on how he needs to do it.

Athleticism

Pamphile’s athleticism is notable and he has great feet and agility.  He also demonstrates impressive burst and speed.  Pamphile is not limited in terms of range or what he can do assignment wise from an athletic standpoint.  He can easily get to the second level, kick out and be in front of the play and he could wrap if asked to do it.  Pamphile should only get better in terms of athleticism as far as it translates to his position as he gets more efficient with footwork and angles.

Run Blocking

Pamphile is great when it comes to being able to get out to blocks whether it be attacking the second level, kicking out or getting to blocks.  He is still raw and looks like someone who is thinking about his assignments, which affects how aggressive he can be in his blocks.

His focus is getting in the right spot and making sure he gets to his guy, so there is a lack of a mean streak in his blocking.  There are instances where he shows his strength and potential power when he gets more comfortable.

His footwork and angles are inconsistent at times, which is to be expected relative to his experience level.  In some situations, Pamphile appears to be feeling out where he needs to go on pulls.  It does not look second nature to him at this point.  There are times when he does a great job of getting behind his pads but he tends to largely play too tall, limiting how much strength he can use.

Pamphile shows the tools to do the job, but there is an obvious lack of experience that he will need to work through going forward.  He was able to do the job for the Boilermakers enough to be an asset to them, so while he did have a learning curve, he was able to benefit them.

Pass Blocking

Pamphile’s pass blocking is the rawer part of his game, but it is also the part that has more promise.  His range is terrific and he is able to slide naturally out to cut opponents off with enough length to do the job.  Even with somewhat inconsistent play as he was trying to pick up the position, the positives far outweighed the negatives.

Pamphile does tend to play too tall and stands up too quickly out of his stance, limiting his power and how well he can work against power.  There are times when he will get fooled oversetting outside early and giving up an inside lane.

Pamphile will miss some assignments and there is an obvious level of discomfort when he is caught in space without a clear target to block.  At times, the result is not only that Pamphile does not pick the right target to block but gets flustered and does not pick up anyone, causing a jailbreak to the quarterback.  He can get better at hand placement and technique in terms of angles and leverage.

All of these issues that Pamphile has relate to how new he is to the position.  He has the tools to be able to do the job in terms of physical tools, but will need a decent amount of time working on getting more comfortable at the position, mastering certain aspects of it and working to start eliminating them.

Technique

Occasionally, Pamphile shows a decent punch, but he is mostly concerned on just getting his hands on the opponent to try to slow them down before he worries about power.  In terms of where he plays the opponent and his hand placement, he is mostly working off of instinct as he simply has not had the time to really internalize how he needs to block opponents.

His angles need to improve in both passing and running the ball.  He is thinking too much and needs to get more natural when it comes to mirroring in pass blocking; all things that would be expected of someone with the experience Pamphile has.

Footwork

Pamphile has great feet and he can do just about anything a team could ask of him, but just needs to get to a point where the steps are muscle memory and getting the hang of how he needs to get to different spots, whether it be in the passing or running game.  His athleticism has been so good that he was able to cover for some of his bad angles.

System Fit

Pamphile is a giant ball of clay.  He could help a team in a zone scheme or a gap scheme.  In some respects, teams may like him more because he does not have bad habits to unlearn and replace with better habits.  Pamphile could conceivably end up at tackle or guard, depending on what a team needs from him and the competition around him.  If he can make a roster, he is going to be the last guy on the depth chart for a little while.  His talent is intriguing as his potential versatility, but it is going to be a project that takes time.

NFL Comparison

Pamphile has similarities to William Campbell of the New York Jets.  Campbell was a defensive tackle his entire career at Michigan before the Jets picked him as a sixth round pick and made him into a guard. Campbell had no experience in college as an offensive lineman but had more pure experience in football than Pamphile.  Nevertheless, both players come in with nearly identical measurables needing to learn how to be a productive offensive lineman.

Draft Projection

Kevin Pamphile is new to the offensive line, but he is also still relatively new to football.  While he has a great deal to learn about being an offensive lineman, he has terrific tools to do the job and teams have drafted players with less experience.  Pamphile will likely be picked on day three of the draft with a small chance of going undrafted and if he can learn the nuances of the game and really put his tools to work effectively, he can not only be a backup for teams, he could potentially start down the road.

Some of the film used in this scouting breakdown was provided by the good folks at draftbreakdown.com