Jamarco Jones, Ohio State: 2018 NFL Draft Scouting Report
By Jon Dove
Ohio State’s Jamarco Jones is an athletic offensive tackle prospect who could hear his name called early in the 2018 NFL Draft.
Jamarco Jones features a long and well built frame. He also has excellent arm length which allows him to keep defenders off his body. Jones combines his excellent size with above average athleticism for the offensive tackle position.
He uses his quick feet to mirror the pass rush and keep the quarterback clean. Jones does a great job using angles and pushing the rusher past the pocket. His long arms allow him to maintain space and control the action.
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Jones has the necessary movement skills to easily change direction and adjust to counter moves. However, he tends to play with a high pad level which negatively impacts his balance. Jones’ balance is also impacted by his tendency to bend at the waste.
These issues aren’t due to a lack of athleticism but are more about sloppy technique. This sloppiness also extends to his hand usage. He typically keeps his hands at his side which results in wasted motion.
It also makes it more difficult for him to gain inside hands. This results in Jones getting his hands on the defender’s shoulders too often. He needs to correct this problem or he’ll be called for a lot of holding penalties at the next level.
In the run game, Jones shows the strength needed to generate a push off the line. He also plays with a nasty streak often working to the whistle. His long arms and upper body strength allow him to press the defender and create space.
Jones features the quickness needed to seal the defender from the play, work the edges and climb to the second level.
Overall, this is a very talented prospect who needs to play with a little more focus. If Jones cleans up the technique problems he could easily be a 1st round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.