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JC Latham NFL Draft 2024: Scouting Report for Alabama OT

BR NFL Scouting Department

HEIGHT: 6'6"

WEIGHT: 342

HAND: 11"

ARM: 35⅛"

WINGSPAN: 84⅜"

40-YARD DASH:

3-CONE:

SHUTTLE:

VERTICAL:

BROAD:

POSITIVES

— Broad frame with a thick, well-rounded build, long arms and light feet.

— Elite-level, commanding play strength and power.

— Very impressive coordination, balance and agility in his pass sets to stay balanced through the top of the QB's drop.

— Utilizes active, independent hands in pass protection with a variety of different techniques to keep rushers guessing and off-balance.

— Padlocks for hands to tie up defenders with the power to torque defenders off their feet for thunderous finishes in the run and pass game.

— Creates immediate vertical movement to pave lanes on double-teams, base and down blocks.

— Brings a tone-setting, physically imposing ability and demeanor to the field.

NEGATIVES

— Aggressive, attacking approach backfires in the run game with a tendency to dip his head into contact, leaving him vulnerable to losing across his face on angle-drive blocks.

— Feet can get frozen out of position against rushers with well-timed stutters and hesitations, causing him to lose positional leverage and be forced into recovery mode.

2023 STATISTICS

— 13 starts at right tackle

NOTES

— Born Feb. 8, 2003

— 5-star tackle recruit from 2021 class per 247Sports

— Played his first two years of high school football as a defensive end at Catholic Memorial High School in Waukesha, Wisconsin (recording 95 tackles and seven sacks en route to winning the state title as a sophomore) before transferring to IMG Academy prior to his junior year. Latham also competed in basketball and track at Catholic Memorial.

— Went from 335 pounds to 360 pounds between the 2022 and 2023 seasons at Alabama

— 25 career starts at right tackle

— 2023 second-team All-American (AP), first-team All-SEC

— Wears size-18 shoe

OVERALL

JC Latham is a two-year starter inside Alabama's run-heavy (64-36 run-pass split), multiple run scheme with 23 career starts at right tackle. Latham has a broad frame and thick, well-rounded build with very little if any bad weight at 360 pounds. He is light on his feet at his size with good quickness.

Latham shows good athletic ability and range to get to spots and landmarks on time with active, light and effective independent hands to disrupt the timing of rushers before working his hands inside. Once latched, he uses his dominant play strength and a commanding anchor to tie defenders up and end reps quickly.

Latham is extremely physical when uncovered, providing jarring blows to adjacent defenders with solid ability to pick up and pass off basic line games and stunts. He is vulnerable to stopping his feet and/or drifting out of position against shifty rushers with adept stutters and hesitations. He does show loose hips to redirect, allowing him to recover and stay attached fairly well if initially beat, but he needs to improve his patience and discipline to not chase setup moves.

Combining excellent size with easy power and strength, Latham creates instant displacement on double-teams and down blocks with the ability to climb and blot out backers to pave massive lanes. He brings a tenacious, imposing mentality with the ability to deliver impact, body-blow finishes. Latham's aggressiveness does lead to some head-down whiffs against post-snap movement across his face.

Overall, Latham will be 21 years old throughout the duration of his rookie season in the NFL with a striking blend of size, play strength, power and competitive toughness to overwhelm defenders in the run and pass game. He needs added patience to counterbalance his attacking play style, but he has the tools, skill set and runway to start in year one with Pro Bowl potential within his first contract.

GRADE: 8.4 (Year 1 Starter — Late 1st/Early 2nd Round)

OVERALL RANK: 13

POSITION RANK: OT3

PRO COMPARISON: Anthony Davis

Written by B/R NFL Scout Brandon Thorn

Visit B/R's NFL Scouting Department hub for scouting reports on all of the top prospects.

   

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