The 2024 NFL Draft is here, making it an excellent time to highlight some of the class’ best players with scouting reports. Each report will include strengths, weaknesses and background information.
Here’s our report on Christian Jones.
Christian Jones’ 2024 NFL COMBINE RESULTS
- Height: 6’5 1/4″
- Weight: 305 lbs
- 40-Time: 5.04
- 10-Yard Split: 1.78
- Vertical: DNP
- Broad Jump: DNP
- 3-Cone: 8.09
- Shuttle: 4.78
Christian Jones 2024 NFL DRAFT SCOUTING REPORT
STRENGTHS:
- Big, well-proportioned OT with mass throughout his frame but more than functional athleticism to pass protect.
- Relied primarily on size, length and mass in pass protection rather than quick feet and lateral movement.
- Vertical set pass protection snaps in which he showed efficient kick slide with good knee bend and balance.
- Played with excellent awareness and accelerated vision, recognizing and reacting to stunts and pressures.
- Consistent execution in pass protection closing the edge and anchoring versus speed-to-power. Compact
- Showed initial strength, followed by power generation, as a down blocker in the run game. Sustained with movement.
- Came out of stance in run game with good balance and efficient movement. Mobility to strike on the move.
- Run game snaps he combined with down block, then climbed to second level, changing path to block moving LB.
- Showed he could transition strength into power as run blocker. Kept feet moving to drive through blocks.
- Strong playing personality with a competitive edge. Showed up consistently in run game where he was a finisher.
WEAKNESSES:
- Tendency at times to reach and lunge in pass protection, resulting in loss of needed balance and body control.
- Needs to be quicker and tighter with hand strikes, not allowing rusher into his chest. Hands too wide at times.
- Feet may be too heavy and plodding in pass protection to play OT. Lacks desired lateral quickness and range.
- Quickness off the edge attacking high side an issue. Core stiffness and slow feet limits the range of movement.
- Susceptibility to inside counters and speed-to-power. Both resulted from compensating for lack of quickness.
- Every time he got beat in pass protection in the 2022 tape I watched, he was beat to the inside off counters.
- 2023 – Too often, in pass protection, he looked tight through his hips and core. Struggled at times to re-direct.
- Struggled at times with laterally quick edge pass rushers. Balance and body control issues getting out of phase.
- Showed tendency to drop head in pass protection, which resulted in lunging and balance-body control issues.
- Did not play with aggressive or heavy hands in pass protection. More reactive than a proactive powerful striker.
- At times, looked tight and stiff as a mover once he got into space. Not a higher level athlete for the OT position
NFL TRANSITION:
Jones falls into the category of the OT who is not a high-level traits player at his position but will find a place in the NFL, and that could well be as a starter once he gains experience and is coached and developed. Jones has outstanding length for the position (long arms with a wide wing span) and excellent body mass throughout his frame that perfectly fits the profile of NFL OT. You have to love his aggressive competitive playing personality.
Jones played strong in the run game, executing multiple block concepts with quick, powerful heavy hands and power generation through his core. There were many snaps in which he showed more than functional mobility to work to the second level and strike on the move.
In pass protection, Jones was efficient with his kick slide with good bend and balance, and he played with excellent awareness in sorting through stunts and pressures. Jones’ potential issues arise from the fact that he is not a higher level athlete and that showed up at times with stiff choppy feet That was especially evident in pass protection when it came to lateral movement and range.
Overall, I believe Jones can develop into a starting NFL RT, although that will not happen right away. There are traits to work with and develop.
OTHER NOTES:
Jones was a four-year starter at OT for Texas, playing both OT positions in his college career.
In 2022 and 2023, Jones played RT after playing LT in 2021. He finished his Texas career with 48 starts in 61 games (35 at RT and 13 at LT).
