2021 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Rashawn Slater

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Rashawn Slater, 6-3/306 Center Northwestern

Rashawn Slater Scouting Report
By Charlie Campbell

Strengths:

Excellent athlete

Extremely fast for an offensive lineman

Versatile; can play inside or on the edge

Quick feet

Gets depth in his drop to neutralize speed rushers

Can play the typewriter to cut off the corner

Natural knee bender

Hand placement

Functional strength

Sustains blocks well

Tremendous blocker at the second level

Fires out of his stance

Skilled to hit combo blocks

Walls off and ties up defenders in the ground game

Exceptional agility

Very fast to the second level

Experienced

Athletic upside

Lots of experience against good competition

Amazing fit in a zone-blocking system

Athletic upside

Weaknesses:

Short

Lacks length

Not overly strong

Has issues with length

Has issues with strength

Not a bull dozer in the ground game

Struggles to knock defenders off the ball

Lacks heavy hands

Summary: Prior to sitting out the 2020 season, Slater was a 3-year starter and mainstay on the Northwestern offensive line. As an underclassman, Slater was the right tackle for the Wildcats. He then moved over to left tackle as a junior. Slater did not allow a single sack in 2019 while protecting the blind side and finished his career with 37 straight starts.

Slater’s calling card is that he is a phenomenal athlete for an offensive lineman. He is a smooth mover who possesses shocking speed for a blocker. Slater is very fast to the next level, firing out of his stance with a burst to explode to the second level. Utilizing his quick feet and agility, Slater is able to stay square on speed rushers and neutralize them running around the edge. His athleticism lets him be a natural knee bender who does not have to reach after edge rushers because his feet and flexibility get him in proper position. In pass blocking, Slater has good hand placement and is able to sustain his blocks with functional strength to tie up defenders.

In the ground game, Slater makes an impact when firing to the second level. He is dynamic in getting to linebackers off the snap along with peeling off defensive linemen and then hitting a linebacker to help open a hole. With his speed, athleticism, and ability to play in space, Slater is a great fit for a zone-blocking scheme. While he has some functional strength, Slater is limited and is not a true bull who can overpower defenders at the line of scrimmage. He fights, but he is not a people mover to drive defenders backward off the ball.



Slater can have problems with length and strength on the edge, with long defenders able to keep him at a distance, which allows them to use space to run free. His smaller build means strong defenders can get him rolling backward somewhat with bull rushes, and at times in the ground game, they stand him up without issue.

Given Slater’s limitations, his best fir in the NFL would come playing guard or center. A team could look to get away with him at left tackle, like the Steelers did with Kelvin Beachum, but to maximize his strengths and hide his shortcomings, playing on the inside would be best. In this analyst’s opinion, I think Slater would be an excellent center in the NFL and could be one of the better players at the position.



Player Comparison: Kelvin Beachum/Rodney Hudson. If Slater were to stay at offensive tackle, he could compare to Beachum or the Patriots’ Isaiah Wynn. Those three all the same size and have limitations for blocking on the edge in the NFL. If Slater is moved to the inside, I think he could be a center comparable to Hudson, who was an excellent athlete with quickness and agility. Slater could be a similar center to Hudson in the NFL.

2021 NFL Draft Player Previews - Choose Player 2021 NFL Draft Player Previews - Home Paulson Adebo, CB, Stanford Tutu Atwell, WR, Louisville Jhamon Ausbon, WR, Texas A&M Aaron Banks, G, Notre Dame Christian Barmore, DT, Alabama Carlos Basham, DE, Wake Forest Rashod Bateman, WR, Minnesota Nick Bolton, LB, Missouri Baron Browning, LB, Ohio State Dyami Brown, WR, North Carolina Spencer Brown, OT, Northern Iowa Tyson Campbell, CB, Georgia Jackson Carman, OT, Clemson Ja'Marr Chase, WR, LSU Andre Cisco, S, Syracuse Zaven Collins, LB, Tulsa Sam Cosmi, OT, Texas Jabril Cox, LB, LSU Christian Darrisaw, OT, Virginia Tech Jamin Davis, LB, Kentucky Wyatt Davis, G, Ohio State Landon Dickerson, C, Alabama Liam Eichenberg, OT, Notre Dame D'Wayne Eskridge, WR, Western Michigan Travis Etienne, RB, Clemson Caleb Farley, CB, Virginia Tech Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State Paris Ford, S, Pittsburgh Pat Freiermuth, TE, Penn State Kenny Gainwell, RB, Memphis Richie Grant, S, Central Florida Najee Harris, RB, Alabama Kylin Hill, RB, Mississippi State Trey Hill, C, Georgia Jevon Holland, S, Oregon Jaycee Horn, CB, South Carolina James Hudson, OT, Cincinnati Talanoa Hufanga, S, USC Creed Humphrey, C, Oklahoma Teven Jenkins, OT, Oklahoma State Mac Jones, QB, Alabama Patrick Jones, DE, Pittsburgh Brevin Jordan, TE, Miami Kelvin Joseph, CB, Kentucky Trey Lance, QB, North Dakota State Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson Alex Leatherwood, OT, Alabama Walker Little, OT, Stanford Hunter Long, TE, Boston College Terrace Marshall Jr., WR, LSU Jalen Mayfield, OT, Michigan Tre' McKitty, TE, Georgia Davis Mills, QB, Stanford Trevon Moehrig, S, TCU Elijah Molden, CB, Washington Kellen Mond, QB, Texas A&M Dan Moore Jr., OT, Texas A&M Elijah Moore, WR, Ole Miss Rondale Moore, WR, Purdue Dylan Moses, LB, Alabama Israel Mukuamu, CB, South Carolina Jamie Newman, QB, Wake Forest Greg Newsome, CB, Northwestern Daviyon Nixon, DT, Iowa Dayo Odeyingbo, DE, Vanderbilt Osa Odighizuwa, DT, UCLA Azeez Ojulari, LB, Georgia Levi Onwuzurike, DT, Washington Joseph Ossai, LB, Texas Jayson Oweh, DE, Penn State Jeremiah Owusu-Koromoah, LB, Notre Dame Micah Parsons, LB, Penn State Kwity Paye, DE, Michigan Ronnie Perkins, OLB, Oklahoma Jaelan Phillips, DE, Miami Kyle Pitts, TE, Florida Dillon Radunz, OT, North Dakota Aaron Robinson, CB, Central Florida Quincy Roche, OLB, Miami Larry Rountree, RB, Missouri Gregory Rousseau, DE, Miami Asante Samuel Jr., CB, Florida State Trey Sermon, RB, Ohio State Penei Sewell, OT, Oregon Tyler Shelvin, DT, LSU Rashawn Slater, C, Northwestern DeVonta Smith, WR, Alabama D'Ante Smith, OT, East Carolina Trey Smith, G, Tennessee Marquez Stevenson, WR, Houston Rhamondre Stevenson, RB, Oklahoma Eric Stokes, CB, Georgia Chazz Surratt, LB, North Carolina Sage Surratt, WR, Wake Forest Patrick Surtain, CB, Alabama Tamorrion Terry, WR, Florida State Kadarius Toney, WR, Florida Kyle Trask, QB, Florida Joe Tryon, DE, Washington Jay Tufele, DT, USC Payton Turner, DE, Houston T.J. Vasher, WR, Texas Tech Alijah Vera-Tucker, OT, USC Jaylen Waddle, WR, Alabama Tylan Wallace, WR, Oklahoma State Rashad Weaver, DE, Pittsburgh Javonte Williams, RB, North Carolina Rodarius Williams, CB, Oklahoma State Marvin Wilson, DT, Florida State Zach Wilson, QB, BYU

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