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By Charlie Campbell
Weaknesses:
Summary: A year ago, Tulsa produced a freaky athlete for the NFL in linebacker Zaven Collins, and this year, the program will make it two in a row with left tackle Tyler Smith. Smith broke into the starting lineup in 2020 and played left tackle for Tulsa over the past two seasons while also showing the ability to play guard.
Smith is a mauler in the ground game. He displays a mean streak and is a force as a run blocker. Smith blocks through the whistle and is very physical at the point of attack. With violence, Smith gets after defenders to push them around and routinely move them out of their gaps. He is quick out of his stance and capable of firing to the second level while being able to function in space. Few left tackles have Smith’s mauler style as a run blocker, so he is a rare left tackle prospect who can be a force in both phases.
As a pass blocker, Smith is a freak. He combines athleticism with quickness, agility and strength. Smith has quick feet, appearing like a true dancing bear, as he can glide with rushers while being able to get depth in his drop to take away the edge from speed rushers. Smith has natural strength, good length, and massive bulk to anchor and stop bull rushes. There is no doubt that Smith is a smooth mover with the power to finish off defenders and to keep them from putting pressure on the quarterback. Smith also is very intelligent, gamely adjusting to deceptions by the defensive line and showing developed awareness and recognition skills that stem from his intelligence.
Smith has issues to work on for the NFL, including his overall technique, patience, and hand placement. He is very young at only 20 years old, and his college position coach was young as well. While Smith needs some refinement, he has a massive skill set with a ton of upside.
Here are the thoughts of another area scout on Smith:
“He’s the definition of a dancing bear at 6-foot-5, 320 pounds, freaky balance and bend. Powerful man. Physically in the Jason Peters, Greg Robinson sphere, not near as raw coming out and the good tape is very good. Just needs time because he plays the game a bit like a defensive tackle and needs to learn patience. He could go to guard as a rookie just to get him on the field and let him tee off on people, and in the right situation, a perennial Pro Bowl talent. He’s the rare left tackle who can maul you in the run game. Not even close to what he can be – lightly recruited out of Fort Worth. Of the offensive linemen in this class, he’s the one who could just as easily flip over to defensive tackle and still be a high-end talent because he’s so big, explosive and physical.
“He’s a clear first-round talent. Back half of first round could get interesting. I know offensive line coaches – they will fight like hell to get him. Can’t find his size, athleticism, physicality, and raw intelligence at that young often enough. His issues are all correctable. As a player right now, he is more of a second-round pick, although if you watch Mississippi State, Oklahoma State both years, and Ohio State game this season, he was the best player on the field against their best competition.”
Here’s what one area scout texted me about Smith:
“If Tyler Smith blows up his combine and workouts, he could go top 10. He’s more gifted than the other offensive tackles in this class besides the N.C. State kid. Smith is 6-foot-5, 325 pounds with 34-plus-inch arms. As violent as he plays and the fact he can play guard also, I could see someone pushing him up because he’s only 20 and smart also. He’ll hover bottom 1/early 2 until workouts and then we’ll see how he handles process.”
In short, Smith looks like he could end up as a first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. He could rise high and should not slide lower than Round 2.
Player Comparison: Jason Peters. As stated above, scouts have compared Smith to Peters. I have also heard some comparisons to Greg Robinson and Terron Armstead.
RELATED LINKS:
2022 NFL Mock Draft: Charlie’s | Walt’s
2022 NFL Draft Prospect Rankings
2022 NFL Draft Scouting Reports
NFL Picks - Nov. 20
2025 NFL Mock Draft - Nov. 20
NFL Power Rankings - Nov. 19
Fantasy Football Rankings - Sept. 4
