Brandon Scherff
College: Iowa
Position: Tackle
Height:
| Feet | Inches |
|---|---|
| 6 | 5 |
Weight: 320lbs
Speed:
Wonderlic Score:
Athletic Ability
-
Q.A.B.
7
-
Quick Feet
6.5
-
C.O.D.
6
-
Flexibility
6.5
-
Coordination
6.5
Summary:
Brandon shows excellent quickness in his initial burst off the line and gets to the 2nd level very fast. His feet are quick and he mirrors defenders around the arc but they get lazy at times especially on inside moves. He possesses very good coordination and is in sync with his body creating a lot of explosion on contact but can be indecisive when faced with multiple rushers. Needs to work on gathering his feet on contact as he can miss and get off balance too often, particularly at the 2nd level.
Section Grade: 6.5
Competitiveness
-
Toughness
7.5
-
Clutch Play
6.5
-
Production
6.5
-
Consistency
6.5
-
Team Player
7
-
Pride / Quit
7
Summary:
Brandon exudes toughness on a very consistent level best demonstrated by his nastiness once he gets locked on with his opponent. He played through a meniscus surgery in the beginning of the ’14 season without missing a game. Scherff missed final 5 games of 2012 due to broken right fibula & dislocated ankle. His hand placement in pass protection tend to go outside and be slow to punch. If he gets beat he will sometimes quit as if the play is over. He is nasty when engaged, but I want to see that translate when things don’t go his way. He’s gotten more consistent in his effort from ’13 to ’14.
Section Grade: 6.8
Mental Alertness
-
Learn / Retain
6.5
-
Instinct / Reaction
6.5
-
Concentration
6.5
Summary:
Scherff demonstrates excellent hand placement in the run game particularly on reach and scoop blocks. Needs to learn to keep his shoulders square on contact and play under control, something he has been doing consistently in the tapes I saw. Improved in switching from pass pro to power from ’13 to ’14. Recognizes scraping blitzes and peels off well. He will get beat a couple times a game in pass pro due to soft hands that tend to get into his opponent a second too late. Has very good instincts timing the snap. I don’t question his drive, but I do want to see him stay focused after getting beat more consistently and keep his feet moving.
Section Grade: 6.5
Strength / Explosion
-
Body Type
7
-
Durability
6.5
-
Explosion
7.5
-
Play Strength
7.5
Summary:
Brandon has a very strong base and athletic frame. Doesn’t show a ton of bounce in his feet. Coming downhill he is overpowering to handle due to a very explosive lower body. Moves men off the LOS easily when he obtains leverage. True phone booth type of player. Gets to speed extremely fast on the 2nd level and packs a lot of punch due to explosive hips on contact. Brandon has hang cleaned 443 pounds 3 times, which translates to the field well. He missed 5 games in his career and started every game in the last two seasons at LT.
Section Grade: 7.1
Ability Overview
6.5 Foot agility
has very quick feet to get around defenders to hook and scoop but slows down when he has to move laterally to catch up to speed rushers
7 Initial Quicks
Fires off the line with explosion, has fast twitch in his legs
7.5 Play Strength
Scherff is a movement blocker who will road grade consistently with great upper and lower body strength
7.5 Run Blk In-Line
This is his specialty. Very good burst out of his stance, packs a very strong punch, and drives his legs with power
6.5 Run Blk In Space
Struggles to lock on to smaller defenders on the 2nd level due to overextending and lounging. When he does get a hold of LBs he overpowers them easily
6.5 Pass Pro
Gets in his set quickly but tends to waist bend instead of anchoring, struggles when defenders get their hands on him first (average length)
6.5 Qk Set
Very quick out of his stance, drops his ass but can have better hand placement (gets outside too much)
5.5 Shuffle & Slide
Once he is in his pass pro, doesn’t move laterally very well. Seems to have the ability to but feet get lazy if he loses the initial fight
6.5 Punch / Hand Use
His hands use in the run game is stellar in terms of placement and power but in pass pro he will have to become more consistent in his placement
7.5 Vs Power
Has a very strong anchor but will need to become more consistent using it
6 Vs Speed
Has all the lower body ability (strength, explosion) to stay in front of speed but needs to be more active in doing so. Struggles with the inside moves. Turns his hips smoothly and can ride rushers past the QB easily
6.5 Errors
Plays a much cleaner game in ’14 than he did in ’13, just needs to show as much interest in pass pro as the run game
Section Grade: 6.7
Critical Factors
6.5 COMPETES
7 INITIAL QKS
6.5 INSTINCTS
7 PLAY SPEED
7.5 PLAY STR
7 SIZE
Section Grade: 6.9
Final Summary
Overall Grade: I 6.8
Games Viewed:
| Year | Location |
|---|---|
| 2013 | LSU |
| 2013 | Wisconsin |
| 2013 | Ohio State |
| 2014 | Indiana |
| 2014 Maryland |
Combine Notes:
Strong Points:
Brandon is a throwback blocker who plays with a mean streak that you love to see up front. Has the strength/explosion to generate a lot of movement off the LOS and the quickness to scoop/reach, and get to the 2nd level very fast. Has very good flexibility and explosion in his hips. Generates most of his power here and also has the ability to turn them and seal the edge. Showed significant improvement in pass pro from ’13-’14. He is a very tough player capable of playing through injury. Scheme-versatile (zone or power). Former shot put state champion in high school.
Weak Points:
Brandon simply needs to be more consistent in pass pro. Has inconsistent hand placement and is liable to get a lot of holding calls on the next level. Tends to waist bend and anticipate contact especially vs longer, athletic rushers. Needs to recover his feet quicker on inside rushes. Has a tendency to get out of control once at the 2nd level. Needs to gather himself on contact to avoid ugly misses. Doesn’t have great length and would be better served on the inside in the NFL.
Summary:
Scherff (RS Sr) is a three year starter at LT who also played LG his RS Fr season. He got hurt at the end of his sophomore season, missing the final five games with a broken right fibula & dislocated ankle on the same leg. He hasn’t missed a game the last two seasons despite having a meniscus scope in ’14 after injuring it vs Ball State. He finished the game and didn’t miss any time after the procedure. There should be some extensive testing done on his right leg as he has had three injuries to that side in his career. Scherff is battle tested and able to play through pain effectively, as evident by his 2014 season which he won the Outland Trophy.
Scherff has a big, strong, thick frame at 6-5/320 and carries it extremely well. Scherff is a bully in the run game and has the tools to translate it to the pro game from day one. Scherff has excellent functional strength and explosion in both his upper and lower limbs as well as his hips. Against the run Scherff demonstrates the ability to fire out of his stance with leverage and move DL off the LOS with ease. His hand placement can get sloppy and wide, so he will need to focus on connecting to the breastplate more consistently to avoid holding calls. When he does connect center-mass, he has the mean streak to finish blocks. Scherff’s explosive hips (hang cleaned 443×3) and very quick feet enable him to excel at reach/scoop blocks. He is able to cross his oppositions face very quickly, get his hips around, and lock his arms in sync. I haven’t seen him pull in the tapes I watched but I would imagine he’d be excellent. Against the pass Scherff has the aforementioned talent to really be effective vs power and speed but doesn’t translate as well in this area. Scherff gets into his set quickly and has a very strong anchor vs the bull rush but has a tendency to waist bend and anticipate contact, particularly with longer, speed rushers. He transitions from pass pro to power very smoothly. He appears to have average to above average length as well. He has a very powerful punch and when he locks out he’s very tough for rushers to chop/rip. His hips are smooth when having to turn and mirror the arc vs speed and he does a nice job of shot putting rushers past the QB. Inside moves give him trouble as his waist bending and feet struggle to react in time. He is extremely impressive in getting to the 2nd level with great quickness and speed. He gets moving so fast however that he has some ugly whiffs in space and he needs to learn to stay under control on contact. He tends to hit people instead of lock on. He is an outstanding cut blocker. He sells his pass pro and explodes into the thighs of rushers. Overall Scherff is ideally suited to play LG in the NFL. His versatility on the inside is rare as he has the capability to excel in both the zone and power run schemes. He has the athleticism, strength, and toughness to be an asset to any team.
Pro Comp – Joel Bitonio
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