Atlanta Falcons mock draft with a nice surprise in round two

Saahdiq Charles, OL, LSU

This draft doesn’t have a lot of elite offensive lineman. When you look at other mock drafts, they are all over the place with offensive lineman and even the top-end guys in this draft don’t jump at you. The Atlanta Falcons would be best served to jump at some of the elite guys in other areas of need and then take some of the better guys on the offensive line later on.

Saahdiq Charles declared as a junior after LSU won the national title and projects to be a better guard than tackle at the next level. With left guard, the biggest concern in 2020 on the offensive line, grabbing Charles at 78 would be optimal.

His Draft profile:

"PROS: Really like how dense his torso is, he’s built to be a football player with how well he carries a powerful frame. He’s got some surprising quickness in his skillset — he can take defenders by surprise when firing straight out of his stance or when stepping down to wash defensive linemen out of gaps. Difficult to collapse when challenged with power rushes, he’s got a good hip/pad level to keep his center of gravity down. There may be more upside for Charles at Guard vs. Left Tackle at the NFL level where hand timing and length are of less importance. If so, his functional athleticism will be a notable plus quality as he transitions. CONS: Guilty of flashing his hands late — he’s prone to give up his chest as a strike zone and let defenders stack him up at the point of attack with too much frequency. Once hands land on his chest, he struggles with recovery ability to rework his hands into leveraged position and extend on blocks. His quick sets often end his feet dead at contact, allowing defensive linemen to work around his platform and he’s forced to chase as a result."