Player Profile: Joel Bitonio

Height:  6'4
Weight:  302
School:  Nevada
Position:  Offensive Tackle
Ranking:  #5 Offensive Tackle
Projection:  2nd Round

Strengths
-Experience.  Three year starter.  36 games started
-Good athlete who moves with ease
-Adequate arm length (33 7/8") to push defenders pass the pocket
-Elite Quickness. 2nd best 10 yard shuttle (1.68) for lineman at Combine
-Fires off the ball hard and fast.  Takes it to the defensive lineman
-Stout at the point of attack.  Good functional strength.
-Powerful blocker.  Can move defenders off their spot
-Solid anchor.  Rarely gets pushed off his spot
-Uses his hands to control the defenders. Locks you in when he gets his hands on a defender
-Good footwork and lateral agility to slide to mirror defenders
-Position flexibility.  Has the potential to play all five offensive line positions
-Has shown the ability to pull effectively
-Never gives up on a block.  Always going hard
-Durable.  No injury issues to speak of

Weaknesses
-Size (6'4 302) and may prevent him from playing Left Tackle
-Can be more of a grabber than a punch. Will lead to holding calls
-Will struggle with footwork on deep drops
-Could stand to redistribute some of his weight
-Can get too high at times which affects his power in the run game and balance in pass pro
-Doesn't have that nastiness you would like out of a lineman
-Needs to clean up his pass protection technique

Summary
When you are a tackle and only stand 6'4 you are already getting doubters before they even watch you play. But once you watch Joel Bitonio you are going to leave impressed. Bitonio is at his best in the run game. There he uses his athletic ability to generate power and open up holes in the run game. He has even shown the ability to pull and make blocks in the open field. In pass protection he uses his quickness to shield off defenders and keep them out of the backfield. His biggest weakness is his length and lateral agility causes him to have issues with speed rushers. He did shut down Anthony Barr the first game of the season, but Barr did give him some fits. Bitonio is much better dealing with power rushers and that showed when he didn't allow any pressure against Florida State. Bitonio has the athletic ability to get a chance at left tackle, however his skill set might end up moving him inside to guard or right tackle. I see him going somewhere in the late second round, but wouldn't be shocked to see him go higher.