Brock Huard’s 2018 NFL Draft preview: Notre Dame OT Mike McGlinchey
Apr 10, 2018, 11:52 AM | Updated: 12:08 pm
Mike McGlinchey would offer Seahawks O-line coach Mike Solari a versatile option at tackle. (AP)
(AP)
Each day, Brock Huard is profiling a different draft prospect that he considers an early-round possibility for the Seahawks. His draft previews continue with Notre Dame OT Mike McGlinchey. The audio is embedded above.
Seahawks’ biggest question marks for 2018: Part 1 | Part 2
• Position: OT
• Height/weight: 6-8, 315
• Class: Sr.
• Hometown: Philadelphia, PA
Scouting report: McGlinchey already has a pretty random connection to the NFL: he’s first cousins with Falcons’ quarterback Matt Ryan. McGlinchey was considered a Top-10 offensive lineman coming out of high school in Pennsylvania. He has a background as a tight end, which becomes more obvious with his build (a bit more trim and athletic than a traditional lineman) and play. McGlinchey was a four-year starter at Notre Dame, with experience at both left and right tackle, and a two-time team captain (2016, 2017).
Brock’s take: “(McGlinchey) has spent the better part of his career next to a transcendent offensive guard (Quenton Nelson). Nelson is going to be a top-10 pick in this draft; he is an unbelievable talent. And those two changed Notre Dame. Those two elevated their program immensely. Those two allowed Notre Dame football to have a ton of success with horrific quarterback play, even this season.
“This guy is an Adonis. He is 6-8, 315 pounds, and he is legitimately skinny. But he’s not dynamic. And he’s kind of the poster boy for this offensive tackle draft class. It’s why it’s not nearly as good as it’s been in the past. And if Mike Mayock is right and this is the best tackle in the draft, I think that speaks to its limitations. You see a guy that jumped 28.5 inches, you also see a guy who broad jumped 105 inches. Both of those are 14th and 16th at the combine among his peers. There’s actually a tackle out of this draft, Kolton Miller, who blew up the combine, and NFL guys will tell you he has more upside. But McGlinchey is just a very nice talent, a very good kid; he loves to be a student of the game, he loves to study the Xs and Os…
“If he is sitting on the board at 18, which he may, will Mike Solari be tempted to say, ‘You know what? This guy can be my right tackle right now and my left tackle of the future. And he loves the game, he bends well enough, he may not have a limitless upside because some of the dynamic athleticism is limited. By my Gosh, blocking the freaks in this league with that kind of frame and the kind of growth that can still come, that’s some winning football, that’s a winning combination.’
“I still, when push comes to shove, think he’s not quite physical enough. That if the decision is, ‘Do we pull the trigger?’… I don’t think he’s that much of a tough, physical, grind you in the ground game-changer that you’ve got to be in this league, and this system to take at 18.”
How he’d fit: The Seahawks’ offensive line has ranked near the bottom of the league for the last couple seasons, so adding another lineman from this year’s draft would seem like a natural move. Whether that lineman is Mike McGlinchey remains to be seen. Seattle already has Duane Brown at left tackle and appears primed to offer the four-time Pro Bowler an extension this offseason. But McGlinchey could act as successor to Brown, who will turn 33 entering this season.
