Darnell Wright – Offensive tackle – 21 – Senior – Tennessee
Height: 1m98
Weight: 152kg
Estimated draft position: 1st round
NFL Comparison:
After a long period of scarcity, Tennessee returned to the heights of College Football in 2022. This inevitably put certain players forward, like Darnell Wright who was one of the main protectors of Hendon Hooker. Notably endowed with impressive brute force, the former Knoxville tackle promises to be one of the main players in his position in this 2023 Draft.
Strong points
– Powerful
– Versatile
– Experimented
– Violent hands
Darnell Wright’s game is quite clearly based on power, much more than finesse. He has these famous very violent hands capable of unhorsing his vis-à-vis in a single blow. He manages to anchor himself to the ground well when an opposing defender uses the bull rush. Conversely, if it is up to him to push, he is very comfortable opening up gaps for his runners. During his studies in Tennessee, he spent 3 years as a right tackle (2019, 2020, 2022) and 1 year as a left tackle (2021). This makes him both a versatile player, because he could play on the right or on the left in the NFL, and experienced, because he was 4 starters for 4 years for the Volunteers. Playing in the SEC, he also played against the best college defenses in the country with very good results, especially against a certain Will Anderson Jr. Wright may not be the biggest hype in this pre-Draft process, but it should not be surprising to see him become an indisputable starter in the NFL
Weak points
– Explosiveness
– Body position
Obviously, if Darnell Wright is also strong and powerful, he is necessarily a little less mobile. He is sometimes fooled by fast pass rushers on the first steps because he lacks explosiveness. It’s a bit the same if he has to block on the second curtain, he struggles to arrive in time to block the defender and gives the latter the opportunity to tackle the running back. It may also happen that he is a little too high on his supports and that he gives his opponent too much surface to grab and pass him.
Possible destinations
Chicago Bears, New York Jets, Tennessee Titans, Washington Commanders
Protecting Justin Fields must be one of the Bears’ priorities for the 2023 season and Darnell Wright already knows how to block for a mobile quarterback. For the Titans, the departure of Taylor Lewan leaves a void and the arrival of Andre Dillard is not the most reassuring. We must therefore further strengthen this offensive line. In 2022, the Jets struggled to keep quarterbacks healthy. The offensive line is therefore a primary need with a continuously injured Mekhi Becton and a Duane Brown at the end of the line. On the capital side, there hasn’t been a dominant tackle since the departure of Trent Williams and although Darnell Wright will probably never be at Williams’ level, he could be a major piece in the reconstruction of the attack of Washington.
