Name: Drew Dalman

School: Stanford

Year: Sr

Position: Center

Measurables: Height 6033, Weight 299 pounds

Stats: 

Dalman played in seven games as a sophomore and started in four, two starts at right guard and two at center. As a junior, Dalman started all 12 games at center. As a senior, Dalman started all six games at center.

General Info:

Dalman played high school football at Palma in California and was a top center recruit in the 2017 class (top 10 by every site, top 3 by PrepStar). He was also a top 50 recruit in the state of California. Dalman was a three-year starter in high school and was three-time all-league and all-county. He also participated in the 2016 Blue Gray All-America game. Dalman also participated in track and was in the National Honors Society.

He went on to play football at Stanford, as his father did before him. He received many accolades for the Cardinal, including an All-Pac 12 academic first team in 2018 and two Pac 12 offensive line player of the week awards. Dalman received All-Pac 12 second team honors in 2019 and first team honors in 2020.

Positional Skills:

Strengths

Dalman is a force in the run game. He is a perfect fit for a scheme that runs a lot of outside zone and wide zone concepts because of his very impressive movement skills. Dalman has excellent initial quicks out of his stance, and does a great job working “90 and 90”, getting across the formation and then upfield. He’s very cerebral as a player who always knows the spot he needs to get to and execute at a high level. Dalman works effortlessly to the second level and does a great job sustaining blocks on second level defenders. He’s also great at reach blocking, and has the ability to gain leverage quickly on defenders to turn them inside or outside to open gaps for his running backs. 

In pass protection, Dalman has excellent instincts for the position. He picks up stunts with ease and displays great control when passing off players. Dalman shows great control in pass protection when he’s quick out of his stance, and displays great balance against rushers. He gets initial leverage quickly by staying low and keeping up great pad level. Dalman’s hand placement is also impressive to control defenders and maintain leverage throughout the play.

Weaknesses

Dalman’s biggest weakness might be his size. Bigger nose tackles might give him some issues in pass protection, and he will have to work on chopping his feet to keep balanced in those situations. Dalman doesn’t anchor particularly well, and that’s something that won’t go away either in his transition to the NFL. 

Something else to watch for Dalman is picking up second level blitzers in pass protection. They often build up enough momentum to get Dalman off balance at contact. It’s something that Dalman will have to identify more at the next level to be prepared at contact. 

Fit with the Packers:

Drew Dalman is one of the best fits for the Green Bay Packers in the 2021 NFL Draft. The Packers have Jake Hanson from last year’s draft, and while Elgton Jenkins and Lucas Patrick could end up at center, Dalman gives the Packers stability at the position at great value in a deep offensive line class.

His movement skills in space and comfort in a zone scheme make this a perfect pairing. The Packers want a center with great movement skills, and Dalman could be the replacement for Corey Linsley. While Dalman is a bit undersized, he has the football IQ, initial quicks, and ability to get to his spot in the run game to potentially come in and be the starter from day one in Green Bay. He has great anticipatory skills in pass protection, and his hand placement will give him the edge early. It might be competition in training camp, but Dalman has the skill set to win the job if he’s drafted.