Oakland Raiders: A Metric Look at Kelechi Osemele
By James Cobern
The Oakland Raiders started the 2016 NFL free agency cycle with a bang by signing offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele, but does he have what it takes to improve the offensive line for years to come?
According to ESPN.com the Oakland Raiders have agreed in principle with offensive linemen Kelechi Osemele to a five-year $60million-dollar contract. The now former Baltimore Raven will become the fourth-highest paid offensive tackle in the NFL based on data from Sportrac.com.
That’s a lot of money for a player who has been more of a rotational lineman than a full time starter at tackle. However, there are a lot of positives from Osemele’s athletic profile that should make this a happy marriage for both sides.
Now to explain the metrics I use in athletic profiles. I use the explosive lower body strength, speed and dynamic speed scores for offensive line athleticism profiles.
The explosive lower body strength score uses the vertical and broad jump to determine just how explosive a player is out of their stance. Speed score uses the forty-yard dash measured against mass density.
And dynamic speed is the forty plus short shuttle and 3-Cone to determine the fluidity of the speed. How well a offensive lineman can turn or change direction in space can be a huge advantage, especially at the tackle position.
Where that ability to turn with bendy edge rushers is crucial. And it’s a big reason many offensive linemen struggle in pass protection in the NFL due to a lack of flexibility in space.
The goal with athletic profiles is to figure what a player’s best athletic traits are, and where they will win most often based on those traits.
With Osemele, his athletic profile measures out to a slightly less athletic version of D’Brickshaw Ferguson. He has above average lower body strength and dynamic speed, but his best attribute by far is his speed, which landed him in the 84 percentile compared to his offensive peers since the 1998 draft class.
What makes the Ferguson comparison work even more is Osemele has 35 7/8 inch arms and Ferguson’s arms were 35 ½ inches long. Making the physical comparison very strong too, and despite Osemele lacking elite level dynamic speed, his length can make up for that issue.
With all things considered Osemele looks to be a very strong move by the Oakland Raiders to bring a young and athletic offensive tackle to build for the future. This isn’t a team going after a big name guy and overpaying him.
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Osemele is a building block rather than a stopgap. And if the Raiders continue to make very strong moves like this in the remainder of free agency, then the AFC West might have a new champion soon.