From all accounts, New York offensive guard Alijah Vera-Tucker had a good rookie season.
Then I turned on the game film, and I walked away less than impressed with the Jets' 2021 first-round draft choice (No. 14 pick).
Every player on the roster is either part of the problem or part of the solution on a 4-13 team, which was what was the Jets' record was last season.
Looking at the big picture, New York's offensive line as a whole gave up the fourth most sacks in the league (53) and their run blocking produced a No. 25 ranking (96.1 yards-per-game).
Vera-Tucker was part of the problem.
He made the pocket too uncomfortable in passing situations, and his run blocking left a lot to be desired.
People like to point to the fact Vera-Tucker gave up two sacks as a rookie and try to convince everyone that he was so great, based on that fact. However, additional stats paint a much more bleak and realistic picture of his rookie season.
Vera-Tucker gave up 34 pressures and six hits in pass protection. Putting that into further perspective, Vera-Tucker gave up pressure on 6.1% of his pass protection snaps, which ranked No. 51 out of 65 qualified guards.
Winning offensive lines have an attitude that says, "We are going to punch you in the mouth harder than you punch us in the mouth," and I am not seeing that whatsoever in Vera-Tucker's demeanor.
If anything, he got bullied too often.
Vera-Tucker is one of these classic athletic finesse guards who plays the game like it's not really that important to him.
What do I mean by that?
Vera-Tucker does not often finish his blocks and he does just enough to get by, which is sometimes good enough, but not always.
Not all offensive linemen have to be aggressive maulers to win. Some do the job with outstanding technique, athleticism and understanding the art of leverage.
The problem is Vera-Tucker is not elite in any of those aforementioned categories.
Vera-Tucker did not remotely look like a first-round talent on game film. He played like a fourth-round talent, and a borderline starter for the bottom half of the league.
Grading Alijah Vera-Tucker
6-foot-5, 308 pounds
2021 game film reviewed: (9/26) DEN, (11/28) HOU and (12/12) NO
Grade: C- (average; nothing special about the player)
Scouting Report
Intelligent finesse guard with long arms who does the minimum and looks overwhelmed against power. Looks squatty and body is out of proportion. Tends to set up shop and drop too deep initially. Uses his size and long arms as an obstacle. Uses hands well. Below average anchor, which collapses the pocket and allows pressure to be driven into the quarterback's face too often. Susceptible to brute bullrushes. Can get caught off-guard by quickness into his gaps. Possesses below average playing strength. Half the time does the job and the other half the time he is giving up too much ground. Can give up too soon and yield pressure that way. Excels against spin moves and shows off his smarts consistently picking up stunts and games effectively. Good on combo blocks. Did not look good on screen passes out in space. On runs he really struggles to sustain head up. Just does not have the pure power to dominate against the big men inside. Below average inline down blocking. Excellent at short area pulling to the perimeters. Hit and miss the further he gets away from the line of scrimmage due to average playing speed. Inconsistent at the second level. Overall, his guy made the tackle or was in position way too often. Better when he has leverage or he hits it just right. Not seeing upside due to lack of power and demonstrated lackadaisical demeanor.
Bottom Line
With the offseason addition of free agent left guard Laken Tomlinson, Vera-Tucker slides to right guard. Thankfully, he does have a history of being versatile and playing on the right side from his college days at USC, so the switch will not be foreign to him.
However, no matter where he lines up, the Jets cannot win with him.
Vera-Tucker is a soft football player.
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