Round 2, Pick #58 - OT Ezra Cleveland

Ezra Cleveland was a first-round prospect, ranking 27th overall on the Grinding the Mocks consensus, and the Minnesota Vikings almost drafted him in the first round. So the Vikings landed quite a steal when Cleveland fell all the way to the Vikings with the 58th pick, at a position where they have been desperate for help for what seems like forever.

Each year, Pro Football Focus ranks every offensive line based on each team’s performance. Where have the Vikings ranked over the last six years since Mike Zimmer became head coach? Nineteenth, 29th, 22nd, 29th, 14th and 21st. Poor offensive line play has been the team’s lingering Achilles’ heel, contributing both to the 2016 and 2018 teams missing the playoffs and to the 2017 and 2019 teams crumbling in the playoffs when completely outmatched in the trenches.

The Vikings selected Cleveland with the hopes that he could help turn that story around. As the most athletic tackle in the draft, combined with the off-the-charts athleticism of Garrett Bradbury and Brian O’Neill, the Vikings are building the most athletic offensive line in the NFL, hoping to translate that athletic upside into reality. But even with all that upside, Cleveland’s lack of strength and raw technique might leave him riding the bench his rookie year. How far away is Cleveland from becoming an NFL-caliber starter, and how far away is he from becoming a Pro Bowl-caliber player?

WHERE DOES CLEVELAND FIT INTO THE 2020 VIKINGS?

Given Cleveland’s fantastic football character and elite athleticism, it’s not difficult to imagine him developing into a very high-quality left tackle in a few years’ time. But will Cleveland be able to help the Vikings win games this year, or will he be forced to ride the bench as he adds weight and refines his technique?

There is plenty of logic in not throwing Cleveland to the wolves as a rookie. It’s a lot easier to put on muscle when that is your sole focus at the gym, rather than trying to balance strength training with being able to achieve peak performance on Sundays. And starting a rookie too early can often result in players making bad habits, cheating on their technique to scrape by, or reinforcing existing bad habits. Moreover, the ongoing pandemic greatly limits the amount of time and number of opportunities Cleveland will be able to refine his craft before being thrust into action.

All that said, I think Cleveland will be starting at left tackle for the Vikings sooner rather than later, and would not be surprised at all if he earns a starting job right out of the gate. First, while Cleveland certainly needs to add strength in his lower half, his problems with anchoring are more technical than physical. If Cleveland can learn to consistently sit lower in his pass sets and better protect his chest, he should be able to handle himself well enough against NFL power.

Second, while Cleveland may lack the oomph to overpower defenders in the run game, Gary Kubiak calls outside zone runs more than any other offense in the NFL. And not only is Cleveland more than ready to step into that rushing offense from Day 1 given all the similar concepts Boise State employed, Cleveland is ready to shine with his exceptional ability to make the difficult pulls and reach blocks required by those stretch runs.

Third, I think the most valuable thing the Vikings can do for Cleveland’s development is throw him into the fire. Aside from his issues with strength, the most important thing for Cleveland to develop, both in the run game and in pass protection, is consistency. The best way for Cleveland to develop that consistency is with in-game reps against NFL competition. Like O’Neill or Kolton Miller, his rookie season might not be pretty, and might require a good deal of help from tight ends and backs, but that rookie playing time will pay huge dividends later in his career.

Fourth and finally, as flawed as Cleveland is right now, I have little doubt that he is one of the Vikings’ five best offensive linemen. Right now Cleveland cannot compare to Brian O’Neill or Riley Reiff, but I still have a lot more confidence in Cleveland starting at left tackle than I do in Pat Elflein, Aviante Collins or Dakota Dozier starting at left guard. I think ultimately the Vikings will put their five best offensive linemen out there, and right now, warts and all, Ezra Cleveland is one of the Vikings’ top five guys.

So I do see Cleveland starting early at tackle for the Vikings. Like O’Neill, it may take a few games, and it will likely be a trial by fire — don’t be shocked if Cleveland plays poorly as a rookie. But given his elite athleticism, intelligence and work ethic, don’t be shocked either if in a few years’ time Cleveland is playing at a Pro Bowl level.