The New York Giants will be wrapping up their pre-draft meetings and workouts in the coming days, and that includes a top-30 visit with Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins on Monday.
In addition to Haskins, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports the Giants also recently met with Washington State offensive tackle Andre Dillard.
With a glaring need at right tackle, it should come as little surprise the Giants are checking in on Dillard and other starting caliber tackles.
Dillard is considered one of the better pass-blocking tackles in the draft, which is exactly what the Giants need in order to better protect veteran quarterback Eli Manning.
Here’s what Draft Wire had to say about Dillard:
Dillard played in 41 games, including 39 over the past three seasons for Washington State and coach Mike Leach’s air-raid offense. Though it can be challenging to evaluate a prospect playing in that type of offense with the ball coming out so quick and wide sets, Dillard dominated. He only allowed one sack in his entire collegiate career.
Dillard has great size and a compact build. He has some of the smoothest footwork in this entire class. He’s a mobile player, showing fluid movement skills with his lower body, core strength at the point of attack to control the edge, and active hands. He knows how to use his reach to shut down edge rushers by optimizing his wingspan.
He can get out of his stance quickly and pull into space efficiently. Run blocking isn’t his strong suit, as he will overextend his hips, lunging and finding himself off balance. Dillard will need to get better at holding onto his blocks, showing poor hand placement at times.
Dillard’s ability in pass protection is second-to-none. He will need to improve in the run game. But a team will be able to fix these miscues at the next level. Overall, he has what it takes to take over at the left tackle position for an NFL team.
With two first round picks, Dillard is very much in play for general manager Dave Gettleman & Co.
