Hello, fan of an NFL team. MGoBlog excruciatingly scouts every Michigan play, and scores them to inform our coverage. Since mi atleta es su atleta now, here we share what we're sharing.
Quickly: Hoss.
Draft Projection: Probably a Day 3 guy given most teams see him as a swing guard. He's got 4th round value on the right team, but is probably a reach there because so many teams won't be interested. 6th round is good value. He should get drafted, would be a steal to get him as a UDFA since he can legit hang at tackle.
NFL Comp: Rob Havenstein. I mean, you could name just about any Wisconsin lineman and Stueber would fit right in. Huge, heavy, best as the fullcrum of a power rushing attack, feet that everyone thinks should make him a guard. I went with Havenstein because he had the same sort of pre-draft process where everyone went nuts for his height, length, and hand size, then sighed when the shuttle and cone numbers came in. And Havenstein has stuck at tackle despite everyone back to the recruiting rankers said he should slide down to guard.
What's his story? It was hard to rate him coming out of Connecticut with just one year of playing football, but Michigan fell in love at a camp, thought Stueber was pretty polished already, and suggested he might be able to start as a freshman. He did (as a redshirt one), but somehow got his entire sample against elites. He faced Kenny Willikes in his most extended spot duty, and got his first start against Nick Bosa and Chase Young, quickly followed by Jachai Polite of Florida in the bowl game. It went…okay! That should have been off to the races, but Stueber lost his 2019 season to injury. In a shortened 2020 he was at times at guard and more effective at tackle. He finally got a season of stability at right tackle, proving his surprising adroitness at pass protection no mirage, and his hossiness in the power run game no joke. He was never dominant, but he was consistently good, showing equal amounts of power and smarts, splitting the difference between our two extreme Michigan comps of Jake Long and Ben Braden.
Positives: Perfect tackle's frame, hands, and length. Huge, heavy, strong, and smart. Came to football late so no bad habits. Has already seen a murderer's row of NFL edge defenders, including practice reports that he's held his own against Ojabo/Hutchinson/Paye/Winovich/Uche. Very good bend for his size. Awareness has saved Michigan's bacon many times:
That was a freshman!
Negatives: The feet, and then if you're projecting him to guard his size starts to become a detriment, as low tackles will always manage to get under him, something which came out at the senior bowl. Struggles in outside zone, which goes back to the feet.
[After THE JUMP: What others say, scheme fit, grading, video, conclusion]
3