Next up on our scouting report series ahead of the 2023 NFL draft is TCU legend and offensive lineman, Steve Avila.
Over the last few seasons, the Tennessee Titans have emphasized finding versatile football players. Therefore, it’s no surprise that Avila is at least drawing interest from them.
The former Horned Frog is a true Swiss Army knife along the offensive line. Avila primarily operated as a center from 2020-2021 before switching to guard in 2022. He even took over 100 snaps at tackle during that time.
The true question is, will Avila be a jack-of-all-trades but master of none-type of player? Or, will he be able to settle into one position for the long haul?
One of the premier guards in the class, TCU IOL Steve Avila has had extensive meetings with the Bills, Cowboys, Bears, and Titans during the pre-draft process, per source.
— Ryan Fowler (@_RyanFowler_) February 16, 2023
This article is going to provide you with an educated opinion on the pros and cons of selecting the All-American interior lineman.
Before we get started, a quick reminder that unless noted otherwise, all of the grades and individual rankings that are included are my own opinions.
Avila is someone who has started to win me over as of late, so let’s find out why
Measurables
- Height: 6’3 ½ ‘’
- Weight: 332 pounds
- Hand size: 9 ¼ ’’
- Arm length: 33’’
- 10-yard Split: 1.86
- Relative Athletic Score: 8.50
College accolades
- Consensus All-American (2022)
- 2X First-Team All-Big 12 (2021-2022)
2022 Stats
- Passing-block snaps: 540
- Run-block Snaps: 480
- Hurries allowed: Nine
- QB hits allowed: Two
- Sacks allowed: Zero
Grades, Projections, and Rankings
- Overall grade: 76.0 (second round)
- Ceiling projection: Late first
- Floor projection: Late second
- Position rank: No. 5
- Consensus rank: No. 3
Reasons to Buy In
- Big and powerful lineman who is capable of being a steady anchor in the middle of an offensive line.
- Versatile asset who can sufficiently play all five positions upfront.
- Has a full years worth of starting experience at center and left guard.
- A big-bodied mauler in the run game who can displace defenders with ease when he wants to.
- Isn’t going to be outmuscled by many people at the next level and welcomes a physical man-on-man battle in the trenches.
- Excels at dig-and-pins on double teams, down blocks, etc.
- Does a sufficient job of recognizing manipulation tactics that the defense is trying to accomplish — fluidly passes off his initial penetrator to pick up loopers.
Areas of Concern
- Can occasionally struggle with explosive defenders who are capable of quickly attacking his edge.
- 10-yard split was well below the preferred 1.75 that you’d like to see out of an interior linemen.
- Would prefer him to have more nastiness to his game. It’s a sight to behold when he wants to be a mean blocker.
- Not the most naturally-fluid mover when working laterally.
- Not as scheme-versatile as some of the other linemen in the class and is probably better suited for a gap scheme that will allow him to impose his massive frame and strength on the opposition.
- His lateral quickness, or lack thereof, makes it hard for him to recover when he’s not the initial aggressor.
- Needs to play with proper pad level at the point of attack more consistently or he will be exposed at the next level.
- Must improve his ability to sustain blocks after initial contact is made.
Fit with the Titans
Avila is someone who slowly started to grow on me the more that I watched him. I wouldn’t say he’s my primary preference along the interior, but he would undeniably be a great addition to the Titans’ offensive line room.
The TCU product is legitimately capable of playing anywhere on the offensive line should the team be in a pinch for whatever reason. However, Avila is a massive and powerful presence who is best suited somewhere on the interior.
The consensus All-American is stout in pass protection. Avila has a natural ability to absorb contact while anchoring without collapsing the pocket.
It’s practically a waste of time to even try to physically go through him. He pairs his strength with a cerebral ability to read and react to defensive manipulation tactics such as twists and stunts.
Unfortunately, he isn’t the smoothest lateral mover; therefore, he does occasionally struggle against speed rushers that attack his edge.
His lack of explosiveness and limited movement skills is my biggest concern when it comes to his fit with the Titans.
Tennessee often prefers athletic linemen who can get out in space and make blocks on the move. Avila is certainly capable of fitting that bill, but I wouldn’t call it a strength of his, either.
He doesn’t always take the best angles, which can ultimately limit the overall effectiveness of his blocks. You would also prefer to consistently see some more nastiness in his game for someone his size.
There’s no reason why a lineman of his stature should be allowing any defender to simply bounce off his contact when he has a clean shot on the opposition.
The most frustrating part about it is he has shown that he is capable of producing some truly impressive reps whenever he decides to be a bully out there.
Nevertheless, the talent is obviously there when it comes to the former Horned Frog, so should the Titans go that route, you can’t blame them for betting on his upside instead of overly nitpicking his game.
Avila would instantly plug into the vacant left guard spot upon his arrival and he could be the final piece to a revamped and hopefully much-improved offensive line.
I currently have a second-round grade on the perennial All-Conference lineman, and I think anywhere on Day 2 would be a fantastic spot to take the TCU legend if he’s still on the board.
Check out more scouting reports from Shaun Calderon!
