Center Steve Avila Isn’t It

TCU Center Steve Avila looks the part, but the game film reveals he is not a first-round draft choice.

Wow though – – he looks the part.

Avila has this thick, wide, strong and muscular frame. Plus, he has an aggressive streak to go along with it.

He’s a road paver as a run-blocker in a limited area, but the big concern is his pass blocking.

Avila is a doorman

When I think of doormen, I think of the guys who stand outside of fancy hotels in New York City and get the door for those staying there.

However, that’s not a good thing when a center reminds me of a doorman.

In my scouting notes, I counted 14 times in 3 games Avila got turned and “opened the gate,” which allowed pressure into the pocket.

Stonewalling

This is what makes Avila interesting. When defensive linemen try to challenge him square up, he absolutely stonewalled them.

Well…all but one time…when he got bull-rushed back into the quarterback’s face.

When linebackers ran in on a blitz and hit Avila with that big thick frame, it was like watching a car smash into a bridge.

Grading out much better as a run blocker

If only the NFL was the NFL I grew up with back in the 1980’s, which was a league that featured a lot of smash-mouth running attacks.

However, now days, it’s about passing.

If it’s a run blocking center a team wants, Avila is a fanny kicker in the right round.

He produced a number of pancake blocks.

Snapping concerns?

This is the first time in 40 years of watching the game I can recall seeing a southpaw like Avila at center.

That’s not so much the concern.

The real concern was a few of his shotgun snaps looked low and I question the velocity.

To me, his snaps looked like the snaps of a guard trying to play center who doesn’t have a lot of experience playing the position. They looked sloppy and not well-defined sometimes.

Inconsistent is the word I’m looking for.

I understand why he is playing center and not guard, because he doesn’t have the lateral foot skill-set to play guard successfully. However, that by itself is not a good enough reason to play center.

First-Round?

Jason McIntyre (who I respect when it comes to grading) of Fox Sports is who brought Avila to my attention by mocking him into the first-round.

I am not seeing this one though. I do love Avila’s size, strength and effort, but his game is too inconsistent and unrefined on game film for my tastes.

In this past draft, I mocked Iowa’s center Tyler Linderbaum top-10. Linderbaum went in the first-round No. 25 overall to the scouting powerhouse Ravens. In his rookie season, Linderbaum has allowed two sacks so far. As of November 10, Pro Football Focus tweeted he had the highest run grade of any rookie offensive lineman.

Linderbaum looked and looks like what an NFL team ideally would want at center.

Avila is not Linderbaum.

#79 Steve Avila 6-foot-4, 330 pounds

Daniel Kelly’s Grade: Fifth-Round – Winter 2022 Report

First Round Mock Big Board: TBD

Projected by 0.9% of the NFL Draft Community to be a first-round pick as of December 6, 2022 (nflmockdraftdatabase.com)

2021 game film reviewed: Oklahoma, CAL and West Virginia (click to view games watched to form this evaluation)

Level of competition: High

2023 NFL Draft Scouting Report

Stout center who can look sloppy and inconsistent at times, but he is a good limited area run blocker. Inconsistent is the word that best describes him. In passing situations can use his hands well and hunker down at the point. Good job in combo blocks. Strong anchor. Tends to get turned and open the gate way too easily when he is challenged hard into the gaps, especially to his right shoulder. Was in too many situations when he lost control and ended up chasing. Sometimes struggles against stunts. On runs, he is a short-area mauler who can destroy defenders if he gets leverage. Has enough pure playing strength to power out at the point. Inconsistent sustain. Hit and miss at the second-level. Developmental prospect with upside.

Bottom line:

At this point based on the game film, Avila is not a center an NFL team can win with as a starter. Defenses will exploit his gaps until he has an answer.

Daniel Kelly is a former NFL Scout with the New York Jets. He was hired on the regime which featured Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, Scott Pioli, Mike Tannenbaum, and Dick Haley. He currently writes for Sports Illustrated New York Jets and he is the Editor-in-Chief for First Round Mock. For more information about him visit his website at whateverittakesbook.com. He can be followed on Twitter @firstroundmock.