Jack Nelson NFL Draft 2025: Scouting Report for Wisconsin OT
HEIGHT: 6'7"
WEIGHT: 312
HAND: 10"
ARM: 33½"
WINGSPAN: 81⅜"
40-YARD DASH: NA
3-CONE: NA
SHUTTLE: NA
VERTICAL: NA
BROAD: NA
POSITIVES
— Skilled overall player with good footwork in the run game and use of hands in pass protection.
— Does a very nice job of adjusting his aiming points based on movement to reach his landmark, fit and initially cover up his target in the run game.
— Solid quickness allows him to shift his weight laterally to slow down inside counters and consistently cut-off the backside of outside zone.
— Smoothly transitions into his anchor with tight hand placement to press rushers off of his frame and create force through the ground to grind down the bull-rush.
— Active, effective drag hand in pass protection makes him extremely effective picking up the penetrator on T-E stunts.
NEGATIVES
— Tall, upright playing style with a persistently exposed chest that leaves him vulnerable to the push-pull technique.
— Regularly jolted back at the point of attack in the run game on solo base/drive blocks.
— Mediocre range against widely-aligned speed rushes create short corners.
— Caught leaning and overextended multiple times a game that results in him on the ground too often.
NOTES
— Born Jan. 15, 2002
— 5-star recruit from the 2020 class, per 247Sports
— Lettered three times in basketball in high school
— 50 career starts at left tackle (37) and right guard (13)
— Accepted his invite to the 2025 Senior Bowl
OVERALL
Jack Nelson is a four-year starter primarily at left tackle including 12 starts there in 2024 inside Wisconsin's 54-48 pass-run split, zone-based run scheme with gap principles mixed in. Nelson has a tall, lean frame and build with solid length, athletic ability and play strength.
Nelson wins as a run blocker with efficient footwork in the run game where he operates smoothly on double-teams and combo blocks, routinely getting into good fits to feed and climb, overtake and seal. Nelson gains impressive ground laterally out of his stance to consistently cut off the backside of outside zone and has enough burst to intersect scraping backers on his climbs to widen them out. Nelson's tall frame and upright playing style get exposed on solo base/drive blocks, where his double-under technique exposes his chest and leaves him vulnerable to the push-pull technique, where he regularly gets overextended and winds up on the ground.
In pass protection, Nelson takes controlled pass sets with low, patient hands that he uses to set up a potent bait into circle punch technique to corral outside moves and get them driven up the arc. He efficiently transitions into his anchor with tight hand placement and solid lower-body strength to grind down the bull-rush. Nelson is also adept at handling basic line games and stunts. His footwork gets clunky when he bites on stutters and has to stop-start, forcing him to swing open his hips to redirect. This causes him to fall behind, softening his edges and resulted in many glaring, back-breaking losses over the last two seasons.
Overall, Nelson is a fundamentally sound, skilled overall player who functions well in tandem with his guard and in certain areas, solo (backside cut-offs) but lacks consistent contact balance, use of leverage, and posture when isolated, which causes him to fall off of too many blocks. Nelson should be able to carve out a role as a backup tackle with spot starter potential but his propensity for the glaring loss will be difficult to improve at the next level.
GRADE: 5.9 (Backup/Draftable - 6th Round)
OVERALL RANK: 224
POSITION RANK: OT17
PRO COMPARISON: Blake Freeland
Written by B/R NFL Scout Brandon Thorn
Prospect workout numbers, measurables (40-yard dash, hand size, etc.) and 2024 statistics will be added at a later date.
