STEFEN WISNIEWSKI, C, PENN STATE

Triangle Numbers: 6-3, 3-6, 5.3

Scouting Reports:

Draft Countdown:

Strengths:
• Extremely smart with elite instincts and awareness
• Polished technician with great hand use and footwork
• A top-notch understanding of positioning and angles
• Intense, competitive and plays with a nasty demeanor
• Quick with nice balance and able to adjust and recover
• Strong with a wide base and stout at the point of attack
• Great toughness and gets a nice push in the run game
• Tenacious and will lock on and doggedly sustains blocks
• Ability to pull, play in space and reach the second level
• Versatile and is capable of playing multiple positions
• A hard worker and leader with outstanding bloodlines
• Durable with a ton of experience versus top competition

Weaknesses:
• Just average size and frame is probably maxed out
• Is limited athletically and a bit of an overachiever
• Feet aren’t real nimble and does not slide smoothly
• Not necessarily physically dominant or overpowering
• Will get pushed around at times but never gives up
• Sometimes walks line between being too aggressive

Sideline Scouting:

Positives: Outstanding NFL bloodlines… Athletic… Versatile, will get equal looks at Guard as well… Intelligent, heady, good football IQ, good awareness… Good pass protector… Good quickness, quick pass set… Quick initial step, fires off the ball… Natural knee bender… Plays with good hand placement and arm extension… Good agility, carries his pads well… Good lateral movement and slide… Does a good job reacting to stunts and zone drops… Reasonably good lower body strength… Good anchor, does a nice job holding his ground… Very solid run blocker… Good punch… Good strength at POA, very solid upper body strength… Can move defenders off the line… Plays with good leverage… Stays low and drives his legs on contact… Understands angles and positioning… Can pull and trap block well… Can get to the second level… Good flexibility and body control, breaks down reasonably well in space… Does a nice job blocking on the move, can explode into his blocks… Good overall technique… Very solid balance… Plays physical… Stays on his blocks, hard to disengage from… Tenacious, determined, competitive… Plays physical, works hard to finish his assignments… Good character… Good fit in ZBS, similar in many ways to former Denver Bronco Ben Hamilton… If there is an interior lineman with a shot at the first round, Wisniewski is that guy… Should be in the starting lineup early in his first season.

Negatives: Narrow base… Will lunge into some blocks… Inconsistent balance… Not especially strong at POA… Lacks ideal size at Guard, will need to add some bulk… Has some past injury concerns.

Walter Football:

Strengths:

Outstanding technician and understands nuances of blocking

Natural knee bender and executes leverage

Good mobility and range

Athletic

Very quick with a nice get-off after snap

Blue-collar, physical demeanor

Gets nice hand extension and controls opponents

Instinctive and aware at the line; picks up stunts and blitzes

Competitor who really fights on running downs

Fluid on pulls and traps; gets to second level

Tough

Finishes blocks

Lots of experience at both guard and center against top competition

Nice genetics

Great work ethic

Line general and team leader

Smooth footwork

Highly intelligent

Weaknesses:

Average size

Struggles against bigger opponents

Not very strong or powerful

Sometimes gets caught reaching

Could still improve upper body strength

Lacks explosive initial punch

Only a good fit at this point for zone blocking schemes

Limited upside

Summary: Wisniewski seems to get the most out of his abilities and he looks like a quality starting center (more so than a guard) in the right scheme. He doesn’t have a lot of size or bulk, so he will best fit in schemes that emphasize intelligence, instincts, quickness and technique such as Indianapolis, New England, Houston, and Green Bay.

Wisniewski’s father, Leo, played three seasons for the Colts and his uncle, Steve, was an eight-time Pro Bowler in Oakland. Wisniewski enters the season with a second-round grade on my board and he will probably come off the board in the top 75 picks. He needs to improve his physique strength-wise if he wants to become a first-rounder.

Player Comparison: Ryan Kalil. Kalil has similar size to Wisniewski, and his bread and butter is also his technique, quickness, awareness and toughness.

VIDEO:

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YaslZQO3ew[/pro-player]

GiantsGab Thoughts:

Giants need to have a plan for center for after Shaun O’Hara. O’Hara’s been injured. I don’t think he has too much left. Adam Koets, I don’t think, is the answer. Stefen Wisniewski is. You talk about a pro ready, start from day 1 center. Not as good as Maurkice Pouncey (who is?). But, you put him in now, or a year from now, and you don’t have to worry about the center position for 10 years. That’s your aim with any draft pick. Pick and play. Wisniewski is that guy. I have a feeling as the draft comes nearer, he could creep into the late first/early second round area. He could be there when the Giants pick in the 2nd round. Giants, if they want him, might have to trade up (or down, in the 1st). But this would be a home run pick.

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