Strengths: 

  • Moves Well For His Size

One of the best aspects of Tufele’s game is just how well he moves for his size. He uses that mobility with his motor to chase down players from afar and also uses it to aggressively attack gaps in the run.

  • Great Quickness off the Snap

Tufele does a great job timing the snap and is frequently one of the first people moving on both lines. He also has great first step quickness and it gives him a big advantage right off of the snap. 

  • Good Hand Placement and Timing

Tufele does a great job locating and timing his punches. They are placed right where they need to be on the defensive lineman and they are on time too, which is a shame that his technique is limited by a weak punch and shorter arms.

  • Takes On Double Teams In Run

At USC Jay Tufele saw a lot of double teams in the run game. While he wasn’t consistently winning on these double teams he still did a good job holding the blockers in place and letting his LBs run free.

  • Great Motor

Jay Tufele plays with a relentless motor the entire game which is probably a testament to his love for the game. It also helps him track down plays and make plays that lower effort players wouldn’t be able to make.

Weaknesses: 

  • Slow Processor

Tufele isn’t the type of guy who gets tunnel vision and only focuses on one thing but he will be thrown off by intricate looks in the backfield and will penetrate away from the play.

  • Plays With Bad Leverage

One of Jay Tufele’s biggest problems is that he plays with a pad level too high. This allows offensive linemen to always have the leverage advantage and he’ll need to get it fixed in the NFL.

  • Hand Usage is Limited

Tufele does a great job with his hands with the placement and timing but unfortunately how effective his hands can be are limited by a weak punch and short arms.

Player Comp: Jay Tufele reminds of pro player Lawrence Guy. Both guys have similar size, playing at around 6’3 305 lbs and both guys are also incredibly mobile for their size and carry their weight well. They both have great quickness of the snap and can take on double teams, and their hot motors make them very appealing because they both put forth so much effort. They also both have great hand timing and placement that’s limited by their short arms and weak punches and they have also both had issues playing with good leverage in the past. Guy is a bit of a faster processor than Tufele but other than that they are pretty similar.

Final Thoughts: Jay Tufele is a guy that I think the general consensus is a bit high on with most people having him as a mid to late Round 2 guy. He’s a decently athletic guy who shows a lot of effort but he has his limitations and he also has some technical issues to clean up. His ceiling and floor are both relatively average and I think the late 2nd or early 3rd is where he should go. He’s going to fit best as a 4-3 DT rather than 3-4 because of his long arms and small size for a 3-4 NT. The Raiders will now be playing a 4-3, and with their need at DT and their love of high effort players Jay Tufele seems like a great pick.