Maybe, just maybe, Grier has a life saver here. Jackson is a failure at LT (at least at this point). If he puts Eichenberg at LT and he's better, and he works out where Jacksons didn't, he can argue he corrected the mistake. It could be a lifesaver. If he doesn't, and if he makes Eichenberg play out of position, and everyone underperforms....
I watched Jackson get eaten alive by AJ Epenesa in the Holiday Bowl and was blown away when we took him in the first round. That’s the biggest head scratcher to me about Grier. He takes guys way higher than they need to be.
Even if he hyoethetically grows into a quality tackle 2 or 3 years down the line, he was not worth a first round pick. You don't pick raw developmental players who can't contribute right away in the first round. Grier is one of the worst GMs in the NFL.
I'm no coach but based on what I see in that video close up, I don't think he'll ever develop into anything decent because he doesn't seem to have any idea what he's doing. If he isn't the problem, if it's the coaching not teaching then that's even worse, it means we can't develop talent or teach, AND it still means Jackson won't develop because we won't be able to do it.
The problem with that video is his footwork is absolutely horrible and it’s like he has no idea how to use his hands/arms. Those are all coach-able things but honestly, at this point in his career, he should have a good understanding of those things. Makes me wonder if he’s got a mental block or something going on where his head isn’t in the game.
What I saw was a complete lack of fundamentals- I won't go into detail other than say that as a linemen, the power is in your core (legs, abs, etc.). If you look at the blooper reel (I don't know what else to call it), he's leaning towards blockers and making contact off-balance, which makes your core worthless...you don't have any power or leverage if you don't stay centered. Just terrible technique. Very very sloppy. Around the 2:40 mark, look at 66 and 63. Not "perfect technique", but they're low, centered and moving with their block. That's how you do it. Now flip back to 2:40 and watch Jackson. He's blocking with his arms only, not using his body for leverage, he's off balance, he extends upright when he starts to lose...he literally does everything wrong. But the real problem is that very first step...he moves to the outside and creates a gap. If he stepped towards the defender, he makes the block. If he stays exactly where he started, he makes the block. But you can't slide to the side and then reach out with an arm- nobody is that strong to hold a block like that. Again, I don't fully blame Jackson here- he was out of his element for whatever reason, and there were coaches on the sidelines that clearly saw it right away. That's when you pull him immediately and protect your QB. The good news is that technique is easily fixed through practice and repetitions. As I said earlier, its mental discipline- don't think, just react and use technique to win. Stay centered, stay low, chop your feet and move with the defender. Jackson absolutely, positively knows better than what that tape showed. He was moving slower than the other linemen and trying to take shortcuts, so I would guess that this is COVID-related....he just looked exhausted out there and gave up on fundamentals.
Sort of makes you wish there was a D league. Send him off for some sumo and MMA training for a while.
I think it's mostly coaching when it comes down to the OL, we've been sucking in that department now for 2 decades...
Flores is part of the problem too. Looks like another assistant hire that will flame out after less than a season.
I wonder how much the lack of veteran presence is affecting things as well. Neither Karras nor Flowers were world beaters, but they seemed to help stabilize the younger guys. When we look at other teams rebuilding lines on the fly, they aren't doing it by trying to cram it full of first and second year players, they are grabbing good vets to fill things out and then filling the final gap or so with a rook. We did the opposite. If we trot out the same line just with Liam over Kindley and get pasted again, things will not end well for anyone this season. Hard to see Flores and Grier sit Jackson though, they'd be admitting defeat on two of their first rounders from last year. Frustrating.