Among the questions asked to draft prospects at the NFL Combine, some are better or more relevant than others.
Among the answers from the 300-plus draft-eligible players that late-February week at Indiana Convention Center, though, none was more accurate or concise than what Clemson’s Blake Miller offered when asked about his transition to the NFL.
“I feel like I’ve seen a lot of football,” Miller said. “I’ve been a part of a lot of plays.”
Boy, has he.
Miller, an offensive tackle, broke the Clemson career record for snaps from scrimmage with 3,778. He appeared in — and started — all 54 of the Tigers’ games over the past four seasons.
A 6-foot-7, 317-pound iron man at an iron position, Miller is expected to among the first handful of offensive tackles selected in the NFL Draft next week in Pittsburgh. He is regarded as a virtual lock to be a first-round pick, albeit probably one selected in the latter half of Thursday’s opening round.
“I’d like to think that my teammates were able to count on me,” Miller said. “That was the biggest thing is I wanted to be dependable. I wanted to be available for my teammates. Come third down, third and long, I didn’t want to be sitting there and everyone’s looking at me hoping I make a block. I wanted guys to be confident and believe in me.”
Miller’s penchant for being relied upon extended to the end of his senior season when he suited up to play in the Pinstripe Bowl against Penn State during an era in which most of the top draft prospects skip non-CFP bowls.
He also displayed toughness via missing only one practice, the result of a broken wrist his junior year that did not prevent him from taking the field in a soft cast soon thereafter.
“It was a blessing to be able to play that much football with my friends,” Miller said of his college career. “Just being able to go out there with the guys day in and day out was amazing.”
Miller’s durability and team-first mentality are just part of what has teams projecting him as a long-term NFL starter.
But Miller is not the only top offensive tackle in this draft class who proved to be a workhorse. Utah’s Spencer Fano started 36 of the first 37 games over his three college seasons, Francis Mauigoa started all 42 games Miami played over his three years there and Alabama’s Kadyn Proctor started all but two of his team’s games over his three college seasons. (Proctor missed the first two games in 2024 because of a shoulder injury).
Though it should be noted that some teams view Fano and/or Proctor as playing guard in the NFL, many of the best tackles in this draft are heavy on experience and durability. A rare exception is Georgia’s Monroe Freeling, who has just 17 career starts but elected to declare for the draft a year early.
“Honestly, I just thought I was ready,” said the 6-7, 315-pound Freeling. “I’d been going against really good players my whole three years (at Georgia). I might’ve only had (17) starts, but I’m confident that I’ve gone against a bunch of NFL players every single day in practice. So I was confident.”
Mauigoa also declared after his junior season, but that was after appearing in all 16 of Miami’s games during its run to the College Football Playoff national championship game.
Mauigoa (6-5 1/2, 329) is the consensus as the top tackle available, though that is no sure thing during a draft that is considered strong at the offensive tackle position. It would not be surprising if seven were taken in the first round.
“Everybody over here wants to be the best offensive lineman, and it’s kind of a competition,” Mauigoa said. “That’s what I like, the competition. With Kadyn Proctor, (Utah’s) Caleb Lomu, Spencer Fano, all of them did their thing at their respective schools. And to be the No. 1 offensive lineman coming out of the draft, I mean, it’s a blessing and it’s something (to covet). Yeah, of course everybody wants it.”