Film Room: Why Broncos can Count on Lloyd Cushenberry to Protect Drew Lock
There are a few issues that needed to be sorted out before getting to the film on Lloyd Cushenberry. The first is this; part of what Cushenberry brings to the table doesn’t translate well to showing it on film.
One of the incredible qualities that Cushenberry brings is the fact that he was the first offensive lineman in LSU history to receive the number 18 jersey. This was a tradition that started back in 2003 of handing the jersey number to a player that exemplifies success, selflessness, and leadership.
In the draft, the Denver Broncos have emphasized leadership and just those type of intangible traits over the last few years to infuse into the locker room. The last three draft classes are replete with players who exemplify that very quality.
The second issue we must address ties into the first. Just because Cushenberry received that 18-jersey honor doesn't mean he's guaranteed success in the NFL. There have been a lot of LSU players who have received that honor and struggled to transition to the NFL.
Cushenberry looks like a very promising player moving forward, but he does have his issues. The LSU Tigers were a great team and the offense was prolific, but Cushenberry was honestly a bit inconsistent this past year.
I trust Mike Munchak to clean up some of Cushenberry's bad habits and maximize the player on the field. I just want some to exercise at least a modicum of patience early on as there are a couple of plays I will highlight that show how teams were able to take advantage of Cushenberry's weaknesses.
Finally, one of the biggest strengths that Cushenberry brings to the table is his football intelligence. It is easy to see he does a great job getting the offensive line in position for success.
Rarely was there a clean rusher coming at Joe Burrow because of a miscommunication on the O-line. Not having to worry about getting the O-line understanding what the defense is bringing takes one more thing off Drew Lock's plate, allowing him to focus on other important aspects of quarterbacking. Cushenberry's football IQ and what it does for everyone on the field, cannot be overemphasized.
I will start with a couple of the struggles that showed up when reviewing Cushenberry's tape. All of the plays for today's film review are going to come from his game against Auburn this past season. This is the very first offensive snap of the game for LSU.
I picked this game to break down in big part because Auburn did boast a very good interior defensive line and it presented some matchups commensurate with the talent Cushenberry is likely face in the NFL. One of those players just went No. 7 overall to the Carolina Panthers in Derrick Brown.
A Concerning Lack of Balance
On this play, Brown aligns over Cushenberry. Something that shows up consistently throughout this game is how much attention LSU was giving to Brown to keep him from destroying the game. Auburn starts this play with only a three-man rush with a late blitzer that will matter as the play develops.
Cushenberry does a particularly good job early in this play getting his hands up quickly and keeping Brown from trying to shoot the gap between him and the right guard. Cushenberry does well to help pass Brown off and have the vision to see the late blitzing linebacker coming up the middle.
This is where one of the biggest problems in watching Cushenberry rears its head. He does not always do a great job of keeping his weight balanced and has had problems of getting pushed around when he loses his balance. On this play, he sits a little too far back and doesn’t reload his punch to help slow down the blitzing linebacker.
At contact, Cushenberry gets thrown back which disrupts Burrow's vision, causing him to pull the ball down try to escape. The linebacker ends up getting the sack, leaving LSU in a bit of a hole early in this drive.
More Finesse Than Mauler
This second play shows two possible issues with Cushenberry's game. LSU is running the ball off the interior right side. Auburn was a team that really believed in their big men upfront to be able to hold their ground in taking on double teams. Auburn aligned in a three-man front quite often, going big at the defensive end spots.
Brown is once again aligned up the middle to clog things up. The left guard does a decent job getting around on Brown, allowing Cushenberry and RG Damien Lewis to work up to the second level.
We see some of the limitations athletically Cushenberry has on the field. He does not make it to the second level quite in time which allows his assignment to reach the ball-carrier and stop the play from advancing for a first down. Cushenberry ended up with an RAS (Relative Athletic Score) of 7.4, which factors in athletic testing at the Combine and other events compared to the size (height/weight) and position.
Cushenberry tested athletically as a pretty average player. That does not mean he cannot be successful, but it does mean there could be some limitations in what a coach will ask him to do on any given play.
The other part of this play that I want to highlight is not so much an issue, but more of just trying to help set expectations for the type of player Cushenberry is. He is not a guy that will pancake people left and right. The Broncos drafted another interior offensive lineman that has his own highlight film of him taking the soul of the man across from him (Netane Muti).
Cushenberry falls more into the category of finesse style than mauler style. Again, this is not so much an issue but more wanting to set expectations of the type of player the Broncos have brought in.
Low Man Wins
Now that we have the concerns out of the way, let’s switch gears to why Cushenberry was such a great pick by the Broncos. Something that sticks out about him is that he is a bit longer than your average center. This could be a huge advantage (and it is in how he uses his technique) or it could be a huge hindrance in allowing players getting underneath him.
On this play, Cushenberry is tasked with taking on Brown heads up in the run game. Brown is one of the strongest interior defensive linemen I have ever seen, and LSU chose to double- and triple-team him throughout the game. Cushenberry receives some late help from the RG, but the reality is, he won this rep by himself.
Cushenberry does a great job showing flexibility and ability to fire off low to win the leverage battle. When he correctly keeps himself low, it is impressive how well he does at holding his ground, especially in the passing game. His main issue is that sometimes he forgets to keep himself low and balanced.
On this rep, though, he holds his ground and wins against a good opponent. The failure of the play itself is not because of him. If he can clean up some of his lapses in technique and combine that with his superior football intelligence, he could be a very bright star on that offensive line for a long time.
Poise & Quick Feet to Recover
One of the more underrated qualities I saw in Cushenberry is how very few times I saw him panic, even when facing a tough match up. Auburn rarely blitzed in this game. They trusted their pass rush to get home and understood LSU had way too many weapons to leave players on an island (hoping the Broncos cause the same problem this upcoming year).
This is one of the few times that Auburn chose to blitz. The O-line recognizes it very quickly and does a tremendous job picking it up across the board. With the blitz coming, this meant that Cushenberry was left one-on-one with Brown. Early in the rep, Brown is winning. He gets Cushenberry off balance a bit and is able to get some initial push up the middle.
However, Cushenberry does a great job of not panicking and works to reestablish himself with quick feet. There are a lot of lesser players that would have gotten picked up and thrown into the quarterback on this play. Brown did that to a lot of interior offensive linemen this past season.
Cushenberry gets his feet back under him and is able to anchor down, giving Burrow the time needed to throw. Most of the reps that Cushenberry lost in this game he did well to recover with either his hands or feet. His long arms don’t matter on this play, but there are others where he showed he is not an easy guy to get around even if a player wins with the initial first step.
Football IQ in Motion
In the grand scheme of things, this clip is probably not going to make any highlight video for the career of Cushenberry. The lack of blitzing makes it a little harder to show the quality of awareness and understanding that he brings to the table. This is a similar set-up to the first play of three down-linemen and a late blitzer coming up the middle.
Cushenberry says something to the LG right before the snap. I’m not sure if it was him pointing out the late blitzer, but the fact that Cushenberry kept his eyes on the linebacker from snap-to-whistle makes me believe he understood exactly what Auburn was trying to do here and communicated that to his line.
He initially makes sure his RG is set up for success and is not giving up the A-gap. Cushenberry never takes his eyes off the blitzing LB and uses his hand to feel if the defensive lineman is winning to the inside. When he is not, Cushenberry comes off to help the LG with the blitz, giving Burrow a clean pocket to step into.
There has been a lot of talk of why Garett Bolles played better down the stretch and one of the biggest reasons why was because Lock did a better job of stepping up in the pocket and cutting off the big arcs that edge rushers could run. Cushenberry should do well to finish off the interior of the O-line and consistently provide a clean pocket up the middle even when teams try to bring the dreaded A-gap blitz.
The Takeaway
There are a few things for Cushenberry to clean up in his game. What stuck out most when studying his bad reps, and this is reason for optimism, was when he lost, it was due to technique rather than him being outmatched. He might have some early struggles in his rookie year, but it would not shock me to see him playing as a quality starter by the midpoint of his rookie season and becoming the long-term solution at the center position.
So much of what Cushenberry brings to the table for the Broncos cannot be quantified on tape. I expect him to be a hard worker and fit in nicely with the young core the Broncos have established on offense over the last couple of years.
Cushenberry also falls into a very nice situation with Dalton Risner on one side and Graham Glasgow on the other. Not everything will be on his shoulders from the get-go as he can lean on their experience to help him. Both Risner and Glasgow have played the center position and should be able to communicate what they're seeing to Cushenberry.
Overall, the Broncos got them a steal in the third round. Cushenberry should be a day-one starter and someone that Lock can trust to do his job and grow with.
Follow Carl on Twitter @CarlDumlerMHH and @MileHighHuddle.
