Finding Broncos: Scouting Clemson OT Blake Miller

Finding Broncos scouts the 2026 NFL draft class. Today, we're breaking down Blake Miller.

Sep 24, 2022; Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA; Clemson Tigers offensive lineman Blake Miller (78) and offensive lineman Walker Parks (64) block during the second quarter against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Truist Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

Welcome back to our annual series, Finding Broncos, where we break down the coming draft class with individual scouting reports. Today, we're breaking down a very intriguing offensive tackle who could be in play for the Denver Broncos, depending on how the board falls.

Background

Blake Miller has a wrestling background. He committed to Clemson and was a starter right away, with 54 starts in four seasons. During his four years, he broke the school record for offensive snaps while winning multiple honors. 

Stats

Miller has played 3,762 snaps at Clemson as a four-year starter; all but 125 came at right tackle, with 101 at left tackle and 24 at tight end. During his four years, he allowed eight sacks and 79 pressures and was called for 22 penalties. Only two sacks, 14 pressures, and five penalties came in 2025. 

Pros

Dec 21, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Clemson Tigers offensive lineman Blake Miller (78) against the Texas Longhorns during the CFP National playoff first round at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Miller is a tall, long, physical, downhill, mauling blocker who looks to engulf defenders off the start and win through brute force on every snap he takes. His longevity is a bonus: he started every game at Clemson, did not opt out of a bowl game, and is a dependable blocker on the right side of the line. 

There is plenty of power throughout Miller's body, but his grip strength is an unsung hero of his game, as it's difficult for defenders to break out of his grasp. When working on combo blocks and climbing, he shows smooth footwork and movement to get up cleanly, with the awareness to catch incoming defenders. 

When pulling across the formation, Miller shows good technique and timing to hit without leaving an opening for a play to be made. The timing and awareness also show when handling stunts and twists with passing off and catching during the guard/tackle switch. 

Miller keeps his feet active and does well to mirror and stay in front of defenders through their pass rush. In pass protection or as a run blocker, he seeks the defender's frame and looks to control it rather than take the easy route of being a catcher, meaning he looks to strike first and stay true to his aggressive nature. 

The wrestling background shows with Miller's ability to torque power through his lower half and dislodge anchored defenders at the point of attack. There are not many players entering the NFL with the ability to generate movement against anchored defenders as easily as he does. 

Cons

Dec 21, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Clemson Tigers offensive lineman Blake Miller (78) and Texas Longhorns linebacker Barryn Sorrell (88) in action during the game between the Texas Longhorns and the Clemson Tigers in the CFP National Playoff First Round at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Is there positional versatility? He played 101 snaps at left tackle, and while he did well, there were issues in those snaps that keep the concern there with the small sample size added on. He also isn’t going to be a great fit for every scheme, and teams running outside or wide-zone concepts as their base may be looking elsewhere. 

Miller is naturally tall and plays with little bend, while also playing shoulders ahead of his toes, giving defenders a big opening to his chest and making it easy to get him off-balance. The more complicated footwork is great, but the basic footwork is almost nonexistent and nowhere near NFL-level proficiency. 

Miller's aggressive nature leads him to lung into contact and deliver many misplaced punches, resulting in glancing blows that do little to halt the defensive momentum. When he does land a good punch, he struggles to keep his hands inside, and the wider they get, the more the door opens for penalties. 

Despite being big and powerful enough to generate movement, Miller lacks the core strength and anchor to stall bull-rush attempts and often gets walked back on his heels. Improving his pad level can also help with these issues by keeping his center of balance closer to the ground. 

Miller doesn’t kill his feet, but he can end up with happy feet and needs to find the middle ground between the two. He will also need to develop the body chemistry to get the upper and lower halves to work in unison, rather than being so disjointed. 

Fit With the Broncos

The Broncos don’t need a starting tackle right now, but they very well could need one after the 2026 season, when they can move on from Mike McGlinchey, if they so choose, and save some money. Miller fits the scheme and would be a natural replacement at right tackle, though he would need a year to develop the technical aspects of his game. 

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