2023 NFL Draft: Jaguars OL Coach Phil Rauscher Attends Alabama Pro Day

The Crimson Tide have a few offensive line prospects looking to showcase their skills and one who is looking for a way back into the NFL.

Jaguars offensive line coach Phil Rauscher has been a busy man with April inching closer and closer.

Mere days after attending Syracuse’s Pro Day, Rauscher made his way over to Tuscaloosa, to get an up-close look at offensive line prospects Emil Ekiyor and Tyler Steen.

#Jaguars OL Coach Phil Rauscher at Alabama's pro day (screen grab via @BillyM_91) pic.twitter.com/nVpgQP7RQU

— John Shipley (@_John_Shipley) March 23, 2023

Ekiyor appeared in 41 games in his collegiate career at right guard for the Crimson Tide, playing an important role on a dominant 2020 squad that won the National Championship. At 6-foot-2 and 314 pounds with 9 ½” inch hands and 33 ⅞” arms, Ekiyor possesses ideal size on the interior and the fundamentals necessary to develop into an eventual starter at the NFL level according to NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein.

“Guard prospect who plays with the calm and consistency expected from a three-year starter at Alabama,” Zierlein wrote in Ekiyor’s draft profile. “Ekiyor is shorter than teams might like, but he’s girthy and plays with excellent fundamentals from snap to whistle. He’s an adequate athlete suited for inside zone and gap scheme runs. Footwork and hand placement are helpful but he’s likely to have issues dealing with space-eaters and bull-rushers who can generate pocket push against him. Ultimately, Ekiyor is both smart and sound with how he plays the position and could have staying power as a future starter.”

Steen on the other hand started his collegiate career on the opposite side of the ball as a defensive tackle at Vanderbilt before transitioning to the offensive line, starting 12 games at right tackle during the 2019 campaign and 21 games between 2020-2021 at left tackle. Steen transferred to Alabama as a graduate student before last season, finishing the campaign with second-team All-SEC honors and starting 13 games for the Crimson Tide.

“He’s a vertical pass setter who plays with good awareness to twists and blitzes,” Zierlien wrote. “Steen uses length and hand resets to extend his mirroring. He would benefit from better catch-and-clamp hands to limit secondary rush opportunities. He plays with hustle off the snap to find back-side positioning on zone blocks, but he needs to eliminate his forward lean in space to improve timing and adjustments at the second level. Steen has good size with average athleticism and is still fine-tuning technique. He could compete for a role as a swing backup early on but could find starting snaps in time.”

While the majority of the attention is directed toward incoming prospects of the future, one NFL fixture and former Alabama All-American and three time national champion D.J. Fluker is in attendance as well to potentially resurrect his NFL playing career.

The 32-year-old was a 2013 first round draft pick of the then San Diego Chargers and played with six NFL franchises throughout the course of his career. Fluker last played with the Baltimore Ravens during the 2020 season, though he briefly spent time on the Jaguars' roster at the end of the 2021 season.