On Veteran Ducks, Hanson ‘Was the Boss’

Oregon offensive line coach Alex Mirabal raved about the play and leadership of 49-game starter Jake Hanson, the Packers' sixth-round pick.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
May 12, 2020 10:34 PM EDT

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Oftentimes, offensive linemen aren’t noticed until they’re either not in the lineup or they let their defender smash the quarterback.

“It’s really, really true,” Oregon offensive line coach Alex Mirabal said. “It’s really, really true. You only notice O-linemen when they’re not there or they get called for holding.”

That was the case for one of Mirabal’s star pupils, Jake Hanson. A sixth-round draft pick by the Green Bay Packers, Hanson started 49 of a possible 52 games in his career. As a junior, he sat out the first half against Utah after being flagged for targeting the previous game. As a senior, he missed two games due to injuries.

“You could see the significant difference in our performance as an offensive line because he wasn’t in there,” Mirabal said. “That speaks a lot to him and his value. In that Utah game, he sat out the first half and then he comes in in the second half and we start rallying back, we thought as coaches, because of his presence back in the middle.”

Hanson, who was an honorable mention on the all-Pac-12 team all four seasons, is an interesting combination of dichotomies. He’s athletic but tested horribly at the Scouting Combine. He’s quiet but an unquestioned leader.

First, the athleticism. Among the offensive linemen who went through testing at the Scouting Combine, Hanson ran the fourth-slowest 40 (5.50 seconds). And yet, Mirabal says athleticism is a strength to Hanson’s game.

“As O-line guys, we live in a 10-yard box. He was great in a 10-yard box,” he said. “When we did the pin-and-pull play, he had zero issues getting out in front of it. You know what? No offense to scouting but I think scouting stinks. You take a kid who’s started 49 games and all you want to do as a scout is tear him down. That happened to our quarterback (Justin Herbert), to our left guard (Shane Lemieux) who started 52 games. To me, watch what’s on the damned film. (David) Bakhtiari, I’m sure, got torn down when he was coming out. (Corey) Linsley, I’m sure, got torn up when he was coming out. Is he a damned good football player or not? Does he get his assignment done or not? Jake Hanson, we played Utah this year in the championship game and Utah’s got two guys inside – (John Penisini) got drafted by the Detroit Lions in the fifth round and (Leki) Fotu got drafted in the fourth round by the Arizona Cardinals – and Jake Hanson got all over their ass. He’s a heck of a football player.”

In Mirabal’s opinion, everything clicked for Hanson as talent combined with experience for his senior season. The game slowed down, which allowed Hanson to play with more of a big-picture feel for his surroundings. Mirabal compared it to a thoroughbred racing with blinders so the horse can see only straight ahead and not be distracted by what’s going on to his left and right. For Hanson, it was like playing without blinders.

“It comes with experience but some guys never achieve it,” Mirabal said. “I’m telling you, I noticed it right away. Our first scrimmage of last spring, we were in Portland scrimmaging and we were running it and, all of a sudden, he starts doing things that I’m like, ‘Wow.’ You’re working with the front-side guard but he feels what’s going on with the back-side guard. It’s one of those things. ‘Coach, I just kind of felt it.’ You could see the game start to slow down for him. That happens with experience but some guys never get it. Some guys never see beyond, ‘Hey, this is the guy I’ve got.’ That was really, really cool to see. You could see how his game took off.”

Second, it’s leadership. Center is a key spot on the offensive line since he’s typically in charge of making the line calls and making sure everyone is on the same page. Mirabel called Hanson a “quiet, reserved guy” who observes his surroundings before opening up and showing his personality. While those might not seem compatible, it was Hanson who led the veteran-laden Ducks, a Rose Bowl championship team with an elite quarterback in Herbert and three other senior starters on the offensive line.

“Make no mistake about it: He had a bunch of alpha males around him but he was the boss,” Mirabal said. “If our sixth pick overall in the NFL Draft (Herbert) changed a protection and he was wrong, he dropped his ass and told Justin, ‘You’re wrong. This is what we’re doing.’ That’s Jake Hanson. He is going to step up when he is supposed to.”