Ben Petrula NFL Draft Scouting Report
Background
Ben Petrula is an offensive lineman from Boston College and a prospect in the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft. Petrula has started for the Eagles for five full seasons across nearly every position on the offensive line. He was a high-3/low-4 star recruit in high school, earning scholarship offers from ACC, Big Ten, and SEC schools. As a true freshman in 2017, Petrula took over as the starting center in the second game season. He started there the rest of the season, despite never playing center before, and earned ESPN Freshman All-American.
Petrula moved to right tackle in 2018 and started all 12 games there, earning All-ACC Honorable Mention. He stayed there in 2019 and earned All-ACC Second-Team honors after starting all 13 games. In 2020, he moved inside to right guard, as the offensive line got shuffled in Jeff Hafley’s first year. He started all 11 games again and earned All-ACC Third-Team honors. Petrula moved back to right tackle in 2021 and started all 12 games there, rotating with Jack Conley early in the year. By the end of his career, he had played in and started 60 games and taken over 4100 offensive snaps.
Statistics
Career: 60 games played/started, 96 pressures allowed (62 hurries, 24 QB hits, 10 sacks), 17 penalties.
2021: 12 GP/GS, 21 pressures allowed (12 hurries, 5 QB hits, 4 sacks), 5 penalties.
2021 PFF Grades (20% snap minimum, ranks out of 329 eligible OTs): 82.1 Overall (29th), 85.0 Run Blocking (20th), 67.1 Pass Blocking (140th).
Measurements
At the Hula Bowl, Ben Petrula measured in at 6’4 ⅞” and 318 pounds. His hands were 10”, his arms were 33 ⅞”, and his wingspan was 80 ½”.
At Boston College’s Pro Day, Petrula measured in at 6’5” and 316 pounds. His hands were 10 ⅛”, his arms were 33”, and his wingspan was 80 ¼”.
Drills
At Boston College’s pro day, Ben Petrula ran the 40-yard dash in 5.29 seconds. He lept 9 feet (108 inches) in the broad jump and 31.5” in the vertical jump. Petrula put up 225 pounds 23 times in the bench press. Finally, he completed the three-cone drill in 7.99 seconds and the short shuttle in 4.83 seconds. This earned Petrula a Relative Athletic Score of 7.70 as a guard, ranking 289th out of 1254 from 1987 through 2022.
Areas of Strength
- Excellent play strength, whether moving forwards or trying to hold his ground; has the ability to move and control defenders of all sizes with relative ease. Very hard to move backward or off his spot in pass protection as well.
- Great explosion and quickness out of his stance and into blocks; speed off the line helps him gain an immediate advantage over his opponents.
- Good in Man-Gap concepts: has play strength to lock out and control opponents in Base and Drive blocks. Very effective in double team blocks, generating significant movement to clear running lanes. Maintains good leg drive to maintain the block and keep moving his opponent.
- Solid at executing blocks in Zone concepts: moves surprisingly well, given athletic testing numbers. Better when asked to be Drive blocker in Combo blocks, staying with one defender and allowing the other blocker to climb. Can still execute Reach and Scoop blocks as the playside tackle against most defenders.
- Good hand placement across all types of blocks: gets his hands up and into defenders very quickly, placing them well to gain control over them; play strength helps him steer and control opponents easily.
- When he properly engages his opponent in pass protection, he is able to sustain his block quite well, using his strength to slow down and control his opponent. Very good consistent anchor against power rushes, almost never getting run over. Does a good job of keeping his head on a swivel to look for twists and late blitzes.
- Extensive experience across nearly every position on the offensive line, earning all-conference honors at both guard and tackle; took over starting center job as a true freshman despite no experience there.
Areas to Improve
- Adequate movement skills for a tackle: struggles to consistently get to his set points on time against speedy edge rushers; moving along the arc when executing vertical sets in pass protection is somewhat slow/stiff.
- Not very good when asked to block in space. Generally struggles to change direction when on the move; if a defender gets by him, he cannot redirect and relocate the target. This leads to issues when climbing to the second level, where he frequently looks lost and slow. Smaller, quicker defenders easily evade him, and even if he does engage them, he struggles to sustain and finish his blocks.
- Subpar athletic ability and movement skills lead to problems in pass protection; plays too high and needs to bend more/better, allowing edge rushers to get under/around him. Also had lots of issues dealing with advanced pass rush moves, as rushers can set him up then counter with another move and defeat him.
- Has some issues with maintaining good pad level, leverage, and bend when going forward; gets out in front of his skis sometimes, causing him to stumble and miss his blocks.
- Would like to see him be more aggressive with sustaining and finishing blocks through the whistle, especially given his frequent advantages in play strength.
- Despite his experience, did not significantly improve year to year, even when accounting for position changes. Struggled with the same issues as a senior and was even rotated out of the lineup early in the season.
Summary
In the NFL, Ben Petrula has the skills to be a valuable backup due to his raw strength, technical prowess, and versatility. Petrula is very strong and is able to dominate the vast majority of opponents with that alone. He is explosive off the snap and has excellent hand technique which allows him to secure an immediate advantage over his opponents and control them. Petrula is an adequate blocker in pass protection, once again relying on his strength and refinement to slow down defenders. He has extensive experience at all three offensive line positions, making him a very valuable asset to any team.
Nevertheless, Petrula’s subpar movement skills and athletic ability limit his effectiveness in some assignments and schemes. While he is explosive out of his stance, he struggles to change direction and looks very uncomfortable in space. As this was an issue in college, it will certainly not get better against the superior athletes of the NFL. Because of this, Petrula will most likely be limited to teams that employ offenses relying on Man-Gap run schemes and play-action passing. In a more Zone-centric, pass-happy offense, he would most likely be a liability.
However, moving Petrula inside to guard could remedy some of these issues. At guard, his movement skills and athletic ability are less important and his flaws can be masked more easily. His power would be even more of an asset, as he can help clear out interior run lanes and prevent interior pressure on the quarterback. In the right system, if pressed into the lineup, Petrula could be an effective spot starter at guard. With proper NFL training and conditioning, I could see him developing into an eventual starter.
Grade: 5.0/10 (versatile backup providing depth; could develop into a starter in the right system)
#335 Overall Player (#29 OG, #40 IOL #71 OL), Round 7-FA
Comparison: Mike McGlynn, 2008 R4 #109, Philadelphia Eagles
Author's Note: special thanks to my friend Daniel Kitchen for his help with this report.
