NFL Draft: Houston Texans trade for upside with Charlie Heck

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Houston Texans offensive tackle Charlie Heck (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

The tangibles and what the experts are saying

The tangibles

Heck is an orangutan of a protector with his larger-than-life 6-foot-8, 311-pound frame. He has 34.13-inch arms with 9.25-inch hands which will certainly get the job done in this league. For an offensive lineman, his 40-yard dash time was 5.16 seconds which is quite impressive for a guy of his size.

He’s a bit top-heavy in terms of muscle which may affect his blocking early-in but I think he’s going to work on trying to shore that up. He told the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson that he wants to gain weight, with 320 pounds as his goal.

He’s quite athletic, agile and his specialty is being able to block for the run game which is paramount in O’Brien’s/Kelly’s run-the-football as priority offense.

The Heck name is synonymous with the game of football with his Dad, Andy, being an accomplished offensive lineman in the NFL for 12 seasons as well as a formidable collegiate career at Notre Dame. He’s currently the offensive line coach for the defending champ Kansas City Chiefs.

I’m positive he’ll be seeing his son quite a bit through his career on the opposite end of the field as

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the Houston Texans seem to always have a consistent date with the Chiefs, albeit sloppy at times.

Although he broke his hand last season against Appalachian State, he managed to miss a minute amount of time and started all 12 games he appeared in. This guy is tough as nails and this is the kind of player that has O’Brien hunched over salivating over his potential. He only gave up 0.33 sacks — one-third of a sack — through his entire 2019 campaign which is remarkable. That’s the kind of protection that they need.

Heck was named to the All-ACC second team and was the Offensive Lineman of the Week for his performance against in the season opener against South Carolina. So if this is any indication, this man is going to start out strong but let’s hope he finishes in that manner as well.

So what are the experts saying about him?

What the experts are saying

Lance Zierlein of NFL.com:

"“Three-year starter with offensive line play in his bloodlines. He’s a tall tackle with inevitable leverage and anchor concerns at times despite playing with bend. He carries an NFL-ready frame with long arms and loose hips for move blocks and recoveries. His range in pass sets is just average, so he needs to get on top of rushers with his length early in the rep to maintain feel and widen the arc when needed. Heck has the talent to handle swing tackle duties and should be fully functional in all run-blocking schemes.”"

Joe Marino of The Draft Network:

"“North Carolina offensive tackle Charlie Heck is a surprisingly fluid mover for a man of his stature and he does a great job taking advantage of his long arms in pass protection. A three-year starter for the Tarheels, Heck is the son of an NFL offensive line coach and has been pretty consistent in pass protection throughout his college career despite some areas that he can improve with his technique. Heck will always have to fight his naturally high center of gravity that leads to body control issues and he needs to clean up his pass sets. Heck profiles as a potential starter but likely a valuable reserve swing tackle.”"

Charlie Campbell of WalterFootball.com:

"“Heck played well for the Tar Heels in 2019 despite missing some time with a broken hand. He played with the injury and had an impressive performance against Clemson. At the East-West Shrine, Heck had a good week of practice, but he was not as impressive in Mobile while taking on the Senior Bowl edge rushers. He had a solid performance at the combine.”"

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