Gottlieb Ayedze, OT, Maryland (Senior)
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Rayane M
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Strengths :
- Nice mobility
- Plays low
- Good block engagement angles
- Fairly good footwork
- Very comfortable with certain types of pass protections
- Impressive balance
- Capable of playing multiple positions on the offensive line
- Shows occasional flashes of significant talent
- Raw
Weaknesses :
- Hands placement
- Kick and slide
- Inconsistent game vision
- Mental aspects need development
OL Gottlieb Ayedze
— Rayane M (@RayaneScout) February 1, 2024
One of my potential sleeper in this class at the OL position. Gottlieb is a late bloomer and because of that he's still very Raw but the flashes of potential are monstrous. Whether as OG or OT, he could well be a nice riser.
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In this draft class, to my great disappointment, I have identified only a few sleepers, but Gottlieb Ayedze has, tape after tape, established himself as one of these rare sleepers who truly excite me if selected at the right moment.
Naturally, if I've categorized Ayedze as one of my sleepers in this draft class, it's because he possesses noteworthy qualities, starting with his impressive mobility. Beyond good speed and true explosiveness, what might surprise with Gottlieb is his light-footedness and apparent agility.
Moreover, Gottlieb makes a concerted effort to play low, which results in maintaining a correct power angle to effectively finish his blocks as needed. This is a definite strong point in his game.
Another noteworthy aspect of Gottlieb's play is his ability to take good angles on his blocks. I particularly observed his excellent ability in executing combo blocks before moving to the second level, as well as his very good body positioning on pull blocks. These two situations highlight his skill in effectively placing his body, which could potentially appeal to coaches who employ modern and mobile offenses.
I've also observed that Gottlieb's footwork is generally good, with feet that remain active and a wide base, enabling him to create effective movement in run blocking situations. Additionally, as noted earlier, Gottlieb often combines this with staying low while maintaining a power angle, giving him an added advantage in successfully executing his blocks. However, while I've categorized his footwork among the strengths, it's far from extraordinary and will be discussed later, as there is a specific aspect that concerns me and will require significant work from Ayedze.
With Gottlieb, I was particularly impressed by his remarkable balance in play. In an era where many prospects appear as certain promises, I find that too many of them often resort to unbalancing themselves forward to more easily create a strong initial impact and movement on the LoS, a tendency not frequently seen in Ayedze's tapes. This aspect of his game is truly interesting as he is very rarely caught off-balance. It's impressive how Ayedze almost never lunges. Even when he is beaten on a block, he doesn't seem to be in danger and appears to play under control.
Notably, Ayedze seems much more comfortable with Slide pass protections than with Kick and Slide (the major difference between the two types of protection lies in the execution. Kick and Slide is the classic protection where the offensive line will back up to form a pocket, while Slide left/right requires the entire OL to "slide" left or right like a moving wall). In a Slide protection, Gottlieb appears confident; his steps are more powerful and assured, and there's even an improvement in his upper body work with quicker and better-placed hands, indicating his comfort with this technique.
Gottlieb's hybrid versatility in his playing position is highly attractive for any coaching staff looking for depth, given the various positions he has played during his career. I recall seeing him as a right tackle and being tested at left tackle during the draft process, as well as playing right guard, though I'm uncertain if he played left guard. The only position he hasn't played is center. This kind of player can be a real asset to cover for injuries in a squad, and this should not be overlooked at the time of the draft.
That being said, I would really like to see him initially developed as a true future option at the tackle position. Despite a build that doesn’t fit my standard for the position, I can’t overlook what I’ve seen. Gottlieb, although still needing a lot of work, shows occasional flashes of truly elite performance in some reps at tackle, and you know the term 'elite' is not used lightly by Val and me. If you want an example of a game where Gottlieb exhibited such flashes, I recommend watching him play this season against Ohio State.
Notably, Ayedze seems much more comfortable with Slide pass protections than with Kick and Slide (the major difference between the two types of protection lies in the execution. Kick and Slide is the classic protection where the offensive line will back up to form a pocket, while Slide left/right requires the entire OL to "slide" left or right like a moving wall). In a Slide protection, Gottlieb appears confident; his steps are more powerful and assured, and there's even an improvement in his upper body work with quicker and better-placed hands, indicating his comfort with this technique.
Gottlieb's hybrid versatility in his playing position is highly attractive for any coaching staff looking for depth, given the various positions he has played during his career. I recall seeing him as a right tackle and being tested at left tackle during the draft process, as well as playing right guard, though I'm uncertain if he played left guard. The only position he hasn't played is center. This kind of player can be a real asset to cover for injuries in a squad, and this should not be overlooked at the time of the draft.
That being said, I would really like to see him initially developed as a true future option at the tackle position. Despite a build that doesn’t fit my standard for the position, I can’t overlook what I’ve seen. Gottlieb, although still needing a lot of work, shows occasional flashes of truly elite performance in some reps at tackle, and you know the term 'elite' is not used lightly by Val and me. If you want an example of a game where Gottlieb exhibited such flashes, I recommend watching him play this season against Ohio State.
Lastly, I've chosen to consider his raw aspect as one of his strengths. Despite his age, Gottlieb is still progressing. I learned that he discovered football quite late and didn't know what an offensive lineman was until about 5-6 years ago. Knowing this, we can view his current level in a different light. However, let's be clear: while I see his raw potential positively, I'm not under any illusions. Given his age, his draft value might remain low, but this could actually benefit Gottlieb, as he won't face intense pressure and can continue his development more smoothly.
Moving to weaknesses, I noted that Gottlieb needs to be cautious about his hand placement. Sometimes, he can be seen with his hand in the grill of his opponent, and generally, his hand play isn't extraordinary. He doesn't have a particularly powerful punch, and although his hands are quite fast, he can sometimes be slow to engage them, thus losing the advantage at the point of attack. What often saves him in these situations is his footwork and the ability to continue generating power in his lower body to compensate. Regarding his hand placement and play, Gottlieb needs to work on his tendency to overextend his arms in pass protection, which can give an advantage to a defender skilled in hand fighting.
As briefly touched on in the strengths section for Ayedze, despite generally good footwork, his Kick and Slide technique needs significant improvement. While he has light and quick steps, Gottlieb can quickly attempt to anchor down against powerful players, but since the movement isn't fully mastered, defenders can take advantage of this, especially when Gottlieb stops his legs (as was the case against JT Tuimolau in the game against Ohio State, for example). During the Kick and Slide, Gottlieb must also be careful not to rotate his shoulders too quickly, thus exposing his interior to attacks from an EDGE utilizing speed-to-power moves or even in situations of delayed blitzes.
Indeed, it's sometimes evident that he's uncomfortable with the Kick and Slide, noticeable through the inconsistency of his steps. On the same rep, Gottlieb can change the distance of his steps two to three times, which is quite alarming. I prefer to stay positive, as these kinds of imperfections can quickly vanish with some work and more stability in the tackle position, but it was indeed frustrating to witness at the time.
I also observed some inconsistency in Ayedze's game vision and recognition of opposing blitzes. While he still has work to do in this area, there is nothing alarming; in fact, when placed in the guard position, Ayedze demonstrated impressive abilities in this regard, hence the inconsistency.
Lastly, I've noted that attention must be paid to Gottlieb's mental aspect. I believe this might be partly due to him still being relatively "new" to the sport, but he belongs to that category of players who can miss several consecutive reps if he gets beaten decisively once. This is likely because he overthinks and dwells on his mistake, leading to a cascade of poor reps. However, this works in the reverse as well; if he strings together a few high-level reps, Gottlieb is fully capable of catching fire and dominating entire drives or even quarters. Therefore, work is needed to minimize the bad reps following an error and more quickly and frequently tap into the high-performing Gottlieb.
In conclusion, Gottlieb Ayedze could potentially be the first real sleeper in this offensive line draft class. As you've gathered, I'm quite fond of Ayedze for many reasons. While initially, I envisioned him thriving as a guard at the professional level, his performance against Ohio State surprised me with his capability as a tackle, leading me to believe that it wouldn’t be surprising if a franchise decided to take the risk of developing him as a right tackle. Moreover, during the pre-draft process, Gottlieb was seen working out as a left tackle on numerous occasions. Whether this was at the request of interested teams, I'm not sure, but it certainly suggests that Ayedze’s future might not be solely at guard.
En tous cas Gottlieb me plait bien personnellement et je me disais encore il y a quelques mois qu’il « pourrait bien exploser aux yeux du monde d’ici la fin de saison si Maryland continu sur sa lancée et accroche un joli bowl. De plus, vu le potentiel athlétique il pourrait ajouter un coté encore plus sexy a son draft stock avec un joli combine ou pro day dans cette ligue qui recherche toujours plus d’athlètes et ce à toutes les positions. Je pense que si on ajoute à cela le plancher que peut avoir Gottlieb quand on voit sa capacité à évoluer quasiment partout sur la OL, il devient très difficile de voir son nom glisser plus bas que le 4eme tour. »
I was hoping to see more during the pre-draft process, but when I wrote those lines, Gottlieb already had my vote for a 3rd-round selection. Meanwhile, we've seen Ayedze being tested on the left side, which I believe is a mistake. He spent the year developing on the right and needs tocontinue developing on the left, a significant shift. Six years ago, Gottlieb didn't even know football, and today he has already learned three different positions. Now, in his draft year, he's being asked to start learning anew at a position considered by many as one of the most challenging in the NFL. I'm not a fan of this approach. Hence, there are many questions surrounding this raw player, who nevertheless shows extremely impressive flashes at times.
Therefore, I view him as a late 3rd-round pick for development as a Right Tackle. However, if he is primarily seen as a Guard, I believe his stock could drop, and he might be regarded as a mid-to-late 4th-round pick, or potentially even a 5th-round value..