The SB Nation New York Giants blog Big Blue View is breaking down this year's 2011 NFL Draft prospects, and kicked off their series by profiling BC's Anthony Castonzo. The Giants have the 19th overall pick in the draft, and many of the early mock drafts have Castonzo landing with the Giants.
That seems to make sense considering a) the Giants need to revamp their offensive line and b) all the BC ties the Giants already have.
Seriously. The Giants have so many Boston College ties that the school could almost be considered a minor league affiliate of the Giants.
Those ties start from top-down with president / CEO / co-owner John Mara (BC '76) and Vice President of Player Evaluation Chris Mara (VP of Player Evaluation), and continue through the coaching staff with head coach Tom Coughlin, assistant offensive line coach Jack Bicknell, Jr. and strength and conditioning coach Jerry Palmieri. And, of course, there are already three Eagles on the Giants current roster, including Chris Snee, Mathias Kiwanuka and Will Blackmon.
Here's what Draft Countdown had to say about Castonzo:
"Fantastic program pedigree and is the next in a long line of top BC blockers, following in the footsteps of guys like Tom Nalen, Pete Kendall, Damien Woody, Marc Colombo, Dan Koppen, Chris Snee, Jeremy Trueblood, James Marten, Josh Beekman and Gosder Cherilus --- Is battle-tested after facing elite pass rushers such as Gaines Adams, Derrick Morgan, Allen Bailey, Robert Quinn and Da'Quan Bowers during college career and holding up well --- Could project to either left or right tackle at the next level"
And here are Castonzo's positives from Sideline Scouting:
"Intelligent, heady... Very good athlete... Solid pass blocker... Plays with good overall technique... Natural knee bender... Good length and long arms... Agile with reasonably quick nimble feet... Good initial quickness, sets up quickly... Good body control... Quick kick step... Good lateral movement and slide... Good blocking range... Does a real good job mirroring defenders... Solid run blocker... Very good short area quickness... Carries his pads well... Does a good job bringing his feet along with him... Gets into defenders quickly... Solid strength at POA."
What do you think? How would Castonzo fit into the New York Giants' offensive line?