Omarr Norman-Lott film review; Looking at the Chiefs' new DT
I see the vision, but have some questions about KC's 2nd round pick.
One of the best parts of the NFL draft, at least for me, is when it’s over.
That might sound… odd. But what I mean by that is I don’t like living in the hypothetical. And the draft, by its very nature, is entirely hypothetical. We value draft picks based on the players they COULD turn into, usually with visions of best-case scenarios in mind. But once a round of the draft is over, those picks turn into players. Real, concrete players with measurements, statistics, and most importantly, film. So once the draft is over, I can stop mulling hypotheticals and dive into the film. And looking at new film is one of my favorite parts of this job, especially on players that are a total mystery to me.
What strengths does a player have? What weaknesses? What areas does he appear ready to develop more? What areas is he “maxed out?” What were the ways he was used that helped him, or hurt him? How does he fit overall in a projection (oops, we’re back to hypothetical!) with the Chiefs’ scheme and other players on the team? It’s like getting to open a present, to be perfectly honest. And yes, I’m aware how odd that makes me sound.
On Thursday, The Chiefs’ 1st round pick turned into LT Josh Simmons, a pick I was absolutely thrilled with. You can find my film review (written prior to the draft) of Simmons’ 2024 snaps here, as well as a deeper dive into what I think Reid and Veach may be planning for the upcoming season and beyond for Simmons and the tackle position here. I couldn’t be more psyched about that pick.
Now, let’s talk about the Chiefs’ 2nd round draft pick, defensive tackle Omarr Norman-Lott.
Norman-Lott (MAN, the Chiefs love hyphenated names) is a shorter, compact defensive tackle who measures in at under 6’2” but weighs in at 291 pounds. He played at Arizona State for several years before transferring to Tennessee to finish his collegiate career. A couple of interesting things to note about Norman-Lott are that he only averaged a shade over 17 snaps per game last season (a wildly low number, indicative of a situational pass rusher), but that he also led all defensive tackles in pass rush win rate by PFF’s charting.
Of course, all I care about with a prospect is what the film says. And fortunately for us, we’ve been looking at defensive tackles in the “know your Chiefs draft crush” series (you can find Walter Nolen, Derrick Harmon, and Kenneth Grant by clicking on their names, with Nolen’s unlocked). And so I’ll look at Norman-Lott’s film using the same methodology, focusing on traits to try and see what he brings to the table. Here’s the methodology in case you missed it, as well as an explanation as to why:
I look at power (upper and lower body), athleticism/burst, technique/handfighting (both as a pass rusher and run defender), and an overall takeaway. In each of those areas, I’ll talk about how those traits affect said player’s ability against the pass and the run.
Basically, the idea is to gauge traits that are shown by the player that may translate to the next level… TRAITS are what you’re looking at with college players (rather than pure performance, given the quality of competition and schematic use varying). In short… what does a player do well/poorly, and how could this be harnessed (or a weakness) in the pros?
All right, let’s talk Norman-Lott’s film.
(REMINDER - Clips are meant to be demonstrative, not dispositive. They’re just an example of a trait that shows up on film consistently, not meant to “prove” that trait exists. You’ll also see more of the “good” clips than bad ones, because they’re more fun, but that doesn’t mean they’re more frequent/etc)
Upper Body Power
Norman-Lott has some punch in his hands. He’s able to get a bit of a “jolt” on first contact when he lands (his frame can at times lead to guys with good length landing before he does), and his natural low pad level helps him in getting a little bit of power to either move or turn blockers. That pop shows up as a run defender and as a pass rusher. It’s not on the same level as what you’d see with Nolen/Harmon, but it’s there.
You can see here the way Norman-Lott is able to get that initial pop on contact against the LG, who is trying to displace him but can’t given the way Norman-Lott stands him up initially. He keeps working to hold in place, relying on that left hand (look at it driving up against the LG’s pads, classic low man wins situation), and he’s able to shrink the hole that the RB is trying to hit and help contribute to a stuff.
Norman-Lott doesn’t win by being a powerhouse, but when he’s 1x1 he’ll win his fair share of those first contact battles. And he’s consistently underneath opponents. His upper body strength shows through a little more as plays move along, as he’s got a terrific motor and never stops working. That said, this is an area where he shows up as above average, but not dominant the way some of the first-round types had. Him playing a bit undersized shows up at times, particularly against bigger interior linemen with length who can weather the initial hit.
Lower Body Power
If I were to pick a reason Norman-Lott has a lower ceiling than I’d like in a 2nd round pick, it’s in the lower body power department. He’s not a “heavy” player who doesn’t hold up well at the point of attack against double teams and/or combo blocks. It also can show up when he’s rushing the passer.