Jeremy Ruckert
TE Ohio State 6-5 252 SR #88
GRADE: 78 OVR RANK: TBC POS RANK: TBC
ARM LENGTH: 32 5/8″ // HAND SIZE: 10 1/8″ // 40YD: ( %) // 10YD: ( %)
VJ: ( %) // BJ: ( %) // BP: 19 (57%) // SS: ( %)// 3C: ( %)
Projection: Early contributor as a piece of an offense, can develop into a solid starting TE in a scheme that heavily features an H-back. Draft Projection: Day 3 ~ GrindingTheMocks.com
Ravens Fit: The Ravens don’t feature an H-back too often in their offense, more of a pure FB/TE combination but they have shown a willingness to adapt this area of their offense to personnel. It’s also likely that Ruckert could play a more traditional TE role with development so he will be squarely on the Ravens board as they search for that extra pass-catching TE to complement Mark Andrews in the way Hayden Hurst did. He has the size and blocking upside to be a complete Tight End in the way the Ravens want, but they might be on the lookout for less of a H-back type TE if they pull the trigger on a Tight End early.
Overall Fit 
3/5
Receiving
Rarely pressed as Ohio State moved him in motion so much pre-snap but when bumped at the line before going into his route, shows a good ability to quickly get back on the red-line and continue to gain ground quickly. When facing off or bail coverage he stems at the defender and attacks leverage effectively. Solid speed for the position, he is quicker than fast. At the break point on softer angle routes such as posts and corners he wins with effective body lean, posture, hip flexibility and suddenness. He’s able to attack the defender and manipulate his hips, before opening his own hips with impressive fluidity and then good foot speed/2-3 yard acceleration out of the break to consolidate his separation.
He has good salesmanship to his routes, utilizing convincing pressure steps at the right time, in the right route combinations against the right coverage to get the defender’s hips turned the wrong way. He also knows how to use his body mechanics to open up quicker in his bam steps. When he’s able to put all this together on harder-angle breaks like speed cuts and square cuts, he can use his play strength to subtly win too, with a chicken wing to create just enough separation. When he isn’t able to use his own savvy against defenders with very good processing or good change of direction, he has a deficiency in not being able to decelerate quickly enough that shows up. Feels well for the soft spot in the zone. He also doesn’t have overwhelming play strength at the break-point against even smaller DBs and can be run off his route or have the DB stuck to him through the break and into the rest of the route.
He has outstanding hands, he has soft hands when he needs to, has very good dexterity to catch around his frame and instinctively adjusts his hand position into the best position for different types of ball. He catches equally well stationary as on the run, and can adjust to over or underthrown balls. He has good body control and adjusts his positioning well but hasn’t yet learnt how to take full advantage of his frame to box out. Can gain YAC with mostly contact balance and physical resilience riding hits from DBs.
Blocking
As a run blocker he is good, and works best when he’s on the move and is able to use his force and physical toughness running into guys. As an H-back when on the move in space, he can position and fit very effectively. Specifically, his footwork on his positioning in space is good. He could finish more effectively, driving through guys and keeping his feet moving. When in-line, he can utilize an effective drive and attack step to snap into the defender when facing Defensive Backs or smaller Linebackers. When he goes against Defensive Ends or bigger Linebackers, he lunges too much and doesn’t position consistently. When he does, he can miss the strike-zone in the fit portion of the block.
SUMMARY
Lots of mouths to feed at Ohio State, open more than targeted – separates with savvy and suddenness. Outstanding hands. Good space blocker and works well on the move
PRODUCTION
SR: 39 Tgts, 26 Recs, 309 Rec Yards (11.9 Ave), 3 Rec TDs
JR: 15 Tgts, 13 Recs, 151 Rec Yards (11.6 Ave), 5 Rec TDs
INJURY: None
RAVENS FIT
Athleticism 3
Intelligence 4
Versatility 3
Grit 4
Scheme 3
