Arizona Cardinals 2019 NFL Draft: Who is Lamont Gaillard?

With the No. 179 overall pick, the Arizona Cardinals add to their offensive line by way of former Georgia center Lamont Gaillard.

After allowing 50 sacks for the second straight season in 2018, the Arizona Cardinals were expected to add to their offensive line in the off-season. They did just that in free agency. But, in the draft, they waited until the sixth round to select former Georgia interior lineman Lamont Gaillard in order to overhaul the group located in the trenches.

Measuring in at 6-foot-2 and 305-pounds with 33-1/2-inch arms, Gaillard has a solid frame to play center. However, by interior offensive line standards as a whole, the Georgia product is slightly undersized. But, he more than makes up for that lack of size with a gritty playstyle that newly hired offensive line coach Sean Kugler may love.

As a three-year starter for Georgia, Gaillard earned team captain status due to his 110% effort on every play. Because of that effort, Pro Football Focus valued Gaillard as their fourth-ranked center and 106th overall player in the 2019 NFL Draft.

In 1,029 career pass-blocking snaps, Gaillard allowed just 5.0 sacks, three hurries, and 22 QB pressures, per PFF. According to PFF, his 98.7 pass-blocking efficiency grade ranks as 20th in the class,  his 366 snaps per inside pressure rank at eighth, and his 91.3% run-block success rate rank at ninth. He allowed a bullrush pressure once in every 122.3 snaps.

NFL Media’s scout Lance Zierlein was rather high on Gaillard, giving him a fourth-round grade, and saying this about the tenacious center;

"Gaillard’s play is not without technique, but when the rep gets sideways on him, he will turn it into a proverbial fist-fight to try and hang on and get his job done. He’s better down the middle than laterally and may be best suited in a power-based run scheme. It’s not going to always look pretty, but his tape against Alabama shows that he’s capable of becoming an eventual starter sometime soon."

Both analytics, tape, and scouts confirm one thing; Gaillard is a hard-nosed player that can bring grit and toughness to the Cardinals offensive line group. Although he needs to get more technically refined to mask his lack of height, length, and muscle mass, Gaillard has the potential to be a high-quality starter in the NFL.

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