Quinn Meinerz NFL Draft Overview
Position: Interior Offensive Line
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 320 Lbs.
School: University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
Pro Day Performance Data
40-yard dash: 4.90 seconds
Vertical jump: 32”
Broad jump: 9’0”
225 Lb. Bench Reps: 33
Quinn Meinerz 2021 NFL Draft Profile
Making a major rise up the boards despite coming from a Division III program, Quinn Meinerz is quite the prospect. A scarcely recruited prospect out of Hartford Union High School outside of Milwaukee, Meinerz grew into form at Wisconsin-Whitewater. During his time with the Warhawks, he was a major part of lines that pushed their way to three conference titles. However, the last year made the scene murkier for Meinerz to shine. Despite missing all of 2020 with Division III football shut down, Meinerz changed his body, adding strength and speed for the professional game. The payoff wound up being massive, with the little-known interior lineman skyrocketing up boards through an impressive Senior Bowl week.
The blocker and his belly might’ve been the biggest story to emerge from the entire Senior Bowl week in 2021. While he broke his hand during the process, he made a name by impressing professional coaches and Senior Bowl director Jim Nagy. Additionally, Meinerz tests extraordinarily well as an athlete. While he’s a little undersized in height, his burly body and quick feet alter his ceiling. He ranked eighth among 2021 prospects with a 9.98 relative athletic score, a stat measured by Kent Lee Platte. Further, Meinerz has overwhelming strength and blew defenders away at Wisconsin-Whitewater and during Senior Bowl training. His strength was re-emphasized when he completed 33 bench press reps at his pro day, which was less than two months after suffering his broken hand. Additionally, the personality shines in Meinerz, who’s becoming a media darling in the run-up to the 2021 NFL Draft.
Strengths
- Long arms make up for his shorter height, giving him ideal reach to control defenders;
- Displays impressive core strength, which he gained from his high school wrestling career;
- Strong hands that allow him to work defenders inside;
- Powerful run blocker that has no problem getting to the second level;
- Agility and speed will allow him to work well in pulling situations;
- Fast hands allow him to throw plentiful punches;
- Never seems overwhelmed by bull-rushing defensive tackles;
Weaknesses
- Needs to improve his feet to keep up with faster defenders;
- Tends to lean over and lose his center of gravity;
- Certainly needs to adjust to tougher competition after playing Division III football;
- It Will take some time to adjust to the professional pass blocking game;
- Needs to fire off the ball a little better.
NFL Comparison: Ryan Jensen
Teams With Need at Position: Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cincinnati Bengals, Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Chargers, Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks, Los Angeles Rams
Projection: Third Round
Bottom Line on Quinn Meinerz
As one of this year’s draft darlings, fans of all 32 franchises seem to hope Meinerz lands with their club. With a great personality and a gritty work ethic, Meinerz is the kind of player that immediately improves a locker room. Further, his package of strength and speed jump out and will impress a slew of general managers around the NFL. Still, the biggest concern for Meinerz will be his ability to adjust to the professional game. Coming from a lower-level college football program to the professional game is a massive adjustment. Regardless, Meinerz impressed coaches at the Senior Bowl by holding up some of college football’s best pass rushers. While it seems likely that Meinerz will need time to adjust, his toolbox will likely have him off the board by the end of Day Two.
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
