Josh Simmons NFL Draft 2025: Scouting Report for Ohio State OT

HEIGHT: 6'5"

Weight: 310

POSITIVES

— Loose, fluid mover with excellent initial quickness, change of direction, balance and a sense of urgency to his play.

— Regularly beats the rusher to the spot using a flat or 45-degree set before expanding vertically against high-side rushes with plenty of range to protect the corner and remain balanced through the top of the QB's drop.

— Works independent hands showing a circle punch, snatch-trap, inside strike and ability to punch and reset quickly.

— Shows impressive spatial awareness with a strong drag hand against games and stunts to work inside-out and in unison with his left guard to get things sorted.

— Excellent quickness to close space on defenders in the run game before arriving on contact balanced with pop in his hands.

— Very good play strength on angle-drive blocks and rarely is shed clean due to loose hips to redirect when defenders are able to access his edges before running his feet and staying attached.

— Asset on the move on climbs, screens and pulls with the juice to track down second and third-level targets.

NEGATIVES

— Allows slippery run defenders to access his edges late in the rep that force him into scramble mode.

— Through five games has been on the positive side of blowouts and middling competition on the edge.

NOTES

— Born Dec. 26, 2002

— 4-star recruit from the 2021 class, per 247Sports

— Originally committed to San Diego State where he started 13 games at right tackle before transferring to Ohio State prior to the 2023 season

— 31 career starts at left (18) and right (13) tackle

OVERALL

Josh Simmons is a three-year starter who originally spent two years at San Diego State where he started 13 games at right tackle before he transferred to Ohio State prior to the 2023 season. Since arriving in Columbus, Simmons has started 18 games (13 at right tackle, five at left) inside the Buckeyes' 54-48 run-pass split, multiple run scheme offense centered around zone and pin-pull with gap principles mixed in. Simmons has a muscular, athletic and well-rounded, lean build with good length, very good athletic ability and play strength.

Simmons is a physically imposing, loose and powerful run blocker with a sense of urgency in his playing style that leads to establishing first meaningful contact with sticky hands and active feet to regularly stay attached and sustain. He can close space, come to balance and erase targets on pin-pull, crack toss and screens while creating thump on contact on double-team bumps to feed the defensive tackle. Simmons also excels at overtaking and cutting off the backside with very good lateral quickness, and he brings a physical, assertive demeanor to finish blocks.

In pass protection Simmons has a clean, crisp setup in his flat and angled pass sets with good pad level, active hands and easy redirect skills to protect the corner and remain balanced through the top of the QB's drop. He gets into his anchor on time and is dialed in with his left guard on stunts and games with proper timing and spatial awareness.

Overall, there's a question on how much of Simmons's early season dominance is due to a lack of competition or him being that much better, but there's no doubt that his size, movement skills, and play strength are on the shortlist for being the best in the nation at left tackle through five games.

GRADE: 7.9 (Potential Impact Player — 2nd Round)

OVERALL RANK: 27

POSITION RANK: OT3

PRO COMPARISON: Christian Darrisaw

Written by B/R NFL Scout Brandon Thorn

Prospect workout numbers, measurables (40-yard dash, hand size, etc.) and 2024 statistics will be added at a later date.