Solomon Kindley, G, Georgia

The weakest link on the Lions’ offensive line is at the guard spots. Being able to add an early round talent to step in from day one and make an impact could go a long way in keeping Matthew Stafford protected and maximizing the potential of their running game.

Lance Zierlein of NFL.com pointed out that Kindley ‘has the frame of a powerful guard’ and ‘lives in scrap mode.’ However, his lack of flexibility can limit his ability to generate leverage at the point of attack, potentially limiting his ceiling.

Nasty guard who lives in scrap mode, looking for fights inside a relatively small phone booth where he’s most comfortable. Kindley has the frame of a powerful guard, but doesn’t bend well enough to generate leverage and push at the point of attack. He’s a mauler with enough finesse to get to some reach and cut-off blocks, but faces scheme limitations. Slide quickness is limited and his tendency to lunge allows rushers to work around his edge earlier than teams like. The size and toughness are great, but Kindley needs to play with better control and technique in order to become an average NFL backup.

Something that stands out about Kindley is that he could benefit from dropping some weight (337 lbs). Aside from his weight, his other measurements are solid as they include a height of 6’3″ and he has 32 1/4″ arms and 10″ hands.

If the Lions feel they can help Kindley with his flexibility limitations, they could maximize his ceiling at the NFL level. Helping him to drop some weight would likely help in this area, so it’s certainly worth considering given his upside.