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LSU Football OL Damien Lewis has the mindset to be dominant in the NFL

By Zach Ragan

STARKVILLE, MS - OCTOBER 19: Damien Lewis #68 of the LSU Tigers drops back to pass block during a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium on October 19, 2019 in Starkville, Mississippi. The Tigers defeated the Bulldogs 36-13. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
STARKVILLE, MS - OCTOBER 19: Damien Lewis #68 of the LSU Tigers drops back to pass block during a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium on October 19, 2019 in Starkville, Mississippi. The Tigers defeated the Bulldogs 36-13. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images) /
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Former LSU football offensive lineman Damien Lewis has a bright future in the NFL.

LSU football’s Damien Lewis, an interior offensive lineman who started 27 straight games for the Tigers from 2018-19, is expected to be selected in the middle rounds of the 2020 NFL Draft.

If Lewis falls to the fourth or fifth round, someone is getting a steal.

Not only does Lewis have a tremendous amount of starting experience in the SEC (which is invaluable), he also possesses the right mindset to be a dominant player in the NFL.

Lewis displayed that mindset at the combine this week, telling reporters “I wanna put you on the ground on every single play. I wanna get off the ball and take you out of the play. I’m gonna move you off your spot and out of your gap.”

The Mississippi native added “I’m gonna take your will from you. The first goal is to get you out of the way, the second goal is to keep on mauling you through the whistle. That goes for both the pass and run game.”

What more could you want in an offensive lineman? Games are won and lost in the trenches. Offensive linemen need a nasty mindset to succeed. I’d say Lewis has that mindset.

By the way, it’s not just Lewis’ mindset and 27 straight starts that makes him a future starter in the NFL. He’s also just a really good football player. Lewis is Pro Football Focus’ fourth highest graded draft eligible offensive lineman.

Here’s what PFF had to say about Lewis:

"Lewis was born to play guard in the NFL. At 6-foot-3, 332 pounds, Lewis looks as if he couldn’t get under 300 pounds even if he trained for a marathon. He also looks like he wouldn’t cede an inch on a bull-rush against a Mac truck. And he routinely didn’t until Auburn’s Derrick Brown came along. While Brown got him a couple of times in that game, the matchup was must-see TV for any trench-play enthusiast. Both got their nice wins in, and Lewis held up about as well as any guard did against Brown all season."

There’s no way Lewis should last until the fourth or fifth round. He belongs in the second or third round. And that’s only because interior offensive linemen aren’t nearly as “sexy” as some other positions.

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