Hillland Bringing His Physical Style To The Nfl

[DKphin]

Connor Hilland couldn’t help but grin when he described his style as a football player.
“I’m a very aggressive player,” Hilland said. “I’ve kind of learned to control that. I would say I’m more of an aggressive type player. I’ve been trying to get more kind of finesse into my game, more patience, and I think I’ve been doing a good job. But overall, I just kind of like to … just dominate.”

https://www.miamidolphins.com/news/hillland-bringing-his-physical-style-to-the-nfl

 

[ckparrothead]

I've actually got my eye on this guy because he impressed the hell out of me when he went up against NC State's full lineup of NFL defensive linemen in 2016.

Remember that NC State had Bradley Chubb (1st round), Kentavius Street (4th round), Justin Jones (3rd round), and B.J. Hill (3rd round) on their defensive line. And they've got another kid Eurndraus Bryant that I think may bear some watching. They had a legit NFL safety in Josh Jones as well, and he played a lot in the box, so Hilland ended up blocking him on several occasions.

Connor Hilland was supposed to be overwhelmed, but he really wasn't. He was playing with all those guys, easily. The caveat is that because of the way they were playing, he didn't end up having to square up on some of the bigger, stronger guys, and just go head-up, toe-to-toe with them. When Hilland had to do that more against some of the big DLs in the Shrine Game, he struggled some.

This is why it's interesting to me that he's moving to Center for the Miami Dolphins. This suits his game perfectly. A Center doesn't often have to go toe-to-toe with a big DL without help. There are nose tackles out there, but the Center often gets some help against those guys.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

I've actually got my eye on this guy because he impressed the hell out of me when he went up against NC State's full lineup of NFL defensive linemen in 2016. Jones (3rd round), and B.J. Hill (3rd round) on their defensive line. And they've got another kid Eurndraus Bryant that I think may bear some watching. They had a legit NFL safety in Josh Jones as well, and he played a lot in the box, so Hilland ended up blocking him on several occasions.

Connor Hilland was supposed to be overwhelmed, but he really wasn't. He was playing with all those guys, easily. The caveat is that because of the way they were playing, he didn't end up having to square up on some of the bigger, stronger guys, and just go head-up, toe-to-toe with them. When Hilland had to do that more against some of the big DLs in the Shrine Game, he struggled some.

This is why it's interesting to me that he's moving to Center for the Miami Dolphins. This suits his game perfectly. A Center doesn't often have to go toe-to-toe with a big DL without help. There are nose tackles out there, but the Center often gets some help against those guys.

Certainly room for a developmental center on this team. Kilgore is a short-term fix. Perhaps Asiata could find a home there as well. I still think drafting a guard/center type pretty early could be on the radar next year depending on how that position ranks in the coming draft. Sitton isn't young and center needs a long-term answer.