Latham could be the New York Jets’ main tackle option at No. 10
Can the New York Jets lose by winning?
That is certainly a possibility after they won their final game of the season and slid from the eighth slot in the draft to the 10th. Had they lost to the New England Patriots, they would have the sixth pick in the draft. The brownie points of breaking the streak against Bill Belichick pale in comparison to the potential loss of a valuable prospect.
Nowhere is this more glaring than at the Jets’ position of greatest need, offensive tackle. With the eighth spot, the Jets were still within striking distance of drafting one of the consensus top-two tackles in the draft, Joe Alt or Olu Fashanu. Now, they may well be out of range of both of those players, leaving them with last licks in Alabama’s J.C. Latham.
If the Jets do end up with Latham, what would they be getting? Is he worthy of the 10th pick in the draft?
Bio
Latham was a five-star recruit out of IMG Academy in Florida, where he played both offensive tackle and defensive end. He played 14 games as a backup tackle in his true freshman year at Alabama before becoming the team’s starting right tackle in 2022-23. He was a second-team AP All-American in 2023.
According to the Alabama website, Latham used last offseason to add weight and reduce body fat. He was previously listed at 6-foot-6, 335 pounds but is now reportedly up close to 360 pounds.
Latham is not shy about making his opinions known. Earlier this season, he called out a freshman offensive lineman, saying, “If you want to step in and play at the University of Alabama, especially as a freshman, you’ve got to be mature enough to handle it. This isn’t high school no more.”
Latham’s nickname is “Trench King,” or TK for short. He modeled it after Deion Sanders’ “Prime Time” moniker.
By the numbers
Latham allowed a 3.2% pressure rate in the 2023 season, which tied for 27th-best out of 199 qualified FBS tackles (min. 350 pass-blocking snaps). His 0.45% sack rate ranked 70th. His 4% true pass set pressure rate ranked 11th, but his 1.01% sack rate on true pass sets ranked 78th.
Coming out of Alabama, Latham has more experience in true pass sets than many other tackles. In 2023, 44.9% of Latham’s pass-blocking snaps were true pass sets, which was the 11th-highest rate among FBS tackles, one spot below Alt (45.4%). The FBS average is just 33.2%, while the NFL average is 46.3%. Latham faced tougher pass-blocking situations than Fashanu (37.2% true pass set rate).
If you adjusted all 199 qualified tackles’ pressure rates and sack rates based on their frequency of true pass sets, Latham would rise from 27th to 16th in pressure rate, and his sack rate would rise from 70th to 57th.
As a run-blocker, Latham ranked seventh among tackles with a 79.6 Pro Football Focus run-blocking grade. This includes an 86.1 zone-blocking grade, also seventh-ranked.
Latham was called for too many penalties, posting seven total. That was a rate of 125 snaps per penalty, tied for 147th.
Here are his statistics compared to Alt and Fashanu, considered the top two tackles in the draft.
- Pressure rate: Alt 1.4% (2nd), Fashanu 2.6% (T-12th), Latham 3.2% (27th)
- Sack rate: Fashanu 0% (T-1st), Alt 0.27% (T-45th), Latham 0.45% (70th)
- Pro-adjusted pressure rate: Alt 1.4% (1st), Fashanu 2.6% (T-8th), Latham 3.2% (16th)
- Pro-adjusted sack rate: Fashanu 0% (T-1st), Alt 0.27% (36th), Latham 0.47% (57th)
- PFF run-blocking grade: Alt 86.5 (4th), Latham 79.6 (7th), Fashanu 70.5 (T-37th)
- Snaps per penalty: Alt 356 (27th), Fashanu 181 (88th), Latham 125 (147th)
In other words, Latham has by far the worst statistics of the three tackles. Only his run-blocking puts him anywhere near the same level as Alt and Fashanu.
Injury unknown
Latham was helped off the field after injuring his leg on the final play of the Rose Bowl, and his status is unknown.
Alabama RT JC Latham was injured on the final play and helped off. He is a potential first round pick in April. pic.twitter.com/eM4MWxRHuA
— Mike Rodak (@mikerodak) January 2, 2024
Obviously, this could impact his draft status.
Right tackle only?
Unlike Alt and Fashanu, who have both been left tackles over the past two seasons, Latham has started only at right tackle in his college career (he appeared at right guard as a backup in 2021). Exclusive right tackles tend to be valued less than those who play on the left side.
Latham entered the lineup as a right tackle because Tyler Steen manned the left side for Alabama. When Steen left in the NFL Draft, though, Nick Saban decided to keep Latham on the right side. He reasoned that Latham’s power played well on the right side and there was no guarantee it would switch over. However, Latham considered himself a left tackle coming out of high school.
One of the reasons the Jets chose Mekhi Becton over Tristan Wirfs was the former’s ability to play left tackle. This should not factor as strongly into the Jets’ calculus this season, especially since they need help at both tackle spots. That being said, if they plan on using Alijah Vera-Tucker at tackle, they should make sure they’re comfortable with Latham on the left side before drafting him. Vera-Tucker’s short arms showed up the most glaringly at left tackle in 2022.
Worth taking at No. 10?
According to NFL Consensus Mock Draft Database, Latham is currently viewed as the 16th-best prospect in this draft cycle. Right now, his most common mock draft spot is at No. 17 to the Jaguars. If Alt and Fashanu are off the board at No. 10, though, should the Jets take Latham for the position of need?
The answer to this question should be simple. The Jets should acquire two stopgap tackles in free agency, enabling them not to overdraft a tackle. That is easier said than done, but there is no way the Jets should go into the draft forced to draft a tackle as a starter. If they prefer to put Vera-Tucker at tackle, then they’d still need one legitimate free-agent tackle to give themselves more flexibility in the draft.
Taking a player like Latham is more risky than Alt or Fashanu. Those two are more likely to succeed as pass-blockers when they first come into the league. Latham has more room for growth in the passing game, and at his size, that’s a potential red flag.
Rather than being forced to take Latham at that spot, the Jets need the flexibility to take the best player available. With a potential run on quarterbacks plus Marvin Harrison Jr. and Malik Nabers, there are other possible blue-chip prospects at premium positions who could fall to the Jets. It’s not that they shouldn’t take Latham, but they should not be forced to take him in this spot.
Follow Rivka Boord on Twitter @rivka_boord
