Patriots draft profile: Charles Grant is an offensive tackle project worth investing in

The William & Mary left tackle projects as a fringe Day 2 pick in this year’s draft.

The New England Patriots made some big and necessary investments in free agency, but one hole keeps looming large both figuratively and literally: the left tackle position remains a work in progress, to say the least.

The Patriots taking to the draft to pick a left tackle is therefore expected to happen, and there are some suitable candidates. But while top-tier prospects Will Campbell, Armand Membou, Josh Simmons and Kelvin Banks Jr. have gotten most of the attention, there is talent to be found in the later rounds as well.

One example of that is Charles Grant.

Hard facts

Name: Charles Grant

Position: Offensive tackle

School: William & Mary

Opening day age: N/A

Measurements: 6’4 7/8”, 311 lbs, 81 7/8” wingspan, 33 3/4” arm length, 10 1/4” hand size, 19 bench press reps, N/A Relative Athletic Score

Experience

Career statistics: 50 games (41 starts) | 2,643 offensive snaps, 80 special teams snaps | 32 QB pressures surrendered (4 sacks, 4 hits, 24 hurries) | 19 penalties

Accolades: First-team All-CAA (2022, 2023, 2024), First-team All-American (2024), Second-team All-American (2023)

Grant will hear his name called in this year’s draft, which will add another chapter to a story that only began in his junior season at Churchland High School in Portsmouth, VA. Originally an All-State wrestler, he was approached by the school’s new head coach to join the football team and immediately joined the lineup as the left tackle. Grant never looked back, earning All-District and All-Region offensive lineman honors in his two years at the job.

Despite being a fast riser, he was overlooked heading toward the college level. Not getting ranked by any of the major recruiting networks, he joined the first school that offered him a scholarship. Grant ended up spending his entire four-year college career at Division I’s William & Mary, starting 41 games and earning first-team All-CAA honors in each of his final three seasons with the school.

After his senior season, Grant was invited to both the Senior Bowl and East-West Shrine Bowl and participated in the Scouting Combine.

Draft profile

Expected round: 3-4 | Consensus big board: No. 91 | Patriots meeting: Combine

Strengths: Grant is what you would call a “toolsy” prospect. Despite having only six years of football experience on is résumé, he has all the makings of an NFL offensive tackle and has shown massive and steady growth throughout his career. He has an ideal frame but still has room to carry extra weight, combining it with natural length, impressive athletic makeup and a technical foundation shaped by his wrestling background.

He is not easily moved off his spot in pass protection because of his anchor, grip and balance. However, getting around him has also proven itself a challenge for opponents due to his length and special agility which allows him to readjust his set but still play off a firm base. In the running game, meanwhile, he has shown himself a fleet-footed player exploding out of his stance and being capable of climbing to the second level and executing backside cutoff blocks seemingly with ease.

Weaknesses: All the tools you need to see from an NFL-caliber offensive tackle are on Grant’s tape, but applying them consistently at the same time has proven itself a challenge. Yes, he has the grip strength and punch to stun opposing defenders, but he also struggles with placement and timing. Yes, he moves very well, but his attack angles and kick-slide in pass protection are questionable at times. Yes, he has the build you are looking for, but using leverage to his advantage has been a problem.

His technique being all over the place, particularly in regards to his hand usage, has led to some penalty issues; Grant has been on the wrong end of 19 penalty flags in his career, including seven in 2024 alone. All of that happened while playing at a lower level of competition at William & Mary, meaning that there is an element of projection to him especially in regards to his pass protection and fit outside of a zone scheme.

Patriots preview

What would be his role? Grant has been a left tackle since the day he started playing football, and that is where he is expected to get his NFL start as well. While his potential is sky-high, he likely will begin his career in a backup capacity while continuing to learn the ins and outs of the position and adjusting to a serious uptick in competition.

What is his growth potential? Grant’s ceiling might be as high as any offensive tackle’s in the draft. In just six years he went from somebody who has never played a down of football in his life to being a top 10 tackle in the class, and a player who still has only scratched the surface of his potential. If he can clean up his game and become more consistent in applying his technique, he can be a legitimate starting left tackle with All-Pro upside.

Does he have positional versatility? Even though he played only one special teams snap over the last two seasons, Grant has experience as a protector on field goals and extra points; he even played on punt coverage, a testament to his rare tools. Other than that and a handful of snaps as an inline blocker, his versatility in college was limited and projects to remain that way heading into the NFL:

Why the Patriots? By now, you probably have heard that New England needs help at left tackle. Grant would probably not provide that straight away, but he is a player who might be able to step into the starting lineup and hold down the fort for a decade-plus after some lead-up time. If the Patriots are comfortable being patient with his development and the uncertainty surrounding him in some respects, they could target him late on Day 2 or early on Day 3.

Why not the Patriots? Grant is a project with a promising but uncertain outcome, which in turn might lead to the Patriots preferring more certain projections earlier in the draft; if they pick a tackle in Round 1 or high in Round 2, there would be limited need to add Grant later in the draft. They also could be turned off by the fact that he is coming from a zone-based scheme and would have to essentially learn gap blocking from scratch.

One-sentence verdict: Grant is your classic high risk/high reward prospect, and somebody who could be looking like a draft steal in a few years.

What do you think about Charles Grant as a potential Patriots target? Please head down to the comment section to share your thoughts.