NFL Mock Draft 2017: Another QB on top?

27. player. 49. <p>Everyone in the SEC spent three seasons lamenting the Alabama coaching staff for not using O.J. Howard in a more effective fashion. Those concerns evaporated with <em>haste</em> in the national championship game.</p> <p>Howard caught five passes for 208 (yes, 208) yards and two touchdowns in Alabama’s title-winning victory over Clemson, and it was actually a surprise to most people when Howard elected to return for a final season in Tuscaloosa. The former five-star recruit has ideal size at 6-foot-6 and more than 240 pounds, and with the explosiveness that he displayed as a receiver and as a runner in that Clemson match-up, the sky is the limit for Howard.</p> <p>Until that point, Howard was best known for being a penetrating blocker for Alabama’s featured running backs, and that remains his best trait. The NFL probably won’t be a place where O.J. Howard “breaks out” as a move tight end that notches 1,000-yard seasons, but smart teams like the Packers will value his considerable across-the-board talent and Howard is the total package.</p> <p>It seems insane that Nick Saban would have this type of player back again and maybe, just maybe, we will see the passing game run through O.J. Howard in 2016 in a way that we all have been clamoring for during his career.</p>. TE. Alabama. OJ Howard