Sedrick Van Pran NFL Draft Overview
The center position is one of the most important positions in football. The on-field responsibility and leadership qualities required to play center make this position very particular to play. Centers are just different. A great center is revered in the locker room, similar to a great quarterback. Players like Jason Kelce and Nick Mangold have a similar impact on an offense as their quarterbacks. Having a great center makes life easier for quarterbacks and the rest of the offensive line.
Looking for the next great center is difficult, but the 2024 NFL Draft has a few options. One of them is Georgia’s Sedrick Van Pran. The on-field play is very good, but the leadership he displays is what makes him so attractive. Players around Georgia listen when Van Pran speaks. Van Pran has been the alpha for the Bulldogs since being named a starter in 2021. Media will be able to get a first-hand look at those qualities next month at the Senior Bowl, in Mobile, Alabama.
Sedrick Van Pran laddies & Gentleman… pic.twitter.com/Rww3MZs41E
— Cole Cubelic (@colecubelic) December 30, 2023
Position: Interior Offensive Line
Height: 6’4” (Unofficial)
Weight: 310 lbs (Unofficial)
School: Georgia
Sedrick Van Pran 2024 NFL profile
Strengths
- Leadership qualities valued at the center position
- Started 44 consecutive games to end his career
- Looks to finish blocks and put people into the ground
- Skilled puller who really gets on his horse to get downfield
- Strong player who excels on double teams and climbing to the second level
- Great size for the position
- Strong, heavy hands that make an impact upon contact
- Smart player who routinely makes checks and picks up pass-rush games
Weaknesses
- Average to below-average length for the position
- Length routinely limits him as a blocker
- Occasionally over-extends
- Over-extension leads to occasional quick sheds in passing game
NFL Comparison: Scott Quessenberry
Projection: Mid-to-Late day two pick
Best Fits: San Francisco 49ers, Minnesota Vikings, Miami Dolphins
Bottom Line on Sedrick Van Pran
Center is a position that never truly gets talked about during draft season. The players at that position also rarely see themselves get drafted high. For every Garrett Bradbury and Frank Ragnow, there is a Creed Humphrey. Humphrey was a fantastic prospect in the 2021 NFL Draft but saw himself fall all the way to the 63rd overall pick. Humphrey became a day-one starter for the Kansas City Chiefs and never looked back. If teams knew how good Humphrey would be, no way he would have fallen that far in the NFL draft.
Sedrick Van Pran has been the model of consistency for the Georgia Bulldogs. He started 44 consecutive games to finish his college career and won two national championships in Athens. Van Pran has put together some quality tape during his career and found himself firmly in the conversation to be a day-two pick. Van Pran is an athletic blocker who has shown the ability to get out in space and spring big plays for his offense. He will be competing the hardest with Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson to be the number one center in the 2024 NFL Draft. Both are projected second-round picks as of today.
Main Photo Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK
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