Northwestern's Peter Skoronski faces the first test on his path to OT1 status on Saturday. jfmckessy on what to watch for in Week 0 and all season long for Skoronski. FrontOffice33 | NFLDraft | GoCats
. With a quick first step, good burst, and strong hand counters, Mathis could provide one of the strongest challenges Skoronski has to face this season. It’s not a matchup Skoronski will have seen before either as Mathis just transferred to Nebraska after four seasons at TCU. How the young left tackle steps up to the challenge could set the tone for the rest of what’s likely his final season at the collegiate level.
As the season progresses, another thing to look out for is how much Skoronski’s modest length affects him against some of the bigger and potentially lengthier edge rushers. Michigan edge rushercaused some problems for Skoronski last year with his speed and length, as the tackle had a hard time getting his hands attached to the speedy pass rusher.
Questions are already popping up about whether Skoronski would better project to sliding into the interior at the next level thanks to his lack of length. Seeing how he plays this season against tough opponents like Mathis will start to bring more clarity to his NFL projections and the best way for him to contribute to an NFL offensive line.
Skoronski has fantastic fundamentals and technique that have brought him tons of success in his first two seasons as Northwestern’s left tackle replacement for Slater. He has the chance to lock up his position atop all offensive tackle rankings in next year’s draft class this year, but it’s also possible his length will prove to be problematic.