Jalen Sundell, IOL, North Dakota State
Size:
Height: 6’5”
Weight: 301 pounds
Arm Length: 33 1/8’’
Hand Size: 9 1/2"
Accomplishments:
AFCA All-American (2023) • First Team All-MVFC (2023)
"Jalen Sundell's exceptional athleticism, high football IQ, and relentless drive make him the perfect fit for the modern NFL center position."
Strengths:
Great football IQ—plays from the neck up
Fantastic athlete—twitched-up with fluid hips and fires off the ball
Strong foundation in pass protection with impressive footwork
Landmarks defenders well and takes great angles
Positional versatility
Concerns:
Will struggle with NFL strength/power at the line of scrimmage
Occasional inefficient hand usage
Struggles to win the line of scrimmage against tight shades and nose tackles and overcompensates with poor footwork
Off-hand (non-snapping hand) often flares outside of the frame of defenders
Film Analysis:
Jalen Sundell is next up in the long line of impressive NDSU offensive linemen. Being a part of such a dynamic offense, Sundell’s abilities and tools were put on full display throughout his six-year career with the Bison. Primarily playing center before the 2023 season where he started all 15 games as a blindside tackle, Jalen Sundall pairs size, versatility, and fiery athleticism that beautifully fits modern-day NFL offenses.
When narrowing in on Sundell’s tape at center, particularly in the five games he played in 2022 before a season-ending injury, I was thoroughly impressed with his agility and movement. He excelled in executing pin-and-pull actions as a playside blocker, adeptly shadowing second-level defenders to create openings. His proficiency in this aspect of play showcases his exceptional abilities as a blocker in open space. Another area where Sundell impressed was his identification ability and eye discipline in both phases of the game. Playing against several gap-exchange defenses, Sundell was consistently disciplined in his assignments, always attacking or adjusting with conviction, allowing him to play open and free—something that is incredibly challenging to perfect the way he did.
As a pass protector, I much prefer Sundell locking down the center spot. His footwork is reactive and efficient—he has no issue mirroring defenders and does a great job of straining and recovering in awkward situations.
Diving into his abilities as a run blocker, Sundell has an innate understanding of landmarking defenders. He does a good job of taking the right angles and uses hat placement to his advantage. At both tackle and center, Sundell was consistently successful in covering up second-level defenders and does a good job of anticipating where defenders are going, rather than where they presently are to meet them in their tracks.
Where Sundell runs into trouble is against big-bodied tight shades and penetrating down linemen. Inefficiencies with his hand placement in the run game, primarily with his non-snapping hand flaring to the outside of defenders, surrender openings in his chest which put him at a physical disadvantage against stronger defenders in close quarters. An admittedly minute detail could be quickly fixed with NFL coaching and development, which leads me to lose much of any concern over it. Quite frankly, I’m much more interested in Sundell for what he can do than what he can’t. The tools are there and they are special.
Projecting Sundell to an NFL roster, I believe there will be some natural growing pains. As he adjusts to the strength and speed of the league's top linemen, falling on his foundation as a high-IQ, full-throttle player will be crucial in his ability to work into a starting role. I fully anticipate Sundell to make a name for himself on an NFL roster.
Prospect Projection: Day 3 — Developmental Traits
Exposures: NC A&T (2022), Arizona (2022), South Dakota (2022), Youngstown St. (2022), SDSU (2023), Montana (2023)
