Comparing Cordy Glenn to Marcus McNeill

No surprise here, Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Cordy Glenn is in the mold of Marcus McNeill.

He’s been compared to the Pro Bowl tackle by Buddy Nix since the draft, and there’s many discernible similar qualities between the two.

To start, Let’s get those out of the way.

McNeill is 6’7” and 338 pounds—a mammoth of a man. Glenn measured in at 6’5” and 347 pounds at this year’s combine. Not exactly diminutive, either.

Glenn, as you know, played his college ball at Georgia with the ‘Dawgs and McNeill was an Auburn Tiger. Nothing better than getting experience in the NFL’s farm system, better known as the SEC.

The second-round picks had nearly identical collegiate careers, as well.

Both were four-year starters and were extremely decorated upon entering the NFL.

The only real difference is that Glenn played guard for the majority of his time in Athens, while McNeill was a tackle throughout his entire time with Auburn.

The top-level experience must have been appealing to just about every scout, head coach, and general manager in the league.

At the 2006 combine, McNeill ran a relatively blistering 5.07 in the 40-yard dash and jumped a stunning 31 inches. Glenn, a bit heavier, still ran an impressive 5.15 in the famed dash and managed a 23.5 vertical leap.

In the three-cone drill, Glenn moved to a time of 8.13 while McNeill was clocked at 8.19.

Clearly, these are two enormous, fleet footed guy who are more athletic than they look.

Lastly, and to some, most importantly, both Glenn and McNeill have huge wingspans. McNeill’s arms are 35 5/8 inches while Glenn measured in at a defensive end-engulfing length of 35 3/4th inches. Having a long reach is obviously a vital aspect of playing either left or right tackle at any level.

Now, onto what they bring to the field.

Robert Davis of FootballsFuture.com scripted the following blurb about the Tigers’ tackle before the 2006 draft:

"He uses that size on the field and absolutely dominates in the running game. He can lock on to a defender and drive him straight into the ground. McNeill is not all power though. He is a very good natural athlete and shows the ability to keep his quarterback off the ground.While his size gives him a lot of advantages, it is a negative at times. Since he is so tall, he sometimes gets too upright out of his stance, which allows defenders to neutralize his size and strength advantage. He needs to play with the same intensity on a snap to snap basis. McNeill may have some back issues that need to be looked at."

Davis interestingly went on to say that McNeill was the best right tackle in the class. He correctly slotted him as an early second-rounder.

There seemed to be a bigger sentiment that Glenn was better suited for guard at the next level than there ever was for McNeill, but with Glenn’s frame, footwork and monster wingspan, he’s a tackle in my estimation.

CBSSports.com wrote the following about the Bulldogs offensive lineman:

"Glenn obliterates defenders on the run and was a very good pass protector in college, certainly a factor in Georgia finishing third in the SEC with an average of 413 yards of offense per game. Glenn appears most natural at guard, but was used at left tackle last season and in Senior Bowl workouts.He has all the strength you would expect of a man his size and then some, but somehow manages good enough footwork to be efficient much of the time as a pass blocker and can get downfield to pick off second level defenders, much to the surprise of both to scouts and the overwhelmed defenders themselves."

A pretty fair assessment of Glenn.

Sound like anyone?

Sure does to me.

Is there anything else to add?

Not really.

Glenn isn’t as tall as McNeill, and McNeill entered the league with some injury issues. Those are the only major differences between the two.

Let’s hope Glenn becomes as dominating a player on the left side in Buffalo as McNeill was in San Diego.