Should this OL prospect be on Chicago Bears radar?

Marquis Hayes was a four-star recruit to Oklahoma. He did not play much as a freshman, but was a starter for the Sooners from 2019 through the 2021 season, all of his starts coming at left guard. The three-year starter had a strong Senior Bowl and worked out at the NFL combine as well in his hopes of being selected in the 2022 NFL draft. Would the Chicago Bears have interest?

Marquis Hayes measurements and statistics

36 career starts at left guard.

2nd team All-Big 12

2,401 snaps, 55% pass blocking, 45% run blocking 

50% Zone Blocking, 50% Gap Blocking 

5 career sacks, 3 quarterback hits, 27 hurries 

Marquis Hayes’ strengths that translate to the NFL

Marquis Hayes plays with a certain demeanor that you want to see from the interior offensive line. He is always in a state of playing angry and finishes blocks with aggression. He also has one heck of a punch and a clear understanding of how to leverage his hands to create force from his upper body.

When he can get his base set, he is a brick house and a tough player to move around. Still, while power is the biggest strength to Hayes’ game, he also has the quickness to pull, and some of his most powerful finishes come after he gets some momentum coming across the line of scrimmage.

Hayes has a lot of the starting pieces that you want. He looks for work, he plays the game with an edge, and he never takes plays off. The rest can be worked out.

Weaknesses that bring questions to Marquis Hayes’ NFL projection

In most scouting reports you will find the same thing, and it starts with the realization that he is sloppy with his footwork. Often he can jump out of his stance too quickly, and he loses a lot of his lower body strength by doing this.

He relies too often on his upper body, and against weaker competition could get away with it. However, most of his losses come because his legs got too straight and he was able to be bull rushed.

According to PFF, he also was hit with nine penalties, and often can be a target of holding. This again happens because of his lack of fundamentals and over-reliance on his upper body. With this in mind, he is much better at staying low and driving downhill as a run blocker. When he has to backpedal in pass protection you see his shoulders get too high, and that is where he loses power and begins to grab.

What is an NFL comparison for Marquis Hayes