Film Room: UDFA Home Run Seth McLaughlin

This guy should have been drafted.

The Cincinnati Bengals drafted two offensive linemen this year, but they were not done adding young talent to that room.

They were able to pick up Ohio State’s Seth McLaughlin as a undrafted free agent. Prior to transferring to Ohio State, McLaughlin made 24 starts for Alabama.

Winner of the 2024 Rimington Award for the nation’s best center, McLaughlin has the tools to play guard as well. In fact, he had the talent to get drafted somewhere in the mid rounds, but finishing the season on IR with an Achilles tear seriously disrupted his pre-draft process.

Let’s take a look at what McLaughlin brings to the Bengals.

In this clip, McLaughlin does a great job of reach-blocking the 2i (the defensive tackle lined up inside the guard). McLaughlin shows quick feet as he gets outside if the defensive tackle and swings his butt around into the gap. Equally impressive is the strength he shows as he engages with the defender. The icing on the cake, or an already impressive rep, is when McLaughlin comes off the block to take on the Mike linebacker.

McLaughlin’s blocks were a key part of this touchdown run by Quinshon Judkins.

This time, McLaughlin has even further to go as he is tasked with reaching the 3 Technique (the defensive tackle on the outside shoulder of the guard). The defender gets penetration, but McLaughlin slams into him like a bulldozer. Then he slingshots himself into an outside position. One more shove, and the running back has cleared the area.

This was another fantastic rep by McLaughlin, who shows the athleticism and physicality to be a difference maker in the run game.

Let’s take a closer look at his athletic ability. This time, we will see McLaughlin pull. Pulling is particularly hard for the center in a shotgun offense, whose first job on every play is to throw a strike. Adding to the level of difficulty, he now has to start the play with his hands between his legs.

McLaughlin does a great job on this play. He hinge-pulls and makes the key block on the linebacker to create the running lane for the quarterback. Even more impressive, it appears that Kansas City Chiefs first round selection Josh Simmons (71) may have missed this block by taking a bad path, and McLaughlin may have simply been playing clean up.

*A hinge pull usually precedes a kickout block. I believe McLaughlin was supposed to kick out the cornerback, who was left unblocked because the wide receiver went inside to block the deep safety.

It is common for offensive linemen to climb to the second level (linebacker level) to make a block, but it is pretty ridiculous to see one blocking a deep safety. And yet, here is McLaughlin.

He takes a nice angle and gets to the safety at the same time as Simmons (pulling once again). The two turn the unlucky defender into a meatball parm grinder, and he quickly meets the turf.

Here we get a look at McLaughlin in pass protection, specifically his anchor as he takes on the bull rush from this nose tackle.

At the end of the rep, you see a little hand play, and McLaughlin tosses him to the ground. Seeing a toss like that makes me think of wrestling, and that makes me think of what offensive line coach Seth Peters could do with this guy.

In this final clip, we see McLaughlin’s footwork in pass protection as well as his processing as he sorts out the defensive line twist.

He sets to the left (from our vantage point). One defender goes outside, and another loops in, but that defender keeps going inside. McLaughlin continues to track him with his eyes while moving his feet to stay in position. The defender actually goes past McLaughlin and around the guard’s block, but McLaughlin stays with him and makes the block.

Seth McLaughlin was a great addition to the offensive line room. Depending on how quickly he can come back from his injury, I could see him being in play for the right guard position. He has more versatility than Matt Lee, which will give him the upper hand in the center competition. Starting center could also be in play in the future.