Philadelphia Eagles select Tyler Steen in third round of 2023 NFL Draft

In what should be a good weekend for the program, Alabama has another player having their name called at the 2023 NFL Draft. Starting left tackle Tyler Steen was selected with the No. 65 overall pick in the third round on Friday night.

Steen spent just one season with Alabama, entering via the NCAA transfer portal. He immediately slotted into the left tackle position, protecting the blindside of quarterback Bryce Young. Of the 13 games the Crimson Tide played this season, Steen played in and started all of them. A productive tenure in Tuscaloosa.

Vanderbilt was where Steen began his career, spending three seasons in Nashville. Steen was a two-way player during his true freshman season before moving to left tackle full-time. He played in 38 total games while with the Commodores, including 33 straight at one point.

Alabama offensive line coach Eric Wolford was the one who worked with Steen. It’s another NFL Draft pick added to his resume and the first during his time with the Crimson Tide. One year, one guy sent to the next level.

Steen played high school football at Fort Lauderdale (FL) St. Thomas Aquinas, where he was a three-star prospect. He was the No. 1175 overall recruit in the 2018 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Rankings, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Tyler Steen

Lance Zierlein of NFL.com broke down Steen as a prospect, noting he originally started as a defensive tackle at Vanderbilt. When looking at the tape, Zierlein believes Stein still needs to work on his technique but in the long run, has the opportunity to be a starter in the NFL.

“Steen began his career as a defensive tackle at Vanderbilt and ended it as a starting left tackle at Alabama,” Zierlein said. “He’s a vertical pass-setter who plays with good awareness to twists and blitzes. Steen uses length and hand resets to extend his mirroring. He would benefit from better catch-and-clamp hands to limit secondary rush opportunities.

“He plays with hustle off the snap to find back-side positioning on zone blocks, but he needs to eliminate his forward lean in space to improve timing and adjustments at the second level. Steen has good size with average athleticism and is still fine-tuning technique. He could compete for a role as a swing backup early on but could find starting snaps in time.”