LSU’s Lloyd Cushenberry Would Bring Talent, Character To The Green Bay Packers

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April 21, 2020

Former LSU center Lloyd Cushenberry helped the Tigers win the national championship in 2019.

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Note: The NFL Draft begins April 23 and the Green Bay Packers have the 30^th pick in the first round. In the past month, I’ve examined 30 players the Packers could take at No. 30.

Today, we conclude the series with LSU offensive lineman Lloyd Cushenberry. A full list of players that have been spotlighted is at the bottom of this story.

LLOYD CUSHENBERRY, C/G, LSU

THE SKINNY

Each year, LSU gives the No. 18 to a player who displays a selfless attitude that the program strives for. The tradition began in 2003, when quarterback Matt Mauck led the Tigers to their first national title in football since 1958.

In 2019, Cushenberry became the first offensive lineman at LSU awarded No. 18. The rules of college football prevented Cushenberry from actually wearing the No. 18 jersey, so his No. 79 jersey was accompanied by a No. 18 patch.

Cushenberry lived up to the billing, earning first-team all-SEC honors and leading a group that was given the Joe Moore Award as the best offensive line in college football. Cushenberry also helped the Tigers go 15-0 and win the national championship.

As a sophomore in 2018, Cushenberry started all 13 games at center.

MEASURABLES

Height: 6-3

Weight: 312

Bench press: 25

40-yard dash: 5.27

Vertical jump: —

Broad jump: —

Arms: 34 1/8”

Hands: 10 3/8”

SCOUTING REPORT

Cushenberry is a solid athlete who can play both center and guard.

Cushenberry’s arms are long, his hands are big, and he displays both power and toughness in the run game. He handles bull rushers in the pass game with solid technique and good overall balance.

Cushenberry was often left on an island in pass-pro and more than held his own. He’s also a natural identifying stunts and passing off twists.

Cushenberry’s range is mediocre, though, and he’ll probably be most effective playing in tight quarters. It’s unlikely he’ll be asked to execute long pulls in the run game. He must also improve the consistency of his technique.

Overall, though, Cushenberry’s combination of strength, body control, character and short area quickness should make him a quality starter for years to come.

PACKERS’ PREDICAMENT

Green Bay, which had one of the top offensive lines in football in 2019, needs help. And Cushenberry would give the Packers tremendous flexibility inside.

The Packers let elite right tackle Bryan Bulaga leave in free agency, and signed former Lion Rick Wagner to replace him. That’s risky business, considering Pro Football Focus ranked Wagner just 62^nd overall among offensive tackles last season and Detroit released him on March 13.

In addition, left tackle David Bakhtiari and center Corey Linsley will become free agents in March, 2021, and the Packers will be hard-pressed to pay both.

Cushenberry could play guard in 2020 and either incumbent — Elgton Jenkins or Billy Turner — could slide to right tackle if Wagner struggles. Cushenberry could also be Green Bay’s center of the future if Linsley leaves after the 2020 campaign.

Either way, Cushenberry would give Green Bay tremendous depth and versatility this season — and beyond.

THEY SAID IT

Cushenberry on playing center: “Maybe I was born to be a center. I didn’t play it in high school, so I had to teach myself how to snap and get comfortable being a vocal guy. I’m not really that vocal off the field, but on the field I’m completely different. I make a lot of the calls, I’m the main communicator, and I’ve gotten used to that. Now I love it. I take pride in that. I feel like I’ve gotten used to being, I guess, the point guard on the field. I’ve gotten so used to it that it’s in my nature now.”

LSU quarterback Joe Burrow on Cushenberry: “You have some leaders that always have something to say, and then people start to tune them out. So when they actually have something to say that matters, nobody will listen to them. I think Lloyd is the epitome of that kind of leadership: He doesn’t say a lot, but when he does, you’re going to listen to him.”

Todd McClure, a former center at LSU and for the Atlanta Falcons, on Cushenberry: “I love his hands, the way he moves his feet and the way he plays. Offensive linemen usually only get attention when they make mistakes. He doesn’t make mistakes. You need a leader there in the middle and he is a leader. And when you talk to the people at LSU, they tell you they love him even more as a person. What else do you need to know?”

LSU outside linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson, a likely first round draft choice, on Cushenberry: “You would have your child idol after (Cushenberry). He does the right thing on and off the field. Stopping at red lights. Stopping at stop signs. Complete stops … who does that?”

Cushenberry on his leadership style: “Kobe Bryant was my favorite player growing up and his mindset, this past year, I was very interested in watching his interviews and reading. I bought his book a while ago just to know his mindset about how he pushed his teammates and how he led those guys and I tried to do that with the O-line group this year. I really took that to heart. I took accountability and responsibility for us playing hard every week.”