Brandon Scherff

Brandon Scherff (born December 26, 1991) is an American football offensive guard for the Washington Football Team of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Iowa and was drafted by Washington, then known as the Redskins, in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Scherff is considered to be among the best guards in the NFL.[1][2][3]

Brandon Scherff
Scherff with Washington in 2019
No. 75 – Washington Football Team
Position:Offensive guard
Personal information
Born: (1991-12-26) December 26, 1991
Denison, Iowa
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:315 lb (143 kg)
Career information
High school:Denison
College:Iowa
NFL Draft:2015 / Round: 1 / Pick: 5
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2020
Games played:78
Games started:78
Player stats at NFL.com

High school career

A native of Denison, Iowa, Scherff attended Denison High School, where he was a two-way lineman, earning first team all-state honors on offense as a senior after earning second team all-state on defense as a junior. As a sophomore, he played quarterback, passing for 1,200 yards on the season.[4] He also played basketball, where he led the state in rebounds as a senior, and baseball, where he helped his team qualify for the state tournament as a junior.

Scherff was also on the school's track & field team, where he was a standout shot putter and discus thrower, earning All-State recognition. He won two state titles in the shot put as a sophomore and a senior, placed third as a freshman and second as a junior. He won the shot put event at the 2010 Drake Relays, recording a career-best throw of 18.77 meters, setting a school record.[5] At the 2010 Iowa State T&F Championships, he placed third in the discus throw, with a personal-best throw of 48.95 meters.[6]

Regarded as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, Scherff was ranked as the No. 44 offensive tackle prospect in 2010.[7] He chose his home-state Iowa Hawkeyes over offers from Kansas State, Missouri, and Nebraska.

College career
Scherff playing for the Iowa Hawkeyes in 2013

After redshirting his initial year at Iowa, Scherff saw action at left guard in eleven games on the season, starting three. In his sophomore year, he replaced Riley Reiff as the starting left tackle. He started first seven games of season at left tackle before suffering a broken fibula and a dislocated ankle in game seven,[8] and missed the remainder of the season due to injury.

Despite being regarded one of the best offensive lineman prospects for the NFL draft after his junior year at Iowa, Scherff decided to return for his senior year.[9] He received his B.A. degree in Leisure studies in December 2014. After the 2014 season, Scherff was awarded the Outland Trophy as the country's best interior lineman.

Professional career

Coming out of Iowa, Scherff was projected by the majority of analysts and scouts to be selected in the first round.[10][11][12] He was ranked as the best offensive tackle in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com, the top interior lineman by Mike Mayock, the best offensive lineman and guard by Lance Zierlein, and top offensive tackle by Sports Illustrated.[13][14][15] Scherff received an invitation to the NFL Combine and completed the bench press and 40, 20, and 10-yard dash. Due to a hamstring injury, he was not able to finish the entire combine. On March 23, 2015, he participated at Iowa's Pro Day and completed the drills he was unable to perform at the combine. Along with the bench, he did the vertical, broad, shuttle, and 3-cone drill. By the time the draft was approaching, he was considered a top 10 overall pick.[16] Many scouts and analysts were conflicted over his future position in the NFL, split on whether he was better suited to play offensive tackle or guard.[17]

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand size40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 5 in
(1.96 m)		 319 lb
(145 kg)		 33 3⁄8 in
(0.85 m)		 11 in
(0.28 m)		5.05 s1.80 s2.98 s4.57 s7.18 s32 1⁄2 in
(0.83 m)		8 ft 11 in
(2.72 m)		23 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Iowa's Pro Day[18][16]
Scherff in a game during his rookie season in 2015

The Washington Redskins selected Scherff in the first round (fifth overall) of the 2015 NFL Draft.[19][20] This made him the first player from Iowa drafted in the top ten since Robert Gallery was selected second overall in 2004. On May 12, 2015, the Scherff signed a fully guaranteed four-year, $21.21 million contract with the team.[21][22][23]

He entered training camp competing with Morgan Moses for the starting right tackle position but was moved to right guard prior to the beginning of the regular season. Since he was able to handle bull rushes well, he was thought to better suit the right guard position and be responsible for a smaller area where his power would be more useful.[24] Offensive line coach Bill Callahan named him the Redskin's starting right guard to begin the season, after winning the job over Spencer Long in the preseason.[25] Scherff made his professional debut in the Redskins' season-opening 17-10 loss to the Miami Dolphins. He started all 16 regular season games, played 752 snaps, and helped the Redskins finish first in the NFC East with a 9-7 record. In January 2016, he started his first career postseason game, as the Redskins were routed by the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Wildcard game 35-18.[26] During his rookie season, he was graded negatively in pass blocking by PFF after he gave up 26 hurries, eight hits, and two sacks. Pro Football Focus ranked him as the 31st best offensive guard in the league.[27] Scherff finished his second season starting in all 16 regular season games, and due to his highly regarded performance that year, he was voted to the 2017 Pro Bowl, his first such vote.[28] He was also voted to the 2018 Pro Bowl the following year.[29]

Scherff (second from right) alongside his teammates in 2019

On April 16, 2018, the Redskins picked up the fifth-year option on Scherff's contract.[30] On November 5, he was placed on injured reserve after suffering a torn pectoral in Week 9.[31] For the 2019 season, Scherff was voted to his third Pro Bowl.[32] The same day, the Redskins placed Scherff on injured reserve due to elbow and shoulder injuries.[33][34]

An impending free agent in 2020, the team placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on Scherff prior to the start of the new league year, with him agreeing to it on April 8, 2020.[35][36] He was placed on injured reserve on September 22 following an MCL sprain he suffered during a Week 2 game against the Arizona Cardinals before being reactivated on October 16, 2020.[37][38] He was named to the 2021 Pro Bowl, his fourth in his career,[39] as well becoming the first Washington player to be named first-team All-Pro since punter Matt Turk in 1996.[40]

References
  1. Steinberg, Dan. "Brandon Scherff is the best guard in the NFL, according to Chris Cooley". Washington Post. Retrieved August 24, 2018.
  2. Copeland, Kareem. "A big payday awaits Redskins guard Brandon Scherff". Washington Post. Retrieved August 24, 2018.
  3. "Hall of Famer has some very high praise for Brandon Scherff". NBCSports.com. Retrieved August 24, 2018.
  4. "Iowa's Scherff is a big guy from a little role". The Gazette. November 7, 2013. Archived from the original on January 23, 2015. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
  5. http://ia.milesplit.com/meets/62036/results/120500
  6. http://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/MeetResults.aspx?Meet=104174#17325
  7. https://sports.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/recruiting/rankings/rank-2395
  8. "Iowa left tackle Brandon Scherff to miss 'a couple months'". CBS Sports. October 22, 2012.
  9. "Iowa's Brandon Scherff staying for senior season". NFL.com. December 9, 2013.
  10. Brugler, Dane (May 11, 2014). "2015 NFL mock draft: Big Ten, ACC prospects lead the way". CBS Sports.
  11. Sobleski, Brent (May 11, 2014). "2015 mock draft: Jameis Winston slips out of Top 5". USA Today.
  12. Burke, Chris (May 13, 2014). "2015 NFL Mock Draft 1.0: Cedric Ogbuehi goes No. 1 overall to Oakland Raiders". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on May 13, 2014. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  13. Doug Farrar (April 1, 2015). "2015 NFL Draft positional rankings: Offensive tackle". si.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  14. Mike Mayock (April 28, 2015). "Mike Mayock's 2015 NFL Draft position rankings". NFL.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  15. Daniel Jeremiah (March 20, 2015). "2015 NFL Draft: Lance Zierlein's top 10 offensive lineman". NFL.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  16. "Brandon Scherff, DS #1 OT, Iowa: 2015 NFL Draft". nfldraftscout.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  17. Gary Mihoces (April 24, 2015). "NFL Draft prospects: Iowa's Brandon Scherff may be top tackle... Or guard". usatoday.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  18. "NFL Events: Combine Player Profiles – Brandon Scherff". nfl.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  19. Kalland, Robby (April 30, 2015). "2015 NFL Draft: Redskins get B- for picking Brandon Scherff at No. 5". CBSSports.com.
  20. Keim, John (April 30, 2015). "Total breakdown: Redskins draft OL Brandon Scherff in first round". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  21. "Sportrac.com: Brandon Scherff contract". sportrac.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  22. Patra, Kevin (May 12, 2015). "Redskins ink No. 5 overall pick Brandon Scherff". NFL.com. Retrieved May 25, 2015.
  23. Keim, John (May 14, 2015). "Brandon Scherff's contract breakdown". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 25, 2015.
  24. "Redskin's mailbag: Whether the Brandon Scherff move is really about Morgan Moses, RGIII's play and more". washingtonpost.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  25. "Ourlads.com: Washington Redskin's depth chart: 09/01/2015". ourlads.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  26. "NFL Player Profile: Brandon Scherff". NFL.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  27. "How every 2015 first round pick graded in their rookie season". profootballfocus.com. Retrieved January 28, 2017.
  28. "NFL announces 2017 Pro Bowl rosters". NFL.com. December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  29. Martin, Kimberley. "Redskins' Trent Williams, Ryan Kerrigan and Brandon Scherff named to Pro Bowl". Washington Post. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  30. Shook, Nick (April 16, 2018). "Redskins pick up fifth-year option on Brandon Scherff". NFL.com.
  31. Shook, Nick (November 5, 2018). "Roundup: Scherff, Lauvao, Richardson out for year". NFL.com.
  32. "Tress Way, Brandon Scherff Named To 2020 Pro Bowl". Redskins.com. December 17, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  33. Copeland, Kareem (December 17, 2019). "Brandon Scherff goes on injured reserve, ending his season and possibly his time with the Redskins". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  34. "Redskins Make Several Roster Moves". Redskins.com. December 17, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  35. Stackpole, Kyle. "Redskins Place Franchise Tag On Brandon Scherff". Redskins.com. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  36. Patra, Kevin. "Redskins OL Brandon Scherff signs franchise tender". NFL.com. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  37. "Washington Football Team puts top O-lineman Brandon Scherff on IR with knee injury". ESPN. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
  38. Alper, Josh. "Washington activates Brandon Scherff from IR". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
  39. Jhabvala, Nicki. "Washington's Brandon Scherff, Chase Young voted to Pro Bowl". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  40. Jhabvala, Nicki. "Guard Brandon Scherff is a first-team all-pro, Washington's first since 1996". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 8, 2021.
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