Herron is a power-first interior projection whose NFL future lives between the guard spots, not on the edge. He delivers real pop on down blocks and double-teams and owns a firm inside hand that keeps rushers from crossing his face cleanly, but his feet betray him — tardy kickslides, disjointed timing, and limited lateral range cap his ability to handle speed on an island. The D-II-to-Big-Ten jump speaks to his competitiveness and raw tools, and a respectable 80.3 PFF pass-blocking grade in 2025 shows a player who made strides, but his 58.7 run-blocking grade and the Senior Bowl bull-rush rep that put him on his back reveal a ceiling that probably tops out as a versatile swing interior backup who can give you power reps in short-yardage packages.
- Well-distributed thickness and solid power on contact, particularly on down blocks and as a drive-man on double-teams
- Active, firm inside hand in pass protection that minimizes clean losses across his face
- Effective snatch-trap technique to win leverage against leaning power rushers
- Durable and reliable — started all 24 games across two seasons at Maryland without missing a snap
- High-character, high-IQ player (George C. Cook Memorial Award for highest GPA among seniors)
- Tardy, disjointed footwork and late hand timing that sap his ability to sustain blocks and protect the corner consistently
- Below-average run-blocking production (PFF 58.7 run-blocking grade) with underwhelming aggression in the run game
- Questionable lateral agility — got lifted off his feet by T.J. Parker's bull rush at the Senior Bowl, exposing anchor limitations against top-tier power
- Allowed the most pressures (38) of any Big Ten offensive lineman in 2024, raising questions about consistency even as 2025 numbers improved
Both are Maryland OL products who transferred in from smaller programs, showed enough pass-protection competence to get a look, but project as versatile interior backups whose value is rooted in power-based situational usage rather than every-down starter ability. Thorn's comparable grades list (Esa Pole, Julian Pearl, Richard Gouraige) reinforces a career backup trajectory.