Kelly: A breakdown of the NFL’s 2025 class of interior offensive linemen | Opinion
Typically the interior offensive linemen are grouped in with the offensive tackles.
But the way the NFL is paying upper-echelon offensive guards and centers these days, it’s about time we separate them just like we do defensive tackles and edge players because of the impact each group has on today’s game.
The interior of the offensive line often dictates how good a team’s run game is, and whether it keeps the quarterback’s pocket clean.
And history has shown that just as many interior players — if not more — are drafted as offensive tackles in recent years.
Last year 28 offensive guards and centers were drafted. The year before that 24 interior players, and in 2022 there were 25 interior players taken by NFL teams.
Top prospects
▪ Alabama’s Tyler Booker — Booker is a physical bulldozer who punishes defensive linemen. He constantly reset the line of scrimmage on the collegiate level, despite his lackluster metrics (21 reps of 225 pounds). He’s a plug-and-play starter in the NFL, but doesn’t fit every scheme because of his limited athleticism. Don’t be surprised if outside zone teams target someone else, but Booker has All-Pro potential.
▪ North Dakota State’s Greg Zabel — This 6-foot-6, 305-pounder has the ability to play all five positions, and he consistently wins because of his low pad level, and fluidity. His Senior Bowl performance silenced concerns about the level of competition he has faced, and possibly put him in the first round. But Zabel does need some technique work to become an NFL starter as a rookie.
▪ Ohio State’s Donovan Jackson — Jackson has a power-packed frame and moves well laterally. His length and experience closing the season at offensive tackle due to injury, might motivate some teams to move him outside. But his physical tools and technique make him an ideal fit as a zone blocking lineman, and will likely make him a top-50 selection.
▪ West Virginia’s Wyatt Milum — Milum was one of college football’s better tackles, but his short arms have most NFL teams projecting him as a guard. He’s effective in a phone booth, and nimble enough to climb to the second level, which makes this 6-6, 317-pounder ideal for an outsize zone scheme.
▪ Arizona’s Jonah Savaiinaea — Though he’s played mainly tackle through his college career, the expectation is that he’ll be moved inside, and his thick trunk should help him excel as an offensive guard who can anchor down. His combination of agility and size (6-5, 330 pounds) should allow him to become an immediate starter.
▪ Sleeper: Sacramento State’s Jackson Slater — His combination of size (6-4, 316 pounds) and speed allows him to be a dangerous guard who excels when it comes to lateral movement. This four-year starter is smart, and typically stays on his feet. He’ll likely be an early third day pick who has the potential to become a starter in a season or two.
▪ Best of the rest: Miami’s Jalen Rivers, Georgia’s Tate Rutledge and Dylan Fairchild, USC’s Jonah Monheim, LSU’s Miles Frazier and Wisconsin’s Joe Huber are all third-day targets who could eventually become starting guards with a season or two of development. Texas’ Jake Mayors, Georgia’s Jared Wilson, Ohio State’s Seth McLaughlin, Jackson State’s Clay Webb, Boston College’s Drew Kendall, South Carolina’s Torricelli Simpkins III and Kentucky’s Eli Cox are the best centers this draft class has to offer.
▪ Teams in need: The Giants, Patriots, Jets and Dolphins are all expected to select offensive linemen early, and it could either be a guard or offensive tackle. Dallas, Arizona, Green Bay, Houston, Detroit, Philadelphia and Kansas City are all in the market for offensive guards, and the Broncos, Seahawks and Falcons need to find a center for the future.
▪ Dolphins focus: Miami’s guard play was a disaster last season, and signing James Daniels in free agency only addresses one of the two vacant guard spots. Miami’s decision-makers clearly plan to address the position in the NFL Draft unless they add a veteran such as Isaiah Wynn in the postdraft component of free agency. Dolphins general manager Chris Grier has selected three college offensive guards (Solomon Kindley in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, Michael Deiter was taken in the third round in 2019 and Isaac Asiata was a fifth-rounder in 2017) since becoming GM in 2016. Miami typically selected college offensive tackles such as Robert Hunt (2020) and Billy Turner (2014) and converted them to offensive guard, so don’t be surprised if that’s the route the Dolphins take.
This story was originally published April 15, 2025 at 1:27 PM.