Multiple teams will be interested in selecting offensive linemen in the 2024 NFL Draft, but not all OL needs are created equally.
Let’s run through 10 clubs with a more-than-passing interest in drafting offensive linemen in 2024 and rank them based on their level of need. We’ll factor in each franchise’s existing OL depth chart, future draft capital, salary cap situation, and competitive window as we assess how badly they’ll need to consider an offensive lineman in this year’s draft.
Which Teams Need OL in the 2024 NFL Draft?
10) Seattle Seahawks
Starting five: LT Charles Cross, LG Laken Tomlinson, C Olu Oluwatimi, RG Anthony Bradford, RT Abraham Lucas
Seattle should feel good about its offensive tackle situation, where Cross and Lucas will enter their third pro seasons hoping to rebound after missing time with injuries in 2023. The Seahawks signed 73-game starter George Fant to a two-year contract in March, ensuring they’ll have a backup plan if Cross or Lucas goes down again.
However, Seattle’s interior is a concern. Tomlinson, who recently joined the roster on a league-minimum deal, hasn’t been the same player since leaving the San Francisco 49ers in 2022. Bradford struggled through 10 starts in his 2023 rookie campaign, while Oluwatimi (another first-year player) started one game and played just 129 snaps.
The Seahawks could consider an offensive lineman as early as No. 16. Troy Fautanu would reunite with ex-Washington OC Ryan Grubb and OL coach Scott Huff (who now hold the same titles in Seattle), while Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga, Alabama’s JC Latham, or Duke’s Graham Barton could also make sense in the middle of Round 1.
9) San Francisco 49ers
Starting five: LT Trent Williams, LG Aaron Banks, C Jake Brendel, RG Jon Feliciano, RT Colton McKivitz
The 49ers just made a Super Bowl appearance while starting the group above. Kyle Shanahan’s scheme can protect OL weaknesses, and San Francisco can get through another season with its same front five intact in 2024.
Still, general manager John Lynch will likely consider adding OL talent with the 31st pick. Williams is still arguably the NFL‘s best offensive tackle but is entering his age-36 campaign. Banks and Feliciano are heading into contract years, while Brendel and McKivitz could be upgraded upon despite being on extensions.
8) Miami Dolphins
Starting five: LT Terron Armstead, LG Isaiah Wynn, C Aaron Brewer, RG Robert Jones, RT Austin Jackson
Armstead is an elite tackle when healthy, but he’s missed 20 games over the last three years and flirted with retirement over the offseason. Given his annual injury issues, Miami needs to find a younger LT option who could likely see action in 2023.
Brewer should be locked in as a starter after inking a three-year, $21 million deal. But his positional flexibility means the Dolphins could consider a center like Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson or West Virginia’s Zach Frazier. Miami’s dream scenario might be an OL prospect with multi-spot versatility like Fautanu or Barton.
7) Baltimore Ravens
Starting five: LT Ronnie Stanley, LG Josh Jones, C Tyler Linderbaum, RG Ben Cleveland, RT Daniel Faalele
Baltimore is without 60% of its starting 2023 offensive line following offseason losses of LG John Simpson, RG Kevin Zeitler, and RT Morgan Moses. Patrick Mekari and Andrew Vorhees will compete with Jones, Cleveland, and Faalele to take over starting roles, but the Ravens will entertain more additions at No. 30.
An ideal solution might be Arizona’s Jordan Morgan, who could play guard as a rookie before potentially taking over for Stanley in 2024. Tyler Guyton (Oklahoma) or Kingsley Suamataia (BYU) could also be on Baltimore’s radar at the end of the first round.
6) New Orleans Saints
Starting five: LT Trevor Penning, LG James Hurst, C Erik McCoy, RG Cesar Ruiz, RT Ryan Ramczyk
The Saints have essentially given up on Penning two years after drafting him in Round 1, while Ramczyk’s ongoing knee issue may prevent him from playing in 2024. Hurst is already 32 and entering the final season of his contract.
MORE: 2024 Pre-Draft NFL Offensive Line Rankings
New Orleans could simply stand pat at No. 14 and take the best OT prospect on the board. Although Notre Dame’s Joe Alt will have likely been selected by the time the Saints are on the clock, they could have a chance at Fuaga or Penn State’s Olu Fashanu.
Given how many long-term holes it might have up front, it could make sense for New Orleans to double-dip on offensive linemen in the draft. However, the Saints have enough holes all over their roster that an OL-heavy approach may not be feasible.
5) New England Patriots
Starting five: LT Chukwuma Okorafor, LG Cole Strange, C David Andrews, RG Sidy Sow, RT Michael Onwenu
Left tackle is clearly the most pressing issue for the Patriots, who probably don’t want to deploy a rookie QB behind an offensive line missing a true blindside protector. De facto New England GM Eliot Wolf recently said Okorafor would be the club’s LT starter if the season began today; the former Steeler has two career snaps at left tackle.
The Pats could stand to add more interior options, too. Andrews turns 32 in July and is entering a contract year, while Strange missed seven games with injuries in 2023.
4) Dallas Cowboys
Starting five: LT Tyler Smith, LG T.J. Bass, C Brock Hoffman, RG Zack Martin, RT Terence Steele
The Cowboys’ once-elite offensive line now has at least two significant holes. Now that left tackle Tyron Smith and center Tyler Biadasz left in free agency, Dallas — arguably the quietest team of the offseason — might be forced to find replacements this offseason.
Tyler Smith is Dallas’ skeleton key, given that he can theoretically line up at left guard (where he earned second-team All-Pro honors in 2023) or left tackle.
If the Cowboys find an offensive tackle like Fuaga, Guyton, or Morgan near the end of Round 1, Smith could stick on the interior. Conversely, a first-round guard like Barton would signal that Dallas is comfortable with Smith at LT.
Center is also a need, but the Cowboys only have so many picks. Barton or Powers-Johnson might intrigue Dallas in Round 1, but Jerry Jones and Co. might prefer to wait for a Day 2 choice like Frazier, Wisconsin’s Tanor Bortolini, or Penn State’s Hunter Nourzad.
3) Washington Commanders
Starting five: LT Braeden Daniels, LG Nick Allegretti, C Tyler Biadasz, RG Sam Cosmi, RT Andrew Wylie
Left tackle is an immediate concern, especially given that a rookie QB like Jayden Daniels or Drake Maye will be under center for Washington. Braeden Daniels, a fourth-round rookie in 2023 who missed all of last season with a torn rotator cuff, would probably start at LT if the 2024 campaign began this week.
The Commanders will use the No. 2 overall selection on a signal-caller and won’t be on the board again until pick Nos. 36 and 40. That might put them out of range to grab a promising OT prospect.
MORE: Top OTs in the 2024 NFL Draft
As such, Washington might consider trading into the middle or back end of the first round if it wants to draft an OT like Fuaga or Fautanu. Packaging their two second-rounders should be enough to get the Commanders to pick 16 or 17.
Meanwhile, Allegretti was never a regular starter for the Chiefs, Cosmi is in a contract year, and Washington can get out of Wylie’s contract next offseason. Adding depth and future pieces all along their front five has to be a priority for the Commanders.
2) Las Vegas Raiders
Starting five: LT Kolton Miller, LG Cody Whitehair, C Andre James, RG Dylan Parham, RT Thayer Munford Jr.
While the Raiders might have fewer obvious “holes” than a team like the Cowboys, Dallas also has two superstars in Smith and Martin and a league-average right tackle in Steele. Miller is an underrated LT, and James and Parham can start, but Las Vegas still has several questions.
Whitehair struggled mightily for the Bears in 2023 and is already 31. Munford has flashed over two seasons, but it’s hard to count on a former seventh-round pick with fewer than 900 career snaps.
The Raiders should be able to find a high-quality immediate starter at pick 13. While Alt won’t be available, Fashanu or Fuaga could potentially fall, while Fautanu, Latham, or Amarius Mims should be on the board.
However, if Vegas uses its first-round selection on a quarterback like Michael Penix Jr., it will have to wait until Days 2 and 3 to pick off potential starters like Washington OT Roger Rosengarten or Kansas State G Cooper Beebe.
1) Tennessee Titans
Starting five: LT Nicholas Petit-Frere, LG Peter Skoronski, C Lloyd Cushenberry, RG Daniel Brunskill, RT Dillon Radunz
Skoronski, the Titans’ 2023 first-round choice, and Cushenberry, who signed a four-year, $50 million deal this offseason, will be clear-cut starters for Tennessee next season.
As for the rest of the line? New Titans OL coach Bill Callahan (potentially a future Hall of Fame position coach) has his work cut out for him.
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Mock drafts have penciled in Alt to Tennessee for months, and the Notre Dame product still seems like the most obvious selection for the Titans. He has the size, footwork, football IQ, and bloodlines to become a Day 1 starter in Tennessee, but the club probably won’t be done adding OL talent after the first round of the draft.
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