Baltimore Sun · Feb 29, 2016
In NFL draft, top offensive tackles are no longer a sure thing
It has been almost 20 years since the Ravens used their first-ever NFL draft pick on mammoth UCLA offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden. With the selection, the Ravens established their draft philosophy of taking the best player available, prioritizing function over flash, long-term stability over immediate need.
Talents like Ogden, Tony Boselli, Walter Jones and Orlando Pace made drafting a bookend offensive tackle one of the safest propositions in the first round, but those days are long over. Recent drafts are littered with offensive line busts, as the proliferation of fast-paced, spread offenses in college has made tackles harder to project at the next level.
