Fantasy Index

Andy Richardson

Updated offensive line rankings

Right tackles particularly hard hit since magazine

They don't get as much ink as skill position guys, which makes sense since fantasy leagues don't tend to draft offensive lines or linemen. But those injuries are important too, since lines can have a big impact on whether quarterbacks and running backs will get enough time to do their thing, or struggle at it.

Since the magazine, our offensive line ranking have seen a number of changes. In most cases, the issue is injuries, with several big names being sidelined for weeks or, in some cases, the season.

Right tackle has been a noteworthy victim of the injury bug, with big names like the Vikings' Phil Loadholt (out for the season) and Tampa Bay's Demar Dotson (out 6-10 weeks) the ones you may have heard about. But other teams are dealing with injuries, too.

The first table below shows our current offensive line rankings, as well as where they were ranked when the magazine first came out. Changes are due to injuries, early camp reports and exhibition observations, and lineup changes. Biggest moves up in bold, biggest moves down in italics. Weigh in below where you think the mark has been missed -- teams too high or too low.

OFFENSIVE LINE RANKINGS
OLJuneNew
Dallas11
Green Bay22
Cincinnati53
Cleveland64
Philadelphia35
New Orleans46
Baltimore127
New England78
Detroit89
San Francisco910
Pittsburgh1011
Miami1112
Washington1613
Buffalo1414
NY Jets1515
Indianapolis2016
Houston1917
San Diego1718
Oakland2119
Minnesota1320
Kansas City2321
Seattle2222
Denver2524
Tennessee2423
Chicago2125
Jacksonville3027
Arizona1826
Carolina2728
Atlanta2829
NY Giants2930
Tampa Bay3131
St. Louis3232

The second table ranks the league's 32 right tackles. Players at the position that have changed since the magazine came out are listed in bold. That's 8 out of 32, so a quarter of the league. A couple of others are currently injured and uncertain to be available in Week 1. LaAdrian Waddle in particular.

In the coming weeks, we'll take a look at the other positions, including the most important ones (left tackle and center). So far, those haven't been as hard hit by injury as right tackle, but hey, it's early.

NFL RIGHT TACKLES, 1-32
TeamRT
New EnglandSebastian Vollmer
Green BayBryan Bulaga
DallasDoug Free
CincinnatiAndre Smith
PhiladelphiaLane Johnson
HoustonDerek Newton
MiamiJaWuan James
IndianapolisJack Mewhort
DetroitLaAdrian Waddle
New OrleansAndrus Peat
NY GiantsMarshall Newhouse
BaltimoreRick Wagner
ClevelandMitchell Schwartz
DenverChris Clark
Kansas CityPaul Fanaika
WashingtonMorgan Moses
San DiegoJoseph Barksdale
San FranciscoErik Pears
BuffaloSeantrel Henderson
PittsburghMarcus Gilbert
TennesseeJeremiah Poutasi
ArizonaBradley Sowell
Tampa BayGosder Cherilus
JacksonvilleJeremy Parnell
NY JetsBreno Giacomini
SeattleGary Gilliam
MinnesotaT.J. Clemmings
ChicagoJordan Mills
OaklandKhalif Barnes
CarolinaDaryl Williams
St. LouisRob Havenstein
AtlantaLamar Holmes

--Andy Richardson

Fantasy Index