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RotoWorld says we have the #1 O-line

ObsiWan

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
I have to file this one under "We've come a long way, baby." I remember when we had to run trolls outta here for chiding us how much our O-line sucked and how we ruined HWWNBN's career by not protecting him better.

LINK

I only quoted/posted the top five but all 32 teams are ranked in the article. I found it interesting that the Colts' line is listed at #26.

Offensive line play heavily influences fantasy production. A dominant run-blocking line can turn an undrafted free agent into a 1,600-yard rusher, or help resurrect a declining back's career. A unit that can't pass protect may get its quarterback hurt and ruin a team's season.

Editor's Note: For our latest player profiles, projections, and draft guide columns, bang it here.

Taking stats, scheme, experience, and depth into consideration, I've ranked the NFL's offensive lines in order from 1-32. Keep in mind that in-season injuries are an unpredictable but often difference-making variable. Experienced and/or promising depth behind a first-team front five can be crucial.

* = new starter. + = switching position. Number of returning starters is in parentheses.

1. Houston Texans (5)

LT: Duane Brown
LG: Wade Smith
C: Chris Myers
RG: Mike Brisiel
RT: Eric Winston

Houston returns all five starters from a line that paved the way for NFL rushing leader Arian Foster and allowed just two sacks a game. Gary Kubiak is keeping competition alive by listing undrafted rookie Darius Morris at first-team right guard, a position that should be won back by Brisiel before the season. This unit has zero Pro Bowls to its credit, but executes zone blocking to perfection and holds its own in protection. Top reserves are athletic swing tackle Rashad Butler (four starts last season), G/C Antoine Caldwell (10 career starts), and G Kasey Studdard (14 starts in 2009).

Biggest beneficiary: Arian Foster. Zone blocks are his best friend.


2. New England Patriots (5)
LT: Matt Light
LG: Logan Mankins
C: Dan Koppen
RG: Dan Connolly
RT: Sebastian Vollmer

Elite starters and elite depth. The Pats are so talent-laden in the front five that No. 17 pick Nate Solder will ride the bench as a rookie. Mankins is the best guard in the game, and Vollmer may possess more impressive athleticism than any right tackle in the NFL. Koppen is a stalwart, having missed one start since the 2005 season. Among backups, swing tackle Mark LeVoir, C Ryan Wendell, and G/C Chris Morris have started before. Fifth-round pick Marcus Cannon, a first-round talent, could be a real difference maker if he cracks the lineup after beating lymphoma.

Biggest beneficiary: Tom Brady. Pats are loaded with pass blockers.


3. Carolina Panthers (4)
LT: Jordan Gross
LG: Travelle Wharton
C: Ryan Kalil
RG: Mackenzy Bernadeau
RT: *Jeff Otah

Don't laugh. The Panthers went 2-14 last season, but they'll be much better this year and line play has a lot to do with it. Gross and Kalil return from Pro Bowl berths, and Wharton is an elite left guard in protection when healthy. A mammoth run blocker, Otah is the big addition after a season lost to injury. Bernadeau, the question mark, was shuttled between guard spots last year and briefly lost his job, but the Panthers could switch to mauling, 25-year-old "backup" Geoff Schwartz (19 career starts) and probably upgrade the position. G/T Garry Williams (11 starts) is another experienced reserve. Seventh-round value Lee Ziemba fits Carolina's nasty mentality up front.

Biggest beneficiary: DeAngelo Williams. Think along the lines of 2009.


4. New York Jets (4)
LT: D'Brickashaw Ferguson
LG: Matt Slauson
C: Nick Mangold
RG: [URL="http://www.rotoworld.com/player/NFL/475/Brandon-Moore"]Brandon Moore[/URL]
RT: *Wayne Hunter

The Jets have fielded the best line in football over the past two seasons. The reason they're not in the top spot this year is the retirement of Damien Woody and downgrade to Hunter, who's been in the league eight years but made just four career starts. Hunter was the line's weak link down the stretch last season, so the Jets may have to turn to enigmatic former second-round pick Vladimir Ducasse sooner than they'd prefer. Right tackle is a critical position for such a run-heavy team. The rest of the front five is elite, but New York's depth is near-nonexistent. Behind the first string, only Undertaker-lookalike Robert Turner has ever started a game. And Turner's done it just twice.

Biggest beneficiary: Santonio Holmes. More emphasis on pass game.


5. Green Bay Packers (4)
LT: Chad Clifton
LG: *Derek Sherrod
C: Scott Wells
RG: Josh Sitton
RT: Bryan Bulaga

The lone starter lost is Daryn Colledge, who was overpaid by Arizona. Green Bay has penciled in first-round pick Sherrod as Colledge's replacement, though the college left tackle is experiencing growing pains early in camp. Still, this is one of the NFL's most talented lines on the right side with Sitton as an All-Pro caliber strong-side guard and Bulaga likely to make strides in his second year. The top subs include potential left tackle of the future Marshall Newhouse and versatile T.J. Lang.

Biggest beneficiary: Jermichael Finley. He'll do very little blocking.
 

LikeMike

Veteran
I have a hard time to believe that... Let`s not forget that we had one of the worst lines in 2009, and a lot of people begged for an OL men to be drafted in the 1st or 2nd round in the 2010 draft. Sure, our O-Line is good, but no way it is that good. Actually the O-Line is kinda my biggest concern for the upcoming season on offense...
 

prostock101

Mr. Big
Have a hard time rankin our bunch ahead of the Pats. Brady always seems like he has enough time to retie his shoelaces before he has to throw......
 

GuerillaBlack

Hall of Fame
I have a hard time to believe that... Let`s not forget that we had one of the worst lines in 2009, and a lot of people begged for an OL men to be drafted in the 1st or 2nd round in the 2010 draft. Sure, our O-Line is good, but no way it is that good. Actually the O-Line is kinda my biggest concern for the upcoming season on offense...
I don't know about that, since 2009 was Schaub's big year.
 

b0ng

Bad Hombre
Have a hard time rankin our bunch ahead of the Pats. Brady always seems like he has enough time to retie his shoelaces before he has to throw......
Rushing is not a big part of NE's gameplan, and Tom Brady is like an amoeba in the pocket, carefully sliding to one side or another to avoid gigantic men flying at him.

I'd honestly rather have the Jets or Dolphins O-line over the Pats if all other moving parts were equal.
 

TheMatrix31

Hall of Fame
I don't know about #1, BUT even being in the discussion is pretty cool.

Let's hope, someday SOON, that our secondary can make that same meteoric rise.
 

ChampionTexan

Hall of Fame
I don't know about that, since 2009 was Schaub's big year.
Yep, rushing was down, but they led the league in passing yards, and despite attempting the 4th most passes in the NFL that year, they only gave up 25 sacks - putting them at 5th best in that category. Maybe not stellar, but not exactly horrible either.
 

MEGA SWATT

All Pro
I think just like D. Carr was shell-shocked, our fans are shell-shocked from the roller coster of expectation vs. resultant-sucktitude and are thus afraid to be number 1.

I am taking a stand and agreeing that we have the #1 OL until proven wrong. Afterall, this article says so and it's on the internet.:elmo::worm:
 

ObsiWan

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
Have a hard time rankin our bunch ahead of the Pats. Brady always seems like he has enough time to retie his shoelaces before he has to throw......
You're only thinking pass protection. This eval is about the total O-line package. The Pats' O-line, while it does stand out above the rest in pass protection, they can't produce near the quality running attack that ours can. I can totally see ours grading out better in the run game.
 

Texecutioner

Hall of Fame
The simple fact that we're ever being amongst this discussion is awsome when you consider how bad it was for so many years. This is just nice to read and hear us being ranked in something like this. :fans:
 

DX-TEX

#TomSavageDontCare
The simple fact that we're ever being amongst this discussion is awsome when you consider how bad it was for so many years. This is just nice to read and hear us being ranked in something like this. :fans:
I just hope its not a sign like years past.....
 

DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
I have a hard time to believe that... Let`s not forget that we had one of the worst lines in 2009, and a lot of people begged for an OL men to be drafted in the 1st or 2nd round in the 2010 draft. Sure, our O-Line is good, but no way it is that good. Actually the O-Line is kinda my biggest concern for the upcoming season on offense...
Are you getting the OL and DL mixed up? The only real noise I remember about our OL was Studdard being the backup LG and Myers at C. There was much more moaning and groaning about our DL.
 

LikeMike

Veteran
Are you getting the OL and DL mixed up? The only real noise I remember about our OL was Studdard being the backup LG and Myers at C. There was much more moaning and groaning about our DL.
There was always moaning about our DL... but most people didn`t want to draft a DT high and prefered to sign one via FA. On the contrary lots of people wanted us to sign a G like Iupati or a C like that guy that went to Pittsburgh with the 1st round pick. Our running game was really bad, as were all 3d and short situations. Most people were hating on Myers, the Wade Smith signing was considered average at best. The departure of the injury ridden Pitts and the inconsistent play of our line as a whole was a major concern.
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
Have a hard time rankin our bunch ahead of the Pats. Brady always seems like he has enough time to retie his shoelaces before he has to throw......
The left side for NE is really damn good .... but Brady's savy in the pocket has a lot to do with their OL overall.

Its nice to see the Texans OL getting some recognition. They had a real solid season both running and passing. Are they as good as advertised here ? Who knows ..... But its a far cry from watching comercials with HHWNBM lining up with no OL at all.
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
Heard an intersting stat earlier while watching the Browns & Packers ....

The Texans OL had the fewest holding penalties in the league last year with 12. The next fewest was the Packers with 16. Thats pretty impressive.
 

edo783

Hall of Fame
Heard an intersting stat earlier while watching the Browns & Packers ....

The Texans OL had the fewest holding penalties in the league last year with 12. The next fewest was the Packers with 16. Thats pretty impressive.
That is the kind of thing that helps keep drives alive. After turnover ratio, the lack of penalties is likely the next major state that dictates and translates into wins other than a lack of injuries which kind of trumps everything.
 

Norg

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
I would disagree

Winston is like a tackle on roller skates he gets beat alot

Brown was suspend for 4 games last year and so far hes been subpar at best at pass protection agansit the elitle teams

Chris myers ..... No commet

Wade smith is one of fhe only line i think is acctually good and hes a free agent player

And has far has the other guard it seems like its musical chairs on the right side
 

ObsiWan

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
Heard an intersting stat earlier while watching the Browns & Packers ....

The Texans OL had the fewest holding penalties in the league last year with 12. The next fewest was the Packers with 16. Thats pretty impressive.
I couldn't find that game. NFLnetwork replayed the Ravens/Eagles game on Dish Network.
 

edo783

Hall of Fame
I would disagree

Winston is like a tackle on roller skates he gets beat alot

Brown was suspend for 4 games last year and so far hes been subpar at best at pass protection agansit the elitle teams

Chris myers ..... No commet

Wade smith is one of fhe only line i think is acctually good and hes a free agent player

And has far has the other guard it seems like its musical chairs on the right side
The key to an O-line isn't nesisarily each guys skills, but rather how well they work together. That usually takes 3-4 years to become effective. That I think is what we are seeing. They are working well together and the sum of the parts are greater than the individual ones.
 

ObsiWan

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
Heard an intersting stat earlier while watching the Browns & Packers ....

The Texans OL had the fewest holding penalties in the league last year with 12. The next fewest was the Packers with 16. Thats pretty impressive.
I'm trying to find a source to back that up. So far I found this site which is an article about how the Steelers had the most penalized O-line in the NFL last season. There's a table ranking all 32 teams with total O-line penalties (holding and false starts combined), how many were declined, how many drives were stalled due to those penalties, and how many negative yards those penalties cost the team. There's a second table that has the same data but on each individual lineman.

Both are set up so I can't copy and paste them here. :(

One guess as to who is our most penalized lineman might be....

okay, I won't keep you in suspense. It's Eric Winston with 9. Next is Brown with 4.
 

ObsiWan

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
Also found this on the Pro Football Focus site:

Apparently those talking heads think more of our O-line than some of us do

3. New England Patriots (2009 Rank: 3rd)
Run Rank 2nd, Pass Rank 10th, Penalties Rank 3rd
With the great year Tom Brady had, you forget how dominant the line was in their run blocking. They also did it without two of their best: Logan Mankins held out and the Injury and retirement of Stephen Neal was a big blow given just how good a player he was for them. They were also more than sound in pass protection.
Best Player: All Pro Logan Mankins may be the most dominant run blocking guard in the league. He had more highlight reel blocks in half a season, than most guys manage in an entire year.
Biggest Concern: What is going on with Sebastian Vollmer? Superb as a rookie, a switch to the right side seemed to result in a slide in his performance. Is he better suited for the left and will he end up there?

2. Houston Texans (2009 Rank: 13th)
Run Rank 3rd, Pass Rank 4th, Penalties Rank 4th
How much did this line improve? Every one of them scored a positive grade and they were particularly strong with their run blocking (the unsung heroes in Arian Foster’s breakout campaign). If there’s a complaint it’s that both tackles are prone to getting beaten in pass protection.
Best Player: Surprising as it may seem, Chris Myers is right up there with Mangold and Birk as one of the best run blocking centers in the league.
Biggest Concern: After three years in the league, Duane Brown may be competent, but he’s not good enough to deal with the top edge rushers one-on-one.

1. New York Jets (2009 Rank: 1st)
Run Rank 1st, Pass Rank 1st, Penalties Rank 12th
The reigning champions will reign again. You could pick out four fifths of the starters, put them on any team, and the likelihood is they’d be the best offensive lineman on it. That’s how good they are.
Best Player: In any other team it would beD’Brickashaw Ferguson. But this isn’t just any other line, and Nick Mangold is a once-in-a-generation type player.
Biggest Concern: The decision to move on from Damien Woody. Maybe injuries have taken their toll, but it’s going to be a tough task to fill his boots.
and I'm NOT obsessing about this

....really, I'm not.
 
i think we have a great run blocking oline, but in pass protection i think they're average at best. even w/ 2 sacks per game or w/e, i think teams get to schaub way too much.
 

gary

Hall of Fame
Heard an intersting stat earlier while watching the Browns & Packers ....

The Texans OL had the fewest holding penalties in the league last year with 12. The next fewest was the Packers with 16. Thats pretty impressive.
I would disagree

Winston is like a tackle on roller skates he gets beat alot

Brown was suspend for 4 games last year and so far hes been subpar at best at pass protection agansit the elitle teams

Chris myers ..... No commet

Wade smith is one of fhe only line i think is acctually good and hes a free agent player

And has far has the other guard it seems like its musical chairs on the right side
These posts tell two different stories. Amazing.
 

Rey

Guest
I would disagree

Winston is like a tackle on roller skates he gets beat alot

Brown was suspend for 4 games last year and so far hes been subpar at best at pass protection agansit the elitle teams

Chris myers ..... No commet

Wade smith is one of fhe only line i think is acctually good and hes a free agent player

And has far has the other guard it seems like its musical chairs on the right side
Winston and brown sometimes struggle with pass protection, but overall I think they are on the better side of decent.

Their run blocking as a unit is really good though. These guys really get downfield and into the second level.

Even Chris myers is exceptional in the zbs.
 

Lucky

Ride, Captain, Ride!
Staff member
When I think how far the Texans have come in terms of the O-line and QB positions, but have still yet to win, I just want to :hankpalm:.
 

badboy

Hall of Fame
What I know, Schaub has thrown for 4 K yard seasons, O line kept him on his feet long enough for that. We have the NFL best rusher for last season and O line had a bit of something to do with that. Brown should not miss any games due to penalty. Winston had probably worst season ever & hopefully wil not see a repeat of that. Butler who did well replacing Brown is back & I thought he was long gone.
 

gtexan02

Working?
Texan fans: "We get no respect from the NFL! I hate ESPN, they never talk about us! Etc"
Texan fans: "The talking heads are wrong, we're much worse than that! No way are we #1 in any category. Etc"

We're the definition of mediocrity :D
 

DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
Texan fans: "We get no respect from the NFL! I hate ESPN, they never talk about us! Etc"
Texan fans: "The talking heads are wrong, we're much worse than that! No way are we #1 in any category. Etc"

We're the definition of mediocrity :D
As bad as the Texans have been, I can think of several other teams that are much closer to being the definitive of mediocre. Yes, I'm a :homer: who is drinking his annual :koolaid:, but I think the Texans are actually set up for several years of consistent playoff appearances. We're pretty well loaded with talent on both sides of the ball, have a proven top 5-10 O and a DC with a proven record of turning around D's in short order. I'm also OK with Kubiak as HC. I'm not a fan of all his decisions, but I am a fan of stability at HC and he has done better each year. Having said that, It needs to happen this year. If we miss the playoffs, it better be with an 11-5 record and we got edged out by tie-breakers.
 

Texanmike02

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
I have a hard time to believe that... Let`s not forget that we had one of the worst lines in 2009, and a lot of people begged for an OL men to be drafted in the 1st or 2nd round in the 2010 draft. Sure, our O-Line is good, but no way it is that good. Actually the O-Line is kinda my biggest concern for the upcoming season on offense...
On the O-line continuity is your friend. These lines that play together for 2-3-4-5 years start to figure it out. I think it really helps that we're seeing our backups get some time and play with the starters day in and day out.

Mike
 

Thorn

Dirty Old Man
Our offense is very good, and it couldn't be very good without a very good line in front of it. As to it's rank, well, whatever. That's just one man's opinion against someone else's. Let's see how many yards and TDs our offense racks up this season, and I'll bet you we are back in this discussion of top lines next year at this time as well.
 

Second Honeymoon

Hall of Fame
Are you getting the OL and DL mixed up? The only real noise I remember about our OL was Studdard being the backup LG and Myers at C. There was much more moaning and groaning about our DL.
Yeah I was the biggest Myers hater in the world, but that guy turned things around in a big way last year. He is still a bit overmatched against 3-4 teams with good DTs but he was vastly improved last year.

He went from a 4 to a 8 in one year if I graded him 1-10 from 2009 compared to 2010.
 

TheCD

Rookie
The Packers? Isn't this the line that the "experts" call Baby Swiss? I don't really watch many Packers games, but I thought that they were considered bad? Does one Super Bowl change that?
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
Yeah I was the biggest Myers hater in the world, but that guy turned things around in a big way last year. He is still a bit overmatched against 3-4 teams with good DTs but he was vastly improved last year.

He went from a 4 to a 8 in one year if I graded him 1-10 from 2009 compared to 2010.
I was all over Myers like white on rice myself .... Lets hope last year was no fluke and he continues his good play.
 

GP

Go Texans!
Yeah I was the biggest Myers hater in the world, but that guy turned things around in a big way last year. He is still a bit overmatched against 3-4 teams with good DTs but he was vastly improved last year.

He went from a 4 to a 8 in one year if I graded him 1-10 from 2009 compared to 2010.
Agreed.

He played like he wants to stay here.

We need more of the same THIS year, too.
 

The Pencil Neck

Hall of Fame
The Packers? Isn't this the line that the "experts" call Baby Swiss? I don't really watch many Packers games, but I thought that they were considered bad? Does one Super Bowl change that?
I think it was 2 years ago that they were really bad and even then, it was because most of the line was injured. They added Bulaga last year, got some guys back healthy, and had more continuity. I can't say that they were a top 5 line or anything last year; like you, I thought they were still a little iffy but that could just be because I wasn't following them that closely.
 

thunderkyss

Just win baby!!!
Staff member
Contributor's Club
I like our line & all, but I just can't quite buy into this much hype.
Hype is getting excited about newly signed players who haven't played a down in a Texans uniform for Texans coaches (one of which, at least, wasn't a Texans coach last year).

This is troopht

:fans:
 

thunderkyss

Just win baby!!!
Staff member
Contributor's Club
Yeah I was the biggest Myers hater in the world, but that guy turned things around in a big way last year. He is still a bit overmatched against 3-4 teams with good DTs but he was vastly improved last year.

He went from a 4 to a 8 in one year if I graded him 1-10 from 2009 compared to 2010.
I was all over Myers like white on rice myself .... Lets hope last year was no fluke and he continues his good play.
Agreed.

He played like he wants to stay here.

We need more of the same THIS year, too.
Either that, or you were wrong & the people who were saying Myers was the least of our OL worries were right all along.

Same thing goes for Kareem Jackson. The same guys who hated on Myers are hating on KJac. The SAME people who said Myers was doing his job consistently well are the same people saying Jackson wasn't as bad as he looked.

Not trying to toot my horn.... or 76's or Rey's, or leebigtx(sp) (sorry if I'm leaving anyone out) but at the end of the year, when you guys start saying KJac really turned his game around, or that he took that huge step between his sophomore & rookie season, I'm not going to say I told you so..... I'm just going to say, "why would you have expected any different?"

He played as well as any rookie CB save McCourty in 2010. The others were just on better teams.

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