Tackles get the glamour along the offensive line, and those who don't quite measure up outside in college are often relegated to playing guard or center in the NFL.
But occasionally it works both ways.
The Eagles unleashed trench warfare on the league along the way to winning the most recent Super Bowl. And one of the key components along the offensive trench was none other than guard Mekhi Becton.
That's the same Becton who first entered the NFL as an 11th-overall selection by the New York Jets as an offensive tackle out of Louisville in 2020.
Becton went from a disappointment at left tackle in New York to a find at right guard in Philly.
The drafting of a guard or a center traditionally can lack the buzz associated with the selection of a tackle, but the right players in the right spots at the right time along the interior of the offensive line can more than justify the investment. It takes all five, after all, up front.
**1\. Grey Zabel, North Dakota State, 6-53/8, 316 lbs. -** The NFL should long be over wondering whether players from North Dakota State can play. In the event there were any lingering doubts, Zabel shattered them throughout Senior Bowl Week. The only question about Zabel is whether he's a tackle, guard or center. He might be all three.
**2\. Tyler Booker, Alabama, 6-45/8, 321 lbs. -** His NFL comparison, according to the NFL Network, is Quenton Nelson. Booker, a captain at Alabama, also brings a brand of nasty. NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah also noted he'd heard comparisons to former Crimson Tide edge Will Anderson (third overall, 2023) from people at Alabama in terms of Booker's "leadership, work ethic and competitiveness."
**3\. Donovan Jackson, Ohio State, 6-4, 320 lbs. -** His mid-season switch to tackle out of necessity during the Buckeyes' run to the national championship established Jackson can play outside. But prior to that his bona fides at guard were well established. He's a veteran of 61 career games played and 55 career games started. Find him a spot.
**4\. Jared Wilson, Georgia, 6-3, 310 lbs. -** Wilson didn't participate on the field during Senior Bowl Week, but he's been repeatedly referenced as the best pure center available. And he made up for lost time by lighting up the NFL Scouting Combine when he ran a 4.84 40-yard dash (the second time an offensive lineman ran a sub-4.85 at 300-plus pounds in Combine history). Wilson only started for one season for the Bulldogs, so he's not a finished product.
**5\. Miles Frazier, LSU, 6-55/8, 317 -** Frazier dabbled briefly at tackle in 2024 and worked at the position at the Senior Bowl. He wound up being named his team's offensive line practice player of the week in Mobile, Ala. (in a vote of opposing defensive linemen and linebackers). Frazier started 13 games at right guard in 2024, but his position flexibility includes 27 such assignments at right guard, 11 at left tackle, 10 at left guard and two at right tackle among his 50 career starts.
**Sleeper: Jonah Monheim, USC, 6-41/8, 307 lbs. -** Another player will experience across the board (18 career starts at right tackle, 12 at left tackle, 12 at center, all last season, and three at right guard from 2021 through 2024). And he reportedly did very well during interviews with NFL teams at the Senior Bowl. "I've been told by coaches he has aced that (meeting room) test," Jeremiah maintained. Monheim isn't flashy, but there's a lot to like.