2026 NFL Draft: This year's deep, talented OT class could make difference in keeping your team's QB healthy
2026 NFL Draft: This year's deep, talented OT class could make difference in keeping your team's QB healthy
Charles McDonaldTue, April 7, 2026 at 6:07 PM UTC
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This year’s NFL Draft class doesn’t feature the most traditionally exciting group of prospects for fans. There’s one quarterback that’s a surefire lock to go in the first round, the top defensive players are two linebackers and a safety, and there isn’t a truly dominant No. 1 wide receiver prospect for fans to dream about adding to their fantasy teams.
However, this year’s crop of offensive tackles is incredibly talented, with a handful of players who have legitimate first-round grades. Although these players aren’t as exciting as the skill players on the field, they’re usually more valuable over the long run.
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What immediately stands out about this class of offensive tackles is the sheer size of the prospects. There’s a handful of players with elite physical traits just from a pure size perspective and they showed off elite movement skills in the athletic testing that translates to tape.
Here are the players that will hear their name called early as teams look for “set it and forget it” caliber offensive linemen.
Utah’s first-round duo
This year’s class has so many talented players that two of them are coming from the same team. Utah’s Spencer Fano and Caleb Lomu should both hear their names called during the first round and slide into the same roles they played in college. Fano manned the left side of the offensive line while Lomu asserted control as their right tackle. Those two routinely blew open holes for Utah’s running game and provided strong protection for the quarterback.
Lomu has the prototypical build that teams love in their offensive tackle prospects and has remarkable explosive ability to win at the point of attack in the run game. He was a perfect right tackle for Utah, but he still might have the range as an athlete to play left tackle in the NFL. Fano doesn’t have ideal length with 32-inch arms, but he's a good enough athlete and technician to get a chance as a left tackle as a pro. There’s a chance that Fano may have to play guard in the NFL, but like Will Campbell last year, he at least deserves the chance before making that switch.
At the very least, both of these players profile to be long-term starters along the offensive line. Of the six players to receive at least 20 carries for Utah’s football team last year, five of them averaged at least 5 yards per carry, with three of those players averaging 6.5 yards per carry or better. That’s exactly what should happen when a college program has two bonafide first rounders along the offensive line.
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Monroe Freeling is the biggest lottery ticket prospect
Georgia’s run game came back to life last fall after a down season in 2024 and it wouldn’t have been possible without the rapid improvement of left tackle Monroe Freeling. When Georgia ended its 2024 campaign against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff, Freeling looked like a player that didn’t have much of a future starting in college, let alone being a first-round pick in the NFL — but that’s why we play the games. This year, Freeling took his game to an entire new level and by the end of the season he was a truly dominant force for Georgia up front.
The biggest selling point on Freeling was solidified at the combine: He’s an absurd athlete at 6-foot-7 and 314 pounds and shows off a rare ability to make blocks on the second level with much smaller defenders in space. That athleticism has translated to him being a much-improved pass blocker for Georgia, showing tangible reasons that he can continue to grow into a franchise tackle prospect for the NFL. His athleticism and ability to be a strong run blocker gives him versatility to play on the left or the right side moving forward, and in a draft class that’s locking surefire talent at premium positions at the top, he could hear his name called among the first few picks. This is all about upside and Freeling has shown that he can make huge leaps of improvement in a short amount of time.
Francis Mauigoa’s versatility will help him on draft day
Miami offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa has been projected for the top of this draft for over a year now and looks set to fulfill that prediction. As far as his tackle prospects go, he’s probably closer to a classic right tackle profile with the ability to kick inside and be a dominant guard if it comes to it. At 340 pounds, Mauigoa is an impressive mover that should have no problem moving heavier defensive linemen and projects cleanly to teams that run gap-scheme plays more than zone runs.
He has a skill set that might not fit every single team, but he’s a really good fit for teams that want to mash it and are willing to tinker until they find the exact right spot for him up front.
Blake Miller and Max Iheanachor: More upside swings
Two players that have a real chance to go Round 1 but might not be household names are Clemson’s Blake Miller and Arizona State’s Max Iheanachor. Both of them profile as elite athletes for the position with a lot of room to grow for the future while still being capable players sooner rather than later. Miller looks like a player that could feasibly be on the left or right side of the offensive line while Iheanachor has one of the more fascinating backgrounds in this year’s class.
Iheanachor is still fairly new to the game. He didn't start playing football until junior college in 2021 where he was quickly able to work himself into one of the better JUCO prospects in the nation, before eventually manning the right side of Arizona State’s offensive line. He has prototypical size, length and athleticism and has shown in a short period of time that he’s been able to improve his play from a first-time player to someone worthy of a first-round pick.
Kadyn Proctor is the ultimate wild card in this year’s class
The player who was most well-known coming into this season was Alabama’s Kadyn Proctor, who has been in the spotlight since he was a five-star recruit in high school. Proctor is a mountain of a human being, measuring at 6-7 and 352 pounds — and still performed well at the combine despite his size. While the idea of Proctor seems like a surefire elite prospect in this draft, his actual play was a bit up and down, particularly towards the beginning of the season. Alabama’s season opener against Florida State was a disaster (like it was for the whole team) and Proctor kind of had to play his way into shape in the early portion of the season.
He did eventually level out his play and put together some productive performances, but the recent history of players this size is not the cleanest because it’s just hard to stay healthy consistently. Still, the potential is tantalizing and will likely get him drafted in the first round because if he can keep his weight in check and stay healthy, he can be a transformative talent for a team’s run game with his athleticism at a higher weight.
Source: “AOL Sports”
