Effective front fives are pivotal for teams’ passing and rushing attacks, so it’s no surprise that many of the best offenses in the league also feature prominently in our NFL offensive line rankings. Who has the top offensive line in the league heading into Week 2?
NFL offensive line rankings | Week 2
We don’t want to overreact to the opening week of the 2022 season. While there has been some movement in our NFL offensive line rankings since we last graded these units in June, those changes are largely the result of injuries. Anything can happen in Week 1, so we’ll wait before making any grand declarative statements about the quality of OL play around the league.
1. Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles’ offensive line dominated against the Lions in Week 1 as Philadelphia racked up 216 yards and four touchdowns in the run game in a 38-35 victory. Jalen Hurts took one sack, but it came on an overload blitz when running back Kenneth Gainwell may have missed an assignment. Right tackle Lane Johnson gave up zero pressures (again) — he hasn’t given up a pressure since Week 15 of the 2021 season.
2. Kansas City Chiefs
In center Creed Humphrey and left guard Joe Thuney, the Chiefs have two of the best offensive linemen in the league at their respective positions. Kansas City scored more points and averaged more yards per play than any team in the NFL in Week 1. Right guard Trey Smith left Sunday’s game with an ankle injury, but he was healthy enough to play on Thursday night (and backup Nick Allegretti acquitted himself well in Smith’s absence).
3. Cleveland Browns
If the Browns want to keep winning games with Jacoby Brissett under center, Sunday proved how they can do it. Cleveland posted Week 1’s fourth-lowest pass rate over expectation — meaning they ran the ball even when the situation may not have called for it — and totaled 217 yards on the ground. They finished first in Football Outsiders’ adjusted line yards metric.
Second-string center Ethan Pocic is the club’s weak link, but he plays between two excellent guards in Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller. 2021 fourth-round pick James Hudson was solid at right tackle, but starter Jack Conklin is “really close” to returning, per Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski.
4. Detroit Lions
Logan Stenberg had a rough showing while replacing the injured Halapoulivaati Vaitai, but that was to be expected against the Eagles, who have arguably the NFL’s best defensive line rotation. Meanwhile, center Frank Ragnow is banged up and hasn’t practiced this week. Detroit’s offensive line is underrated, but the cracks are beginning to show. They’ll need their depth pieces to step up, or they could slip down these rankings.
5. Washington Commanders
Carson Wentz doesn’t always make things easy on his offensive line, but he was pressured on just 20% of his dropbacks against the Jaguars on Sunday, the fourth-lowest rate in Week 1.
Left tackle Charles Leno Jr. and left guard Andrew Norwell were particularly impressive against a Jacksonville front seven that added a lot of talent over the offseason. Free agent addition Trai Turner stepped in for injured right guard Wes Schweitzer midway through Sunday’s game, and he may be required to start in Week 2.
6. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Bucs may no longer have a truly elite offensive line after losing center Ryan Jensen and left guard Aaron Stinnie to injury, but they still have a lot of good players! Tristan Wirfs is one of the best right tackles in the game, and Shaq Mason is a veteran with a lot of experience. Left tackle Donovan Smith hasn’t practiced this week after hyperextending his elbow this week, but Josh Wells is a capable backup who can fill in if Smith can’t go against the Saints.
Meanwhile, first-year starters Robert Hainsey (center) and Luke Goedeke (left guard) were up and down against the Cowboys. Luckily, Tom Brady always makes his line look good. He got rid of the ball in an average of 2.19 seconds in Week 1, tops among all quarterbacks.
7. New England Patriots
Rookie Cole Strange played incredibly well in his first NFL start, allowing zero pressures on 29 pass-blocking snaps. Veteran James Ferentz replaced Strange for two series in the second quarter, but that was part of the Patriots’ plan to keep players fresh in 90+ temperatures in Miami. New England’s offense couldn’t do anything against the Dolphins, but that lackluster effort can’t be pinned on their offensive line.
8. Cincinnati Bengals
Joe Burrow was sacked more times than any other quarterback in 2021, and he’s already leading the league again in 2022 after getting taken down seven times against the Steelers. It’s hard to pin all those sacks on the Bengals’ new-look offensive line, though.
Burrow looked rusty on Sunday — perhaps because he missed preseason time following an appendectomy — and failed to get the ball out quickly on several of those sacks. While he took seven sacks, Burrow was only pressured 29% of his dropbacks, the 10th-lowest rate among 33 qualifying QBs in Week 1. Rookie left guard Cordell Volson has work to do, but the rest of Cincinnati’s offensive line looked much improved.
9. Indianapolis Colts
Freshly-paid left guard Quenton Nelson, center Ryan Kelly, and right tackle Braden Smith looked like their usual selves on Sunday, and it was no surprise that left tackle Matt Pryor looked like the Colts’ weak point up front.
Third-round rookie Bernhard Raimann totaled four snaps as Indy’s sixth offensive lineman, but he also rotated in for 12 snaps at left tackle. Head coach Frank Reich said that rotation will continue, and it’s possible Raimann could take over as the starter as the season progresses.
10. Los Angeles Chargers
We had the Chargers slightly higher in our rankings until Thursday night, when both center Corey Linsley and right tackle Trey Pipkins went down with injuries. Linsley (knee) is the glue of LA’s offensive line, and the downgrade from the former Packer to backup Will Clapp is immense.
Pipkins (ankle) won the RT job with his preseason performance. Storm Norton, his summer competition and a 15-game starter in 2022, will take over if Pipkins has to miss time. The OL depth that the Chargers worked to build through free agency and the last two drafts is being tested early.
NFL offensive line rankings | 11-20
11. Baltimore Ravens
12. Green Bay Packers
13. Minnesota Vikings
14. Dallas Cowboys
15. New Orleans Saints
16. Buffalo Bills
17. Denver Broncos
18. San Francisco 49ers
19. Miami Dolphins
20. New York Jets
NFL offensive line rankings | 21-32
21. Houston Texans
22. Los Angeles Rams
23. Arizona Cardinals
24. Atlanta Falcons
25. Tennessee Titans
26. Carolina Panthers
27. New York Giants
28. Seattle Seahawks
29. Jacksonville Jaguars
30. Las Vegas Raiders
31. Pittsburgh Steelers
32. Chicago Bears
