With camps opening around the NFL in only a few weeks, let’s turn our attention to some of PFF’s favorite late-round and UDFA offensive linemen. Through a combination of opportunity and (obviously) talent, these five late-round or UDFA linemen have a good shot at making their respective rosters.
C Lamont Gaillard, Arizona Cardinals
To say that the Cardinals could use help along their offensive line would be an understatement. Their 55.7 team pass-blocking grade was quite easily the worst in the NFL last season, and while they added J.R. Sweezy and Marcus Gilbert over the offseason, you shouldn’t be surprised to hear that they’re still pretty darn thin up front. With last year’s third-round pick Mason Cole earning the fifth-worst grade among all centers in the league, it wouldn’t surprise us too much if Gaillard even cracks the starting lineup at some point in Arizona. A three-year starter in the SEC, Gaillard never graded out lower than 70.0 in either run blocking or pass blocking for a full season at Georgia.
T Jackson Barton, Indianapolis Colts
Barton was one player that the analytics loved, despite little national fanfare. The reason being his exceptional performance in pass protection over the past couple of seasons. On 1,056 pass-blocking snaps over that span, Barton allowed all of 30 pressures. He has a little bit more of an uphill climb to make the roster than some others on this list as the Colts have invested a good deal in developing backup tackles Le’Raven Clark and Joe Haeg, but Barton offers a lot more than your normal seventh-rounder.
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