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Even though football games are won and lost in the trenches, and thus Super Bowl teams usually have powerful offensive lines, as a team we've neglected the OG position in the draft for years. With the catastrophic injury to Chris Kuper we're basically down to scraps at the position, and need to protect our investment in Peyton Manning if we don't want to see him carted off the field with his neck stabilized. Our Oline was only 29th in pass defense last season.
Football Outsiders Oline Rankings
Offensive guard is a critical but underappreciated position. Having a guard who can expand the pocket to allow the quarterback to step up to avoid the pass rush on the edge or from zone blitzes gives pass plays more time to develop, keeps the quarterback upright and cuts down on interceptions, QB strips and sack-fumbles.
Pocket-expanding guards are essential to protect the QB from elite penetrating DTs. A top-level DT can collapse the pocket, disrupt the running game and cause QB hurries, fumbles and sacks by edge rushers, so the offensive guards who are the only players on the field big enough and strong enough to stop these gridiron monsters are just as important, if not moreso. We clearly had no answer for Vince Wilfork in the playoff game against the Patriots, partly because guard Chris Kuper had gone down two weeks before against the Chiefs with his left foot flopping at a right angle.
Gruesome Chris Kuper Injury
Having guards who can pass-protect is good, but it's even better if we can get a player who is also a road-grader in the running game, who can get to the second level and punish the linebackers. That forces the safety up into run support and creates openings over the middle for the passing game with tight ends and slot receivers in play-action, critical skill positions in a Peyton Manning offense. And everyone knows how much Adrian Peterson owes his success to the huge holes opened up by the superb blocking of All-Pro guard Steve Hutchinson road-grading the defense.
Having huge road graders at the guard positions that can blow the DTs and MLBs off the ball is vital for converting 3rd and short and 4th and short. Last year Denver's Oline was only 26th in the league in "power success" as ranked by Football Outsiders. Fewer failures in short yardage situations would allow the offense to sustain drives and give the defense more time to rest.
Guards who have the quick, athletic feet to pass-protect Peyton Manning and block quick, penetrating DTs but who are also big, strong men weighing in at 320+ pounds who excel in Fox's power-running schemes are very rare, almost as if they're from another planet. So the Planet Theory dictates that you have to draft these athletic freaks in the first round or you're not going to get them in free agency.
Also supporting the Planet Theory is that these guys also have to be smart, which makes them even rarer than defensive linemen, at least if you go by the Wonderlic scores:
Who Wears the NFL's Smarty Pants?
There aren't many OGs in this year's draft with first round grades. David DeCastro, a very intelligent guard/center from Stanford, is probably the leading candidate at his position. He goes 6'5", 316 lbs., had 34 reps in the bench press at the Combine, and pass-blocked for Andrew Luck. If he falls to us at #25 we should definitely take him, and should consider trading up to get him too, as some mocks have him going as high as #11. If he falls to us at #25 then we can also use our 2nd round pick on one of the other quality guards, several of whom have 2nd round grades. Picking up two of them wouldn't be a bad idea given how thin we are at the position.
2012 NFL Draft: Guard Rankings
Football Outsiders Oline Rankings
Offensive guard is a critical but underappreciated position. Having a guard who can expand the pocket to allow the quarterback to step up to avoid the pass rush on the edge or from zone blitzes gives pass plays more time to develop, keeps the quarterback upright and cuts down on interceptions, QB strips and sack-fumbles.
Pocket-expanding guards are essential to protect the QB from elite penetrating DTs. A top-level DT can collapse the pocket, disrupt the running game and cause QB hurries, fumbles and sacks by edge rushers, so the offensive guards who are the only players on the field big enough and strong enough to stop these gridiron monsters are just as important, if not moreso. We clearly had no answer for Vince Wilfork in the playoff game against the Patriots, partly because guard Chris Kuper had gone down two weeks before against the Chiefs with his left foot flopping at a right angle.
Gruesome Chris Kuper Injury
Having guards who can pass-protect is good, but it's even better if we can get a player who is also a road-grader in the running game, who can get to the second level and punish the linebackers. That forces the safety up into run support and creates openings over the middle for the passing game with tight ends and slot receivers in play-action, critical skill positions in a Peyton Manning offense. And everyone knows how much Adrian Peterson owes his success to the huge holes opened up by the superb blocking of All-Pro guard Steve Hutchinson road-grading the defense.
Having huge road graders at the guard positions that can blow the DTs and MLBs off the ball is vital for converting 3rd and short and 4th and short. Last year Denver's Oline was only 26th in the league in "power success" as ranked by Football Outsiders. Fewer failures in short yardage situations would allow the offense to sustain drives and give the defense more time to rest.
Guards who have the quick, athletic feet to pass-protect Peyton Manning and block quick, penetrating DTs but who are also big, strong men weighing in at 320+ pounds who excel in Fox's power-running schemes are very rare, almost as if they're from another planet. So the Planet Theory dictates that you have to draft these athletic freaks in the first round or you're not going to get them in free agency.
Also supporting the Planet Theory is that these guys also have to be smart, which makes them even rarer than defensive linemen, at least if you go by the Wonderlic scores:
I think to play offensive line in the NFL today is very hard. They have to adjust to so many different fronts. They have to understand blitz concepts. You've got to comprehend and be able to learn or else you're going to have a hard time....
Bill Belichick used to always tell me the dumbest group is the defensive linemen, and centers are the smartest.
Bill Belichick used to always tell me the dumbest group is the defensive linemen, and centers are the smartest.
There aren't many OGs in this year's draft with first round grades. David DeCastro, a very intelligent guard/center from Stanford, is probably the leading candidate at his position. He goes 6'5", 316 lbs., had 34 reps in the bench press at the Combine, and pass-blocked for Andrew Luck. If he falls to us at #25 we should definitely take him, and should consider trading up to get him too, as some mocks have him going as high as #11. If he falls to us at #25 then we can also use our 2nd round pick on one of the other quality guards, several of whom have 2nd round grades. Picking up two of them wouldn't be a bad idea given how thin we are at the position.
2012 NFL Draft: Guard Rankings
FA Targets: DT Jason Jones, DT Pat Simms, S Reggie Smith, LB Dan Connor 
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