Let’s Talk About Left Tackle
February 24, 2021
by Steve Thomas
The position with which the Redskins Washington has had the most success over the years is left tackle. The team has gone from Joe Jacoby (an undrafted free agent who was hall of fame talent but has been screwed by the voters) from 1981 to 1993, to Jim Lachey (first round pick in 1985) 1989 to 1995, to Chris Samuels (first round pick) from 2000 – 2009, and Trent Williams (first round pick) from 2011 to 2019. All of those players were All-Pro / Hall of Fame-level talents and represented the foundation of the team over the past 40 years. For those of us who’ve followed this team through that time, the fans still most closely identify with The Hogs more than any other group of players. Unfortunately, Washington’s offensive line is currently in flux , with Trent Williams having pouted his way out of town, All-Pro Brandon Scherff a free agent, and right tackle Morgan Moses at the mid-point or more of his career. Plus, the team may not have a true starting left guard.
Generally speaking, the left tackle is the “glamor position”, of sorts, of the offensive line since that position is the principal defender of the right-handed quarterback’s blind side in the pocket. Last year, Cornelius Lucas did a serviceable job for Washington in that role as a stopgap-type player. He’s signed through 2021, so it’s possible that he gets the job again, although last year’s fourth round pick, Saahdiq Charles, should be back from injury and will get a shot at some point. Will this be enough to nail down the left side for the long term? Many draft analysts last year thought that from a talent perspective, Charles was a big bargain in round four. Does Washington need to spend its first round pick this year on a tackle? These are valid questions for debate.
Conventional wisdom is that teams spend by amounts of draft capital and money on this position in light of its importance to the quarterback. Certainly, Washington has done so over the years. Have you ever wondered what the rest of the NFL does? How much of a high profile position is left tackle? Let’s find out.
The Data
In order to put some objectivity into this question, I looked at the draft status, Pro Bowl honors, and All Pro selections for each starting left tackle in the league last season. Here are the results:
First round picks: 20 of 32 (62.5%)
At least one Pro Bowl: 15 of 32 (46.9%)
At least one First Team All Pro selection: 6 of 32 (18.8%)
Only five teams, including Washington, started a left tackle last season who did not have at least one of those three characteristics, the other teams being the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Buffalo Bills, the Indianapolis Colts, and the Los Angeles Chargers. The starting left tackles for every other team had at least one of those three items on their resume. Of the 14 playoff teams this past season, 6 had a starting left tackle who was a first round pick, 4 started one who received First Team All-Pro honors at least once, and 8 of 14 had been elected to at least one Pro Bowl.
Six of the 32 teams started a left tackle who was drafted in round 4 or lower, and three of those six teams (including Washington) featured a starter who was an undrafted free agent, including 2 of the 14 playoff teams, Washington and Pittsburgh.
Analysis
First: yes, most teams do, in fact, spent significant draft capital on a left tackle. In fact, 81% of NFL teams have a starter who was drafted in round 3 or higher, and as shown above, 62.5% have first round picks in the job. Eleven of the 14 playoff teams, or 78.6%, started a left tackle drafted in round 3 or higher. That having been said, that’s probably roughly true for most positions – NFL starters are generally found in those draft rounds. No position has a significant number of undrafted free agent starters. Plus, a not-insignificant number of those first round picks were not originally drafted by their current team, meaning that their original teams allowed them to move on.
The truth is that teams don’t appear to treat left tackle much differently than other positions in terms of how they staff the position. I’d venture a guess that if I checked out all of the other positions, the numbers for most of them would be in the same ballpark as left tackle. Certainly, a quality left tackle can make the most money of any of the offensive line positions, but that’s another story.
Washington already has a fourth round pick, Saahdiq Charles, and they didn’t draft him for no reason. Considering that he dropped in the draft due to character concerns rather than performance potential, it’s possible, maybe likely, that Charles is going to get a chance to earn the starting job. His draft status would suggest that he’s not a typical starting-quality left tackle, but the coaching staff may feel as though he has enough talent to fill the role. Washington probably won’t feel the need to reach for a tackle at the top of the draft this year, especially considering the enormity of the needs up and down the roster on both sides of the ball, but if the opportunity presents itself, they may go ahead and jump on it.