Washington bolsters the offensive line in round 1
April 25, 2025
by Steve Thomas
Washington drafted Oregon offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. with the 29th pick in round 1 of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Conerly spent three seasons at the University of Oregon, playing in a total of 41 games. He became a full-time starter in his 2023 sophomore year. In 2024, he played in 14 games and earned First-team All-American and First-team All-Big Ten honors. At the NFL Combine, he was measured at 6’5” and 311 pounds, 33 ½” arm length, ran the 40 yard dash in 5.05 seconds, jumped 34.5” in the vertical leap and 8’7” in the standing broad jump.
Conerly’s arm length is a half inch shorter than what some believe is the ideal measurement for NFL tackles; however, the idea that a single half inch will end up being critically important seems a bit far-fetched. He is known as a tackle who has good speed and footwork for the position, but perhaps struggles a bit against the more powerful defensive lineman. Considering that Conerly only started two years at Oregon, it’s reasonable to think that he has room for development and improvement in Washington. Coaches may want him to work on play strength early in his career to better match up against NFL-quality defenders.
General Manager Adam Peters indicated in his post-round 1 press conference Friday night that the newly acquired Laremy Tunsil would start at left tackle, and everyone else, including Conerly, would compete for the other starting spots along the offensive line. He stated that the team believed that Conerly had the ability to play right tackle and both guard spots. Peters further stated that the team was impressed by Conerly’s character and that they had him ranked significantly higher than the other players remaining on their draft board. For that reason, the team decided to turn down trade offers in favor of Conerly.
What seems like the most likely scenario is for Conerly to join the newly acquired veteran, Tunsil, at the two tackle positions. This would move last year’s third round pick Brandon Coleman either inside, probably to right guard to replace the injured Samuel Cosmi, or to the bench as the swing tackle. This would hopefully give the team one of the league’s better starting tackle tandems, with the possibility of Conerly eventually replacing the 30 year old Tunsil on the left side at some point down the road.
It is also possible that Washington could try to move Conerly inside, which at least a few draft analysts have opined should be his NFL future. That seems like probably the less likely option at this moment, but we’ll learn more later this offseason about Washington’s plans for him later this offseason.
Hopefully, Tunsil and Conerly can pair up as quality players at the left and right tackle positions for the next several seasons. With Tyler Biadasz at center, the team could conceivably have plus-left starters at both tackle positions and center, with only the two guard positions possibly trending more towards average. Conerly’s selection at the 29th pick is an outstanding choice that should go a long way towards solidifying and improving Washington’s offensive line.