Redskins LT Trent Williams
Last season, the Indianapolis Colts posted a 14-2 record, the best in the NFL. Much of the team's success was attributed to the strong play of the club's offensive line, which allowed only 13 sacks, the fewest in the league.
"Our offensive line has five guys that love to go into the trenches," says Colts quarterback PEYTON MANNING. "Just fighters and hard workers up there.
"I love those five guys in front of me," continues Manning. "I love their effort. I love their attitude."
In today's NFL, the ability to protect the quarterback is key.
With such a premium placed on keeping the quarterback out of harm's way, it is no surprise that teams have made it a priority to draft offensive tackles. Three of the first 11 picks in April's NFL Draft were tackles (TRENT WILLIAMS, RUSSELL OKUNG and ANTHONY DAVIS) and a fourth (BRYAN BULAGA) was selected later in Round 1. This comes on the heels of 2009, when three of the top eight selections were tackles (JASON SMITH, ANDRE SMITH and EUGENE MONROE).
It marked just the third time in over 20 years that three tackles were drafted in the top-10. In 2008, an NFL-record eight offensive tackles were taken in the first round, including first-overall pick JAKE LONG, who has been selected to the Pro Bowl in each of his first two seasons.
"Well I think the left tackle is the hardest position to play," says Washington Redskins head coach MIKE SHANAHAN, who drafted Williams fourth overall in 2010. "Obviously, if we didn't feel very strongly about him we wouldn't have picked him with the fourth pick in the draft."
With 26 offensive tackles being selected in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft over the past three years, more than three-quarters of the teams in the league have made significant decisions at the position since 2008.
"No matter what happens, you still need a guy to hunker down at left tackle and be able to play against big people, but you also have to have a guy that can play against the (DE MARCUS) WAREs of this world, the guys that can move," says Seahawks general manager JOHN SCHNEIDER, who hopes sixth overall selection Okung fits that bill in Seattle.
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