With the 2019 NFL preseason in the books I thought it would be fun to take a look at now the starting offensive lines have played. Obviously, many starters have not played a lot of snaps so it will be hard to conclude too much based on this small sample size. The LA Rams starting offensive line for week 1 could not even be rated because they played combined 0 snaps in the preseason.

This ranking is based on the preseason PFF grades of all week 1 starters and I’ve then used the average for each line as their score. If a starter has not played any snaps in the preseason, that players position has been excluded from the average. Except for the Eagles and Rams (3 and 0 respectively) every team has fielded at least 4 starters in the preseason.

I will not be going through the entire list, only the top 5.

1: Detroit Lions (78,52)

It was surprising to me to see the Lions on top of the list, but it was even more surprising that they were first by a huge margin. There was a bigger margin between number 1 and 2 on the list than there was between number 2 and 11. The Lions have invested heavily in their o-line throughout the last few years, so they will happy to see that it might finally be coming together. Matt Patricia will want to run the ball a lot, so a strong offensive line could mean big years for Kerryon Johnson and potentially CJ Anderson too. I have not been drafting Kerryon in any leagues because I like to wait on running backs, but this increases the hope many fantasy players have for a breakout season. With Theo Riddick gone he might be in line for more 3rd down work, but there’s a risk that CJ Anderson will take away some redzone opportunities.

2: San Francisco 49ers (70,725)

All offseason I’ve thought that Tevin Coleman could be a great late-round pick in fantasy drafts. He has a history with Kyle Shanahan and Matt Breida is yet to prove that he can be healthy for a whole season. To add to that, Jerrick McKinnon is now set for another season on the sideline. Shanahan proved with the Falcons that with a strong offensive line he can create a very explosive offense and this could the beginning of a similar unit in San Francisco. I know the playmakers are not at the same level as in Atlanta, but I think 2019 could be a great year for this offense.

3: New York Giants (70,7)

If there weren’t enough reasons for Saquan Barkley to be the 1st overall pick in fantasy already, he’s also running behind what could become one of the best lines in the league this year. Adding Kevin Zeitler gives the team one of the best guard combinations in the NFL.

4: Jacksonville Jaguars (66,88)

Boy am I glad to see my Jags represented towards the top of this list. Leonard Fournette is not the type of runner who creates something out of nothing, he needs the o-line to create holes for him to get the first couple of yards and then his athleticism can create plays from there. The offense will want to lean on the run, even though they have gotten an upgrade at QB. The line was hurt by injuries last year and hopefully the addition of Jawaan Taylor at right tackle proves a huge upgrade (he earned a 92.2 run block grade from PFF in the preseason). Ryquell Armstead could become one of the most important handcuffs in Fantasy this year (Alfred Blue was placed on IR).

5: Denver Broncos (66,875)

Dalton Risner and Ja’Wuan James look to be great acquisitions for this line, that could provide even better working conditions for Phillip Lindsay (and potentially also Royce Freeman). I think a lot of people are sleeping on this offense, but they have upgraded several positions and a great defense could help them with great field position as well.

The rest of the list:

6: Oakland Raiders (66,025)

7: Tennessee Titans (65,56)

8: Dallas Cowboys (65,425)

9: Atlanta Falcons (65,06)

10: Kansas City Chiefs (64,26)

11: New Orleans Saints (64,1)

12: Pittsburgh Steelers (62,16)

13: Buffalo Bills (62,125)

14: Chicago Bears (61,825)

15: Green Bay Packers (61,6)

16: New England Patriots (61,58)

17: New York Jets (61,45)

18: Seattle Seahawks (61,25)

19: Houston Texans (61,12)

20: Philadelphia Eagles (60,63)

21: Baltimore Ravens (59,65)

22: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (58,7)

23: Washington Redskins (58,68)

24: Arizona Cardinals (58,62)

25: Miami Dolphins (57,3)

26: Cincinnati Bengals (54,92)

27: Carolina Panthers (54,46)

28: Los Angeles Chargers (53,35)

29: Indianapolis Colts (53,22)

30: Minnesota Vikings (51,925)

31: Cleveland Browns (47,48)

32: Los Angeles Rams (0,00)