NFL Draft: Why are so many top offensive linemen changing positions? Potential converts in this class

There were nine offensive linemen drafted in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Eight of them, excluding Bengals right tackle Amarius Mims, were asked to play positions they had not played during their senior seasons in college.

It was not that long ago that the NFL did not view the right tackle position as important as left tackle. The practice of converting positions was not as common, so why is it becoming so popular now?

Former Vikings general manager Rick Spielman noted the league’s embrace of 11 personnel and playing a more spread-out game as being one reason position changes along the offensive line have become more widespread. 

“I think it is the ability to take the best football player when you have a need. Plus, most of these teams have good pass rushers coming off either side. It is not just the right tackle is going to face an elite rusher,” Spielman said in an interview from December. 

Duke Manyweather, a private offensive line coach and founder of the annual OL Masterminds workshop, has a shared view on why there’s been more transition than ever. 

“They are taking the label off of left tackle, right tackle, center or guard and they’re saying, ‘All right, this guy is the top guy on our board, best player available. Let’s evaluate him for these traits, can he make the switch?’ There are some guys that can do it. There are some guys that can go up and down the offensive line and play all five positions if you need them to.”

Spielman said discussions regarding whether or not a player could or should transition to another position begin in pre-draft meetings with scouts in December. 

Eric Galko is the director of football operations, player personnel for the East-West Shrine Bowl. He and his staff usually arrive at the decision to cross-train prospects at different positions if that is where they best project in the NFL, but it is not uncharacteristic for NFL teams, the prospect himself or the prospect’s representative to request a change.

One example that he gave from this year’s event was Oregon State’s Joshua Gray, who played both left tackle and guard for the Beavers, but wanted to showcase his capabilities as a center. 

Spielman, and likely other personnel evaluators, appreciate the opportunity to see live repetitions of a lineman working at different positions at all-star events.

“When you go to these all-star games and see these guys play different positions, which I think is a great thing to have on tape for these guys, especially if they have never played a position other than one position in college. When the Senior [Bowl] or East-West [Shrine Bowl] move these guys around to different spots, at least you get some of that,” Spielman said.

The longtime NFL executive also stressed the importance of offensive line coaches getting the opportunity to work with the prospects at pro Days and during individual workouts. 

“Most of the time it is not going to be a physical thing. It is going to be the adjustment period if you have been dropping your left foot back in pass pro your whole life and now you have to drop your right foot back, how big of an adjustment is that?”

Which physical traits appeal to Manyweather when evaluating the position?

“I think you need to look at how guys win. When they take their pass set, are they able to keep their feet underneath them? Are they able to reset their inside foot? For the tackles, are they able to stay square to the top of their set where first significant contact is made? Are the guys able to recover? A lot of the stuff that I look at are movement and body position, and then also that baseline level of play strength. Are they able to anchor? Are they able to move that point of attack?”

When the Browns drafted Alabama right tackle Jedrick Wills No. 10 overall with the intention of moving him to left tackle, accomplished offensive line coach Bill Callahan explained why he was most intrigued by Wills when Mekhi Becton and Tristan Wirfs were still available.

“When you watch a player on film, I think in a couple of ways your takeaways are, ‘Well, this guy is a player. He is solid. He has athletic ability.’ With Jedrick, it was a little bit different in that you can feel him on film,” Callahan said in the months after Wills was drafted. “He came alive on tape, and you got excited about what he was doing throughout the course of the game. A lot of times, people talk about make-up and they talk about characters and all these other things, which are great — which he does have — but he has these intangibles that show up in tangible ways on film. You watch him finish. You watch the detail, the technique. You watch his consistent effort and his stamina throughout the course of the game from start to finish. I think that was the appeal for me.”

Callahan, who has since assisted in JC Latham’s transition from right to left tackle in Tennessee, has a long history of converting offensive linemen, beginning with Barry Sims in 1999 and continuing with the likes of Tyron Smith and Zack Martin. 

Once the card is turned in on draft night and teams have laid out their plans for a prospect to change positions, the player begins training for that transition with private offensive line coaches. The success of that position change is often dependent upon the player’s intangibles. 

“I think it its dependent upon the player and what they are capable of and the development plan that is in place with the team,” Manyweather said. “It also relies heavily on the coach. When you’re in the league, you’re responsible for your own development as a player. You need to seek out ways to get better and not stay the status quo. You can not always rely on your coaching. You could have a different coach every single year. 

“I think one thing that is underrated in guys’ performance is confidence. Are they confident in using their technique? Are they confident to be in the proper position that they need to be?”

So, where does preparation begin?

“We start with the stance; a functional stance for that particular position where they can move in six to eight different directions,” Manyweather explained. “We truly believe that a stance is supposed to complement your physical attributes and your abilities and not highlight any flaws that you may have in ankle mobility or exacerbate any compensations a player may have.

“Then, it starts with pass set departures, run game departures, and then we start to work in the nuances of angles and hand placement and what that looks like and make sure guys are able to maintain their base through different movements. Being able to get them to move efficiently and literately from that new stance to position. Those are the base fundamentals when we are trying to transition a guy from one position to another.”

A player can feel confident in their training, but never truly know the results until they are stressed in a live game setting. One issue currently plaguing NFL offensive linemen is an inability to pick up stunts and games, particularly the three- and four-man varieties. For example, Baltimore will run a tackle-end twist and then bring a linebacker in behind them to necessitate rapid communication among teammates. NFL defenses may be game-planning to take advantage of a lineman’s lack of experience in a specific role.

Manyweather shared a quote that is attributed to Navy SEALs, but the true origins are unknown.

“Under pressure, you don’t rise to the occasion, you sink to the level of your training”  

Here are the top offensive line prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft that could be converted to a new position:

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Jonathan Jones

Potential offensive line converts in the 2025 NFL Draft

All prospect rankings via CBSSports.com consensus.

• Prospect ranking: No. 6 overall

No offensive line prospect has been the subject of more debate than Campbell. The LSU left tackle’s tape suggests that he should be given an opportunity to stick at his natural position, but he lacks the ideal length to play on the edge. He is able to mitigate some of those issues with impeccable technique, but traditionalists may view him as an interior lineman.

• Prospect ranking: No. 8 overall

Membou played right tackle at Missouri this past season, but he could follow a path paved by the likes of Jedrick Wills, JC Latham and Tyler Guyton. A team that needs a left tackle, like the Patriots, could conceivably draft Membou and then move him to the left side. Tristan Wirfs made the transition once he had already established himself in the league. 

• Prospect ranking: No. 9 overall

Banks played left tackle for the Longhorns, but some NFL teams project him to make the transition inside to guard. He allowed one sack on 515 pass blocking snaps in 2024, per TruMedia. The left tackle to guard plan has worked well for Joe Thuney, Joel Bitonio and Zack Martin, among others.

• Prospect ranking: No. 27 overall

Zabel played left tackle in 2024, but the all-star process began his conversion to the interior. He was cross-trained at both guard and center. His future lies on the interior, but his size and positional flexibility makes him incredibly valuable. A year ago, Duke left tackle Graham Barton was taken in the first round and converted to center by the Buccaneers. 

• Prospect ranking: No. 39 overall

There is an asterisk on Jackson’s outlook. He most recently played left tackle after potential first-round pick Josh Simmons suffered a season-ending injury, but he had previously played guard for the Buckeyes. It is unlikely that a team will ask him to play tackle, but one could not rule it out in a pinch. 

The 2025 NFL Draft will take place from April 24 to 26 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin. More draft coverage can be found at CBSSports.com, including daily mock drafts, consensus prospect rankings, biggest team needs and more.