Is the Washington Football Team offensive line the best in the NFC East?
By Jonathan Eig
So if Brandon Thorn is as good as I say he is, what went wrong with his preseason analysis of the Washington Football Team and the NFC East?
The obvious answer is injuries.
Both Dallas and Philadelphia have seen their lines decimated. Dallas has lost both starting tackles and its center, while one of its guards (Martin) has been in and out of the lineup. Only one projected starter, left guard Connor Williams, has been healthy all season.
Philadelphia lost left tackle Andre Dillard before the season, which forced them to shift veteran Jason Peters back to that spot, where he was a shadow of his former self. Then Peters went down with an injury as well. Starting guard Isaac Seumalo went onto the injured list a couple weeks into the season, and as noted, right tackle Lane Johnson has been in and out all year. Like Dallas, Philadelphia has had one projected starter (center Jason Kelce) on the field most of the year.
New York cannot blame their woes on injuries. They just aren’t very good. Rookie left tackle Andrew Thomas (the No. 4 overall pick in the 2020 draft) has been a major disappointment. New York’s best lineman, guard Kevin Zeitler, has underperformed. The remainder of the line was always going to be a question mark, and none of the players have stepped up thus far.
Washington has been the exact opposite. Washington’s best player, right guard Brandon Scherff, has played well when healthy. The two other experienced veterans, center Chase Roullier and right tackle Morgan Moses, have played very well. Roullier has been quietly improving since he entered the league and he is now, at the very least, a competent center, perhaps even above-average. Moses has rebounded well from a subpar 2019. His run blocking in particular seems to be much improved.
As the for the left side, Thorn was not totally wrong. Guard Wes Martin was a disaster, and has now been replaced by journeyman Wes Schweitzer. Schweitzer is by no means spectacular, but his ability to perform at a reasonable level has helped shore up a major weakness. And tackle Geron Christian, who was much maligned by many (including yours truly), has been a modest surprise.
Christian is not a star (his PFF ranking is 51st out of 73 tackles in the league), but he has not been a train wreck either. In fact, that PFF ranking puts him ahead of Philadelphia’s Jordan Mailata (57th), Dallas’ Brandon Knight (58th, before his recent injury), and New York’s Thomas (61st), making him PFF’s top left tackle in the NFC East.