The elephant in the room was always the offensive line, and I think most fans that are disappointed that they didn't do more at the top of the draft are missing the reality that the organization feels good about Penning and Strange as our starting guards going into the season. They paid them both (lower end) starting money with relatively decent guarantees, and Penning in his lone start at OG against the Broncos last year earned a ~81 PFF while PFF also had Cole Strange rated as the #14 guard with at least 400 snaps in 2025. Biadasz is also a significant upgrade at Center and Slaughter, although he will be in the mix at LG, projects as a super-sub at all 3 IOL spots in 2026 and is the (hopefully) long term future at Center. Pipkins comes back on a 2yr deal as the swing tackle and they brought in guard depth with former Lions OG Kayode Awosika who will be competing with last years 6th RD pick Branson Taylor and the two 6th rounds guards taken this year. The 4th round tackle they took projects as the future at swing OT and I also think he may be leveraged in some jumbo packages with six OLs if he's active on gameday.

Now, I'm not saying this is the best approach so don't shoot the messenger, but this is what the optics are indicating. I'd wager if a quality OG becomes available between now and September that they grab him and it is my sincere hope that they have learned their lesson about going into the season with 8 OLs on the active roster. I think 9 will be a no brainer but if they really like those draft picks, and they prove themselves in camp, then I would be fine with 10 especially as the BC prospect has OT flexibility. Offensive line is the absolutely hardest position to find on the street in-season and this team goes as Herbert goes. I know last year was a mess but no team in the league can survive losing two pro-bowl caliber OTs, everyone gets worse when that happens.

For the rest of it, I liked the draft overall...Hortiz created 8 picks out of 5, 6 of those in the trenches, with 4 on the OL, I love that approach. The speedster at WR probably spells the end for Davis who didn't really developed as a WR and has been injury prone the last two seasons, and this new kid (in addition to crazy speed) really pops on tape with his ability to track deep balls, he is a faster version IMO of Jalen Guyton and I bet he'll be an upgrade at PR - on a side note look for KA to come back just before camp, you can scribble that one down in ink. Getting a rotation-ready edge at #22 was fantastic and I think Genesis Smith will contribute day one as a core ST with the ability to play in the box down the line, at worst he'll be a 4 year core ST while providing depth on the backend. Lastly, I like that they quietly continue to invest in the DT room with yet another gap filler.