There’s a reason why the Buccaneers made Ryan Jensen the highest-paid center ever this offseason. And the Jaguars made Andrew Norwell the highest-paid guard ever. And the Giants made Nate Solder the highest-paid tackle ever.
It’s not because those are bound for Canton. It’s about the scarcity of good linemen in football.
A left tackle being drafted high in the draft used to be a sure thing. More recently, the landscape is littered with Luke Joeckels and Greg Robinsons of the world, which signals a larger problem across the board—the lower levels of football aren’t producing dancing bears the way it used to.