2020 NFL Draft: Top 5 offensive positional rankings

The college football regular season is behind us and even though it’s only two weeks shorter than the NFL season, it always feels like it goes by so much more quickly.

We still have plenty of college football in front of us with the ever-expanding Bowl Season, but from the New York Giants perspective, it’s draft season. The next stops are the All-Star games and the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, at which point rumors will be flying fast and furious and national draft boards will be chaotic.

We have a few weeks left until underclassmen have to declare whether they are leaving school for the draft or returning for the 2020 season, and draft boards will be very fluid until then. But as for right now, here are my (very preliminary) rankings for the offensive position groups.

Quarterback

1. Joe Burrow (LSU)
2. Justin Herbert (Oregon)
3. Jalen Hurts (Oklahoma)
4. Tua Tagovailoa (Alabama)
5. Jake Fromm (Georgia)

Thoughts: Hurts could be QB-2, but he will have to go to the right team with the right philosophy. Likewise, Tua’s draft stock will hinge on his medicals. Jacob Eason and Jordan Love are both honorable mentions who could find their way into the top 5 when all is said and done. This is a good QB class.

Offensive tackle

1. Andrew Thomas (Georgia)
2. Tristan Wirfs (Iowa)
3. Jedrick Wills (Alabama)
4. Austin Jackson (USC)
5. Alex Leatherwood (Alabama)

Notes: This is a really strong top five and there isn’t much separating Thomas from Leatherwood. As of now, I think each of these players has starter upside at the next level, and there could be a potential steal available at the top of the second round.

Interior offensive line

1. Tyler Biadasz (C, Wisconsin)
2. Creed Humphrey (C, Oklahoma)
3. Darryl Williams (iOL, Mississippi State)
4. Nick Harris (C, Washington)
5. Lloyd Cushenberry III (C, LSU)

Notes: This is definitely a center-heavy class. Tyler Biadasz (pronounced “Bee-Ah-Dish”) was one of the, if not the, best interior offensive line prospects in the nation last year, and still holds that title now. Humphrey’s ranking should be taken with a grain of salt — he is a very good prospect, but he is also a red-shirt sophomore so he might not even declare.

Wide receiver

1. Jerry Jeudy (Alabama)
2. CeeDee Lamb (Oklahoma)
3. Laviska Shenault Jr (Colorado)
4. Jalen Reagor (TCU)
5. Henry Ruggs III (Alabama)

Notes: Jeudy and Lamb might be 1a and 1b by the time all is said and done. They are both great receivers and their ultimate ranking will likely be determined by how the teams in the top 10 view them as fits. You will likely see Ruggs at number 3 on most lists, but I want to do a deeper dive into his route running before I go there with him. Shenault and Reagor might not have Ruggs’ raw explosiveness, but as of now I think they’re better route runners, so that wins out for me.

Tight end

1. Bryce Hopkins (Purdue)
2. Albert Okwuegbunam (Missouri)
3. Jared Pinkney (Vanderbilt)
4. Hunter Bryant (Washington)
5. Josiah Deguara (Cincinnati)

Notes: This is a very mediocre tight end class. Washington TE Hunter Bryant is definitely the most intriguing as a dynamic hybrid TE who can block well and gash teams as a receiver. He would be at the top of the list if it weren’t for a number of medical red flags.

Running back

1. D’Andre Swift (Geogia)
2. Travis Etienne (Clemson)
3. Jonathan Taylor (Wisconsin)
4. J.K Dobbins (Ohio State)
5. Eno Benjamin (Arizona State)

Notes: You could probably rearrange the top three players in any order you choose and have a valid list. I put Etienne above Taylor for the sole reason that Taylor has had over 900 carries (945 total touches) in his three years at Wisconsin. Eno Benjamin might not last in the top 5, but he is a big play producer with great vision and stop/start quickness. I believe he will be a riser throughout the draft process as more people get to watch Arizona State tape.