
NFC West LT rankings: Trent Williams remains class of division
We are in the final stretch of the NFL offseason as the Arizona Cardinals open training camp on July 22. Leading up to then, as we have for several offseasons, go through the players and position groups in the NFC West and rank them.
Next up, we look at the left tackles for the Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks and rank them.
NFL left tackle rankings: NFC West
1. Trent Williams, San Francisco 49ers
Williams, despite missing seven games last season and now turning 37 years old this month, he is still considered one of the top tackles in the NFL. Coaches, scouts and executives voted him the No. 4 tackle in the league.
He is likely going to be the No. 1 tackle in the division until he retires.
2. Paris Johnson, Arizona Cardinals
Johnson had a solid rookie season in 2023 as the Cardinals' right tackle and moved over to the left side in 2024. He was good, although his play declined slightly in the second half of the season and he missed the final three games with a knee injury. He is healthy and appears ready to be a Pro Bowl-level tackle. He even got top-10 votes from coaches, scouts and execs.
3. Charles Cross, Seattle Seahawks
Cross is the best part of the questionable Seahawks offensive line, and is is solid. he has been Seattle's starting left tackle since he was drafted ninth overall in 2022. The next step for Cross, like Johnson, is to get recognized as one of the better tackles. He is just a bit behind Johnson.
4. Alaric Jackson, Los Angeles Rams
Jackson is no slouch but he is clearly the caboose of the division. He is likely to miss at least the start of the season, as he has blood clots in his leg for the second time. In the meantime, former Cardinals left tackle D.J. Humphries will likely play in his spot, and he would fall to No. 4 in these rankings, too.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


USA Today
9 minutes ago
- USA Today
Dolphins' Tua Tagovailoa receiving votes from NFL execs as top-10 QB
As 2025 NFL training camps approach, ESPN polled league executives, coaches and scouts to rank the NFL's top 10 quarterbacks. Though he finds himself outside the top 10 and honorable mention section, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was among those receiving votes. Tagovailoa joins a group of NFL signal-callers that includes Kyler Murray, Brock Purdy, Dak Prescott, Aaron Rodgers and Bo Nix in the receiving votes category. Both Houston's C.J. Stroud and Green Bay's Jordan Love earned honorable mention status. While some may jeer at Tagovailoa's inclusion among the receiving votes category, it's an indication of the respect that Tagovailoa does garner from opposing front offices across the NFL. Tagovailoa was an honorable mention choice on this list a year ago headed into the 2024 season. As has been written or spoken about so often with Tagovailoa, injuries continue to hold the 27-year-old back. Tagovailoa has played in and started every game of an NFL season just once during his five-year professional career thus far. That came during the 2023 campaign. The 2023 season is also the only season in which Tagovailoa has played in more than 13 games. On the bright side, Tagovailoa led the league in passing in 2023 and notched his lone Pro Bowl nod thus far. Tagovailoa passed for 4,624 yards and 29 touchdowns during the 2023 campaign. In 11 games in 2024, Tagovailoa threw for 2,867 yards and 19 touchdowns against seven interceptions. The Dolphins were 6-5 in games that Tagovailoa started last season and are 38-24 with Tagovailoa across his 62 NFL starts to date. Per the input from league execs, coaches and scouts, the NFL's top five quarterbacks are Patrick Mahomes at No. 1, Josh Allen at No. 2, Joe Burrow at No. 3, Lamar Jackson at No. 4 and Jayden Daniels at No. 5. Matthew Stafford (No. 6), Justin Herbert (No. 7), Jared Goff (No. 8), Jalen Hurts (No. 9) and Baker Mayfield (No. 10) round out the top 10 quarterbacks.

NBC Sports
13 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
Lane Kiffin: College or NFL, I think Nick Saban will be back
Nick Saban's Alabama tenure came to an end last offseason when the seven-time National Champion head coach elected to retire. But one of Saban's former assistants thinks the 73-year-old Saban will make his way back to a sideline at some point. Speaking to reporters at SEC Media Days on Monday, current Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin was asked if he would hire Saban if his former boss wanted back in the game. 'He's not going to need me to hire him,' Kiffin said, via Sam Hutchens of the Mississippi Clarion Ledger. 'I don't think he's done. I think he'll be back. Whether that's college or NFL, I think he'll be back.' Kiffin worked under Saban at Alabama from 2014-2016 as the program's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The two won a National Championship together to cap the 2015 season. Saban was famously the Dolphins head coach from 2005-2006 before taking the Alabama job. His other NFL experience came as the Houston Oilers defensive backs coach from 1988-1898 and the Browns' defensive coordinator under Bill Belichick from 1991-1994. Kiffin was the Raiders coach from 2007-2008, lasting just four games into his second season before he was fired.


USA Today
14 minutes ago
- USA Today
2025 Indianapolis Colts roster preview: DE Laiatu Latu
Let's take a closer look at this Indianapolis Colts team as we go player-by-player through the roster. Up next is DE Laiatu Latu. With offseason programs now behind us, we will be getting a jump start on our training camp preview by going player-by-player through the Indianapolis Colts' 91-man roster. Going alphabetically up next is defensive end Laiatu Latu. Laiatu Latu's profile 2024 Snap count totals 2024 PFF grades 2024 Season Review The bulk of Latu's snaps during his rookie season came during passing situations. However, as a run defender, we saw him improve in that phase of the game as the year went on. Pass rush-wise, Latu finished the season with 38 pressures and four sacks. On the Colts specifically, Latu finished second in pressures and third in sacks. Compared to his position group league-wide, Latu was 47th in pressures during the regular season, and he was 73rd in PFF's pass rush productivity, which is a pass rush efficiency metric. "This year, I really want to shave off those milliseconds of where I'm getting to the QB because I felt that," Latu said earlier this offseason, via Locked on Colts. "Like a lot of times, my head and my hands I was right there. So really just shaving off those milliseconds and knowing when I can fall back inside, and when they're working off power. So there's a lot of stuff I've been getting better at." Looking ahead to the 2025 season A jump from Latu in his second NFL season will be a near-must for the Colts' defense. With Dayo Odeyingbo now in Chicago, that is a lot of production that has to be replaced, and while doing that will be a group effort, Latu's growth is likely a key part of that equation internally. On paper, the numbers mentioned above from Latu's rookie season won't jump off the page, but one reason Latu can make that Year 2 leap is that he did win consistently last season. By PFF's pass rush win rate metric, Latu ranked 27th among defensive ends, and oftentimes, when a player wins his matchups regularly, the production will follow. Also helping Latu and the rest of the Colts' defensive front should be the addition of Lou Anarumo as defensive coordinator. Anarumo's more aggressive and disguise-heavy scheme can hopefully provide the pass rush with additional time to get home, something they didn't have a lot of last season, with quarterbacks often using the quick passing game against the Colts' secondary. "He does it the right way," Shane Steichen said of Latu via the team site at the NFL annual meeting. "The way he works, his work ethic is tremendous. I think you'll see a big jump from Year 1 to Year 2. I think he had four (sacks) his rookie year, if we can get into double digits in Year 2, that'd be tremendous."