How does Las Vegas’ young group stack up to the rest of the division?
We’re wrapping up the offensive position groups in Silver and Black Pride’s AFC West positional rankings by taking a look at the trenches. Heading into the 2025 season, the Las Vegas Raiders’ offensive line is a young group overall that has a few question marks. But that seems to be a theme within the division, so how does the Raiders’ unit stack up?
All projected starters below are based on the depth charts on OurLads.com.
1. Los Angeles Chargers
Projected Starters: Rashawn Slater (LT), Bradley Bozeman (LG), Zion Johnson (C), Mekhi Becton (RG), Joe Alt (RT)
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that a Jim Harbaugh-coached team has the top-ranked offensive line heading into the campaign. Harbaugh has made it a point to invest in the trenches since taking over last season. Hence, using his 2024 first-round pick on Alt, who was an impressive rookie a year ago, and signing Mekhi Becton to a two-year, $20 million contract in free agency this offseason after Becton revived his career last year. That’s in addition to a two-time Pro Bowler, Slater, headlining the group.
Granted, the Chargers do have question marks at center and left guard, as Johnson and Bozeman are currently expected to switch positions. Also factoring into the mix is Trey Pipkins III, who exclusively lined up at tackle during his first five years in Los Angeles but took over 700 snaps at right guard last season.
2. Denver Broncos
Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images
Projected Starters: Garrett Bolles (LT), Ben Powers (LG), Luke Wattenberg (C), Quinn Meinerz (RG), Mike McGlinchey (RT)
It’s a close call between Los Angeles and Denver for the top offensive line in the division, and part of the reason why the Broncos’ unit is so highly regarded is that it’s the only one in the AFC West that is projected to have the same five starters from the year before. Continuity is a big factor in the trenches, giving this group a boost.
Meinerz has become the star of the trenches in the Mile High City, earning first-team All-Pro honors last year. Meanwhile, Bolles has been a good left tackle for a while and is coming off a campaign where he allowed just 20 pressures on 671 snaps in pass protection, per Pro Football Focus. McGlinchey is in a similar boat as a solid player who only gave up 18 pressures with 534 pass pro snaps a year ago.
Granted, the Broncos could afford to upgrade at left guard and center, but both Powers and Wattenberg posted slightly above-average grades from PFF in 2024 to at least be servicable.
The only reason why the Chargers are in the top spot is that they have more high-end talent at the two tackle spots.
3. Las Vegas Raiders
Projected Starters: Kolton Miller (LT), Dylan Parham (LG), Jackson Powers-Johnson (C), Alex Kappa (RG), DJ Glaze (RT)
As mentioned above, the Raiders’ offensive line is a young group, with Powers-Johnson and Glaze entering their second NFL season, and Parham going into his fourth. Also, fourth-year pro Jordan Meredith could crack the starting lineup by beating out Cappa or Parham in training camp. That gives the unit the potential to move up the ranks during the fall, but also leads to some uncertainty at this stage.
Granted, Miller’s veteran presence does provide some stability. Even in a “down year”, the long-tenured Raider managed to finish 14th among all offensive tackles with an 80.6 PFF grade during the regular season.
Ironically, one of Las Vegas’ biggest question marks up front is the other highly experienced player, Cappa. The former Cincinnati Bengal is coming off the worst season of his career, ranking in the bottom 10 among qualifying guards (minimum 237 total snaps) with a mark of 50.5. Clearly, he either needs to have a turnaround, or Meredith has to win that position battle for the unit to reach its full potential.
4. Kansas City Chiefs
Photo by Bryan Bennett/Getty Images
Projected Starters: Josh Simmons (LT, rookie), Kingsley Suamataia (LG), Creed Humphrey (C), Trey Smith (RG), Jawaan Taylor (RT)
The Chiefs’ offensive line is an interesting group. It features two linemen who are widely considered to be one of the best players at their respective positions, Humphrey and Smith, and then three major question marks.
Humphrey (92.8) was PFF’s second-highest graded center last year, and Smith (78.8) was 11th among guards to earn the $23.4 million franchise tag this offseason and a potential long-term deal with a similar dollar per year figure. Meanwhile, Taylor has been a major disappointment since signing a four-year, $80 million contract during free agency in 2023, and the two spots on the left side of the line are up for grabs.
Kansas City’s issues protecting Patrick Mahomes’ blind side got exposed down the stretch of last season, which the world realized during the Super Bowl. Ideally, Simmons comes in and solves that problem, but he’ll be battling the rookie learning curve in addition to recovering from a major knee injury. That could make way for free agent-signing Jaylon Moore to start at left tackle, but Moore was a backup for the San Francisco 49ers, who started just 12 games in four seasons.
At left guard, Kansas City faces the challenge of replacing two-time First-Team All-Pro Joe Thuney after trading him in the offseason. Suamataia is expected to take over that role but will be switching positions after failing at left tackle as a rookie. The problem is the Chiefs don’t have many other quality options with 2024 backups Mike Caliendo, Hunter Nourzad and C.J. Hanson providing competition for Suamataia.
So, with 60 percent of the position group unsettled and more questions than answers, the Chiefs’ offensive line sits in last place heading into the season.