• Amarius Mims comes packed with potential: Mims is the only Georgia tackle since 2021 who finished a season without surrendering a sack or quarterback hit.
• Joe Alt is a generational prospect: Alt was one of the best pass-blockers in the nation last season, finishing second in the FBS in pass-blocking grade (91.2). He played 351 pass-blocking snaps, allowing only five pressures and one sack.
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In the modern NFL, an offensive tackle's most important job is protecting the quarterback on passing plays. So, here, we’ll look at the top five tackles in the class in terms of pressure rate allowed in 2023.
For a more rounded look at the class, check out PFF's big board, which offers three-year player grades, combine measurables, position rankings and in-depth player analysis for all top draft prospects.
1. Amarius Mims, Georgia: 0.6%
An ankle injury limited Mims to seven games in 2023. He still recorded the best pressure rate in the draft class, though, as he only surrendered one hurry across the 156 snaps he played.
Mims is the only Georgia tackle since 2021 who finished a season without surrendering a sack or quarterback hit.
2. Walter Rouse, Oklahoma: 1.3%
Before transferring to Oklahoma, Rouse spent four seasons at Stanford, where he played 1,525 pass-blocking snaps over his Cardinal career. He surrendered 70 total pressures (4.6% pressure rate), including 14 sacks.
However, he turned things around at Oklahoma, enjoying his best year as a pass-blocker. He recorded the lowest pressure rate of his career (1.3%) across 453 snaps, and he didn't allow a single sack for the first time in his career.
Rouse finished the season with an 83.8 pass-blocking grade and a 74.8 grade on true pass sets.
3. Joe Alt, Notre Dame: 1.4%
Alt was one of the best pass-blockers in the nation last season, finishing second in the FBS in pass-blocking grade (91.2). He played 351 pass-blocking snaps, allowing only five pressures and one sack.
Alt earned an 80.7 pass-blocking grade over his Notre Dame career, and he allowed pressure on just 2.7% of his career pass-blocking snaps.
4. Patrick Paul, Houston: 1.9%
Paul finished the 2023 season as the best pass-blocking tackle in the FBS, leading the position in pass-block grading (91.5) and true pass-set grading (89.8). He surrendered only one sack and one quarterback hit across 470 pass-blocking snaps.
5. Trente Jones, Michigan: 2.1%
Jones was the Wolverines’ best pass-protector over the past two seasons, as he allowed just nine pressures over that time. This past year, he cut his pressure rate in half from 2022, giving up only three pressures and zero sacks.
Jones earned a 79.3 pass-blocking grade for the season and a 78.0 grade in true pass sets.
Honorable mention — Christian Jones, Texas: 2.2%
Jones managed just a 48.3 pass-blocking grade at left tackle in 2021 before moving back to right tackle in 2022. In the years since, he improved his grade to 77.1, giving up pressure on only 2.5% of his snaps.
Jones earned a 79.0 true pass set grade in 2023, sixth among Big 12 tackles.
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