Top 10 Interior Offensive Lineman Prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft
Last Updated: August 31, 2026 | Source: Consensus rankings from 9 outletsThe 2026 interior offensive lineman class is led by Kade Pieper, Greg Johnson, Iapani Laloulu. Here's a breakdown of the top 10 prospects at the position, with scouting reports, measurables, and projected draft range.
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1. Kade Pieper — Iowa
Consensus Rank: #46 overall | Projection: Second round | Measurables: 6-3, 290 lbsPieper is one of the more intriguing trench prospects on the 2027 radar, a redshirt junior interior lineman from Norfolk, Nebraska who broke out as Iowa's full-time right guard in 2025 after playing just 108 snaps as a roughly 275-pound backup the prior fall. He grades as a top-three interior lineman in the class, and evaluators call him one of the best athletes at the position they have scouted along the OL, projecting a Tyler Linderbaum-style outcome. He reportedly posted a 4.
Strengths: Elite-level explosive athlete for the position, with a reported 4.13 shuttle and 37.4-inch vertical ... outstanding first-step quickness and second-level speed to win reach blocks and get out on the move ... ideal wide-zone fit, viewed as possibly the top wide-zone blocker in the class Concerns: Undersized at roughly 290 pounds with a frame that clearly needs to fill out ... below-average anchor and play strength that gets exposed against power, including being dominated by Oregon's Bear Alexander and A'Mauri Washington NFL Comparison: Tyler Linderbaum (Renner's stated comp Full scouting report for Kade Pieper →---
2. Greg Johnson — Minnesota
Consensus Rank: #59 overall | Projection: Second round | Measurables: 6'6", 325 lbsGreg Johnson is one of the more intriguing interior offensive line prospects in the 2027 class, a 6'6", 325-pound Minnesota native who has started at left guard, center, and both tackle spots across four seasons in the program. A Prior Lake product who enrolled in January 2023, he started all 13 games at center in 2024 before sliding back to his natural left guard in 2025, a move he says he is far more comfortable with. He grades as an early-third-round pick and one of the most intriguing true guards in the class.
Strengths: Versatile 6'6"/325 frame with experience at left guard, center, and both tackle spots ... Wide base and stout anchor that rarely lets power rushers drive him into the pocket ... Lateral quickness and foot agility to mirror rushers and recover in pass sets Concerns: Tall frame with long legs that get trapped and twisted, lands on the ground too often ... Hands flash power but lack consistent pop to finish at the point of attack NFL Comparison: Tyler Smith (oversized, athletic guard convert who wins on the move more than with raw power) Full scouting report for Greg Johnson →---
3. Iapani Laloulu — Oregon
Consensus Rank: #68 overall | Projection: Day 2 | Measurables: 6'2", 329 lbsIapani Laloulu, the 329-pound Honolulu native nicknamed "Poncho," has developed into one of the top interior offensive line prospects in the 2027 class as Oregon's anchor at center. A former four-star Under Armour All-American out of Farrington High School, he bounced between guard spots as a freshman before settling at center midway through 2024, immediately stabilizing a struggling unit that allowed just five sacks over its final ten games once he took over the line calls. He grades among the top interior linemen in the class with 2025 play called Rimington-worthy, and scouts slot him among the top true centers in college football.
Strengths: Allowed zero sacks and only ten pressures across nearly 500 pass-blocking snaps as a sophomore ... 79.9 pass-blocking grade heading into 2025 ... Pitched nine full-game pressure shutouts against Big Ten fronts including Michigan State and Ohio State Concerns: Below-average arm length lets longer defenders into his chest before he establishes contact ... Plodding, heavy-footed athlete whose recovery against quicker three-techniques is a concern NFL Comparison: Tyler Linderbaum (undersized leverage-and-IQ center who anchors and processes elite, lacks length) Full scouting report for Iapani Laloulu →---
4. Coen Echols — Texas A&M
Consensus Rank: #78 overall | Projection: Day 2-3 Full scouting report for Coen Echols →---
5. Evan Tengesdahl — Cincinnati
Consensus Rank: #90 overall | Projection: Day 2 | Measurables: 6'3", 320 lbsEvan Tengesdahl is the quiet developmental win in this class. Cincinnati signed him out of Wayne High School in Huber Heights, Ohio, as a three-star in the 2023 class, redshirted him, and used him in a reserve role for two seasons before he won the starting left guard job in fall camp ahead of 2025. He then started every game, logged 735 blocking snaps across 13 contests, and allowed zero sacks with two hits and nine hurries on 408 pass-blocking snaps.
Strengths: Led all Power Four guards with an 89.7 PFF run-blocking grade in 2025 ... 85.4 overall PFF grade, third among all guards in the country ... allowed zero sacks on 408 pass-blocking snaps, just two hits and nine hurries Concerns: Short arms and a squatty build cap the length-based wins NFL guards depend on ... average timed athleticism limits range on pulls and to the second level NFL Comparison: Cooper Beebe power-based interior finisher with length questions Full scouting report for Evan Tengesdahl →---
6. Braelin Moore —
LSU
Consensus Rank: #90 overall | Projection: Day 2 | Measurables: 6'2", 300 lbs Full scouting report for Braelin Moore →---
7. Brandon Baker —
Texas
Consensus Rank: #93 overall | Projection: Day 2 | Measurables: 6'4", 308 lbsTrajectory is the story with Brandon Baker. The No. 1 offensive tackle and a top-25 overall recruit in the 2024 class, he starred at Mater Dei in Santa Ana and picked Texas over Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia and Oregon, with his position coach comparing him to first-round Longhorn tackle Kelvin Banks. He took over the right tackle job in 2025 and drew Ohio State's pass rush in his first career start, a five-pressure night that could have wrecked a young season.
Strengths: Did not allow a sack in 13 starts as a first-year SEC starter ... technician's feet and patience in pass sets, rarely lunges or opens his hips early ... improved week over week after a baptism-by-fire opener at Ohio State Concerns: Twelve penalties in 2025, a glaring total that must be coached out immediately ... Ohio State's edge rushers overwhelmed him for five pressures in his first career start NFL Comparison: Kelvin Banks Jr. the comp his own position coach made Full scouting report for Brandon Baker →---
8. Luke Montgomery —
Ohio State
Consensus Rank: #94 overall | Projection: Day 2 | Measurables: 6'5", 312 lbsLuke Montgomery is a tall, long, technically refined interior blocker who has quietly become one of the most experienced guards in college football. A converted four-star tackle recruit out of Findlay, Ohio, he arrived in Columbus as the No. 2 player in the state and a top-five interior lineman nationally, choosing Ohio State over Michigan, Notre Dame, Clemson and Penn State.
Strengths: Fourteen starts at left guard for a Big Ten runner-up without missing a snap rotation ... Elite discipline with just two penalties across 837-plus snaps ... Prototype length and 6'5" frame that give him longer levers than most interior guards Concerns: Miami playoff game was a protection failure with two sacks and a hit surrendered ... Texas opener was nearly as shaky, the season's other heavyweight test NFL Comparison: Kevin Zeitler (reasoning: long, disciplined interior blocker who wins in the run game and rarely gets penalized) Full scouting report for Luke Montgomery →---
9. Samson Okunlola —
Miami
Consensus Rank: #109 overall | Projection: Day 3 | Measurables: 6'6", 300 lbsPatience is the whole evaluation with Samson Okunlola. He arrived in Coral Gables as a consensus five-star out of Thayer Academy in Massachusetts, rated the No. 4 offensive tackle in the 2023 class by 247Sports, and then waited three seasons for a real role.
Strengths: Former five-star tools are intact: easy movement, flexible joints, a frame that carries weight well ... four pressures allowed across a 16-game national playoff run ... no sacks and one hit on 254 pass-blocking snaps in 2025 Concerns: Never won a full-time starting job in three college seasons despite the pedigree ... seven penalties on a part-time snap load is an untenable rate NFL Comparison: Zion Johnson five-star tools who settled inside Full scouting report for Samson Okunlola →---
10. Justin Evans —
Nebraska
Consensus Rank: #130 overall | Projection: Day 3 | Measurables: 6'2", 315 lbsBalance is Justin Evans' brand. A New Jersey product out of Irvington, listed on some sites as Evans-Jenkins, he was a havoc-creating defensive lineman in high school with 14. 5 sacks as a senior, leading his school to its first sectional title in 102 years before flipping to the offensive line at Nebraska.
Strengths: No sacks surrendered across 13 starts and 443 protection snaps ... pass and run tape sit within two points, the most balanced file in this center group ... paved the interior for the Big Ten's running back of the year Concerns: Shortest lineman in the group, and NFL length will test the catch radius ... Michigan's heavy interior bent his run blocking in the toughest matchup on the schedule NFL Comparison: Creed Humphrey leverage-and-processing center Full scouting report for Justin Evans →---