2012 Offensive Line Rankings & NFL Team Summaries

The Mike Martz era on offense has officially come to a close. While it was a gutsy move by Bears' management to bring in the guy best known for orchestrating the "Greatest Show on Turf" offense during the Kurt Warner glory days of STL, it just never worked in Chicago. The departure of Martz means QB Jay Cutler will now get an extra blocker to help protect him (Martz opted for receivers over blockers - putting the pressure on the QB to deliver at the expense of some big time hits on blitzes). In Cutler's case, the extra blocker could be a good thing as many have questioned his decision making ability under pressure. The biggest change in the off-season is the addition of WR Brandon Marshall, who is now reunited with Cutler from their days in DEN. CHI also added RB Michael Bush from OAK. Bush is a good back that could pose a threat to RB Matt Forte.

There used to be a hard and fast fantasy rule that would save you every time: Never draft a player from Detroit, regardless of hype. However, times have changed, and studs like WR Calvin Johnson and QB Matthew Stafford are just too good to follow that rule any more. Rookie WR Ryan Broyles and 2nd year WR Titus Young are players to keep an eye on in this high octane passing offense, as DET has been solid in pass blocking the past three seasons. While the air assault in Detroit is something special, the ground attack is still a point of vulnerability. For four years in a row, Detroit's offensive line has rated in the bottom three of the NFL in run blocking, and this year won't be any better. The entire RB backfield has injury issues (Best - concussions; Leshoure - Achilles; Smith - everything), so the old Detroit rule probably still holds here at RB.

The hits to the Chiefs' offensive line keep coming. After losing 7 Time Pro Bowl LG Brian Waters to New England last season, they lose Pro Bowl C Casey Wiegmann prior to the start of this season. These loses have left the unit with a lot of question marks and vulnerable to strong defensive line play by opposing teams. The big addition to the offense in the off-season was RB Peyton "The Juggernaut' Hillis, who now returns to the AFC West after showing flashes of brilliance when playing for Denver prior to his big 2010 season in CLE. The Chiefs plan to run, run, and run some more with Jamaal Charles, Peyton Hillis, and Dexter McCluster lining up all over the field. KC will use the pass to open things up for the run, which means WR Dwayne Bowe is picking a bad time to focus on a contract extension, which could open the door for 2nd year WR Jonathan Baldwin.

It was hard to believe last year when we said PIT was going to be a pass oriented offense. Well, Big Ben set a career high in pass attempts (513), and Mendenhall's rush attempts decreased by almost one third from 2010 to 2011 despite only missing one game. Realizing their mistake, order has been restored to the universe as PIT has recommitted to being a run oriented offense. However, Mendenhall suffered a torn ACL in week 17, which means his status is in question to start the 2012 season. RB Isaac Redman will get the call and most the work to start the season. Depending on how Redman plays, he may just keep the job outright all year. The speed at WR in PIT is unreal and designed to stretch defenses deep to open up the middle for the run. WRs Mike Wallace, Emmanuel Sanders, and Antonio Brown all return to give Big Ben his deep threats.