2025 NFL Protector of the Year candidates: Top 10 offensive linemen who could win league's new award

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When fans take their seats in stadiums, bars or their homes to watch professional football, most of the attention is paid to those throwing, catching and carrying the football. Meanwhile, the five (or more) linemen tasked with protecting those skill players from the opposition go overlooked.

No longer.

Thanks to the efforts of Buffalo Bills tackle Dion Dawkins and retired OT Andrew Whitworth, the NFL has introduced a new award to honor the league’s top blocker: Protector of the Year.

College football has long awarded annual accolades for blockers. Now that the NFL has joined in on the fun, the collegiate game might offer us some insight into how this award will be given.

As is the case with most end-of-season awards, team success undoubtedly will increase a player’s chances of receiving the hardware. However, that’s not the be-all and end-all of candidacy. A select group of linemen have performed so well over the course of their respective careers that they don’t need team success to be recognized. They’re the elite blockers who are all but guaranteed to receive a place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

With these factors in mind, I’ve spotlighted some of the linemen listed below with the expectation they’ll play a key part in an upper-tier offense for a contending team. But I’m not restricting consideration to that criterion alone.

Here are my top 10 choices for who’s most likely to earn the league’s newest end-of-season honor.

NOTE: The odds below, provided by Caesars Sportsbook, are current as of 8 a.m. ET on Tuesday, July 29 unless otherwise noted.

No matter who you ask, most everyone will agree Sewell is the favorite to take home the first Protector of the Year award. Billed as a generational talent coming out of Oregon, Sewell has lived up to expectations so far, completing the switch to right tackle and making such a difference for Detroit’s high-powered offense last season that he garnered some fringe consideration for Offensive Player of the Year. With an award now in place to properly recognize linemen, Sewell will bring a sterling reputation to the race and should own a place near the front of the pack in 2025. The only way he doesn’t land among the top finalists is if Detroit’s offense regresses under new offensive coordinator John Morton.

Considered by many to be the best offensive lineman in the NFL, Williams took a minor reputational hit in 2024 due to injury, which cost him seven games in a season in which his team regressed dramatically due to personnel losses. That should be nothing but a footnote in the end, though, provided Williams can stay healthy in 2025 and San Francisco can get back on track. As stated above, this award will likely rely on team success, but Williams is among the rare group of players who can attract an accolade even if the team is struggling. He still ranked in the top seven among all tackles last season, according to Pro Football Focus, and he’s also the main blocker in Kyle Shanahan’s exotic, ambitious running schemes that put him in motion and on tracks toward obliterating defenders, producing viral content we all enjoy. If there’s a household name on this list, it’s Williams.

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