Draft prep: Ranking the offensive lines

Would you believe that players who don't get drafted in 100 percent of CBSSports.com leagues have just as big of an impact on NFL games as household Fantasy names like Adrian Peterson and Peyton Manning?

Ask any long-time NFL analyst, and they'll tell you that games are won and lost "in the trenches." It's the big guys up front -- the offensive linemen and the defensive linemen -- that dictate the ebb and flow of every football game.

Need proof? Watch Super Bowl XLII. The Giants' defensive ends and tackles were in Tom Brady's face constantly, and that combined with his ankle injury altered Brady's rhythm and timing to the point that he seemed mortal, which he hadn't been for much of the '07 season. We all know the end result of that game, but had the Patriots' offensive linemen played their best game against the Giants, we would have seen 19-0.

There's a reason why LaDainian Tomlinson has been a Fantasy stud for years. There's a reason why Broncos coach Mike Shanahan has seemingly pulled productive running backs from his rear end season after season. The skill and ability of a team's offensive line usually correlates directly to the success and failure an offense experiences.

With that being the case, we thought it would be beneficial for you to check out our offensive line grades heading into the 2008 season.

How we grade

We thought about doing a complex system involving certain skill sets based on each position along the offensive line, but we figured it's easier to go with something we can all relate to: Your basic school-style report card.

When we ranked O-lines, we graded each individual on overall ability but gave weighted value to players that have played with their current team and teammates for several seasons. Familiarity with individual schemes also played a role, and no rookie earned a grade higher than a 'B.'

We then took each individual grade and computed the cumulative average without any bell curve or weighing grades for left tackles. Like any offensive line coach will tell you, a line is only as strong as its weakest link, so all linemen were graded and scored the same.

Be sure to consider these rankings when reviewing for your draft this summer. After all, these players are the keys to the Fantasy studs doing what they do.

Do you have a Draft Prep question? Send your thoughts to DMFantasyFootball@cbs.com and we'll get to as many as we can. Be sure to put Attn: Draft Prep in the subject field. Include your full name, hometown and state.