NFL Analyst: Duke’s Graham Barton Top Interior OL in Draft Class
NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah thinks Duke's Graham Barton is the top interior offensive lineman in the 2024 NFL Draft class.
Duke’s Graham Barton is the top interior offensive lineman in the NFL Draft Class of 2024, according to NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah.
Speaking in a conference call with Steelers Now on Wednesday, Jeremiah said that he has Barton ranked as the top interior lineman, ahead of Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson, the other interior lineman who is also considering a likely first-round pick.
“He’s going to end up as my top guy there,” Jeremiah said. “He started a ton of games. He’s played center. I think that’s where his ultimate best position is going to be—is at center. But he can play anywhere, obviously, recently having played left tackle.”
Barton played center as a freshman at Duke before moving to left tackle. With shorter arms than a typical NFL tackle, most teams are set to move him inside, and Barton did most of his positional drills at center, the interior position that he has played the most.
“(Snapping the ball), It’s like riding a bike,” he said at the NFL Combine. “You pick it back up. It’s a learned skill. Once you have that skill, you carry on. Definitely obviously going to keep working on that and being ready to go at any position and whatever a team needs from me. It’s certainly something to drill and work on and have ready to go.”
The Steelers have shown significant interest in Barton. They met with him formally at the combine, brought him in for a pre-draft visit and sent offensive coordinator Arthur Smith to his pro day.
Barton is considered to be a late Round 1 draft pick, with his current NFL Mock Draft Database average at No. 27 overall. The Steelers pick at No. 20, so they could be one of the earlier teams looking at Barton, or they could be considering him as a trade-back option.
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