Mike Gandy, Reggie Wells, Lyle Sendlein, Deuce Lutui, Levi Brown.
Fans of a certain age should remember that group. I assume. That was the Cardinals' offensive line, from left tackle to right, the year the team made their run to Super Bowl XLIII. (That's 43, for those who don't partake in Roman numerals.) This isn't about what they did as much as how much they did it -- in context of the current Cardinals.
That quintet in 2008 was solid. No one was proclaiming them one of the best units in the league. But of the 20 games the Cardinals played that season -- 16 in the regular season, four in the postseason -- those five guys started every single game. Perfect attendance across the offensive line, which is crazy to think about.
Those five popped into my head the other day when I saw a tweet that documented every team's most-used offensive line combination from last season, and the snap percentage of that group.
Left guard Evan Brown and center Hjalte Froholdt made it through the season unscathed. Left tackle Paris Johnson Jr., right guard Will Hernandez and right tackle Jonah Williams all suffered serious knee injuries (Williams had two.) The most-used offensive line combo for the Cardinals in 2024? From left tackle to right: Johnson, Brown, Froholdt, Trystan Colon and Kelvin Beachum.
Those five were together the most, but for a mere 207 of the Cardinals' 1,000-plus offensive snaps. That's slightly less than 20 percent, and the only other team to have their top five play a lower percentage were the Colts, who were at 17.96 percent.
That's a tough way to get through a season, and why the Cardinals will try to improve depth -- although on a list where only six teams even reached 60 percent of a particular line playing together, everyone wants more depth. (The Packers led the league at 80.82 percent, with the Bills at 79.12. It should be noted the Packers did have an injury to Jordan Morgan before the season short-circuiting a battle between he and Sean Rhyan; Rhyan played all year. The Bills had their starting five intact all season.)
The Cardinals are likely to address the offensive line in the first couple of rounds in the draft; we'll see what the lineup ultimately looks like come September. And if they can stay together on the field.
