Northwestern quietly becoming a NFL offensive linemen factory

{"@context":"http://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/northwestern-quietly-becoming-nfl-offensive-153959897.html","headline":"Northwestern quietly becoming a NFL offensive linemen factory","datePublished":"2026-04-28T15:39:59.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-28T15:39:59.000Z","keywords":["Ohio State","Caleb Tiernan","Rashawn Slater","Minnesota Vikings","defensive backs","position group","Tennessee Titans","offensive tackle","Los Angeles Chargers","Peter Skoronski","Linebacker U","Penn State","Baltimore Ravens","LSU","Wisconsin"],"description":"Exactly half of Northwestern's draft selections of the past half-decade have come from the offensive line position group.","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Yahoo Sports","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://s.yimg.com/cv/apiv2/default/icons/favicon_y112_112.png","width":112,"height":112},"url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/"},"author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Paul M. Banks, Draft Wire","url":"","jobTitle":""},"creator":{"@type":"Person","name":"Paul M. Banks, Draft Wire","url":"","jobTitle":""},"provider":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Draft Wire","url":"https://draftwire.usatoday.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","width":333,"height":100,"url":"https://s.yimg.com/os/creatr-uploaded-images/2020-12/0a3778c0-3577-11eb-a9e9-2dc8506f6ea1"}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/jSg4XbdILNWIsoJZVQy67Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTI0MDA7aD0xNjAwO2NmPXdlYnA-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/draft_wire_usa_today_sports_articles_126/db338adb5e04abd780dfd3de9ebeb9c2","height":800,"width":1200},"thumbnailUrl":"https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/jSg4XbdILNWIsoJZVQy67Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTI0MDA7aD0xNjAwO2NmPXdlYnA-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/draft_wire_usa_today_sports_articles_126/db338adb5e04abd780dfd3de9ebeb9c2"}Story byNorthwestern quietly becoming a NFL offensive linemen factoryPaul M. Banks, Draft WireTue, April 28, 2026 at 3:39 PM UTC·2 min readFor a lot of college football programs, one specific position group consistently stands out above the rest. Ohio State is Wide Receiver U. Penn State can lay claim to being Linebacker U. Then you have defensive backs at LSU, tailbacks at Wisconsin, quarterbacks at USC, the list goes on and on.As the cliche goes "there's just something in the water there" for all of these programs.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement#_R_33iudcaanpfiv65bH1_ { display: none; } @media screen and (max-width: 767.95px) { #_R_33iudcaanpfiv65bH1_ { display: flex; } iframe { max-width: 100vw; } }For Northwestern, it's the offensive line, and most specifically the offensive tackle position. Caleb Tiernan was taken by the Minnesota Vikings in the third round, with the 97th overall pick, on Friday night.In doing so, he became the third Wildcats OT (Rashawn Slater, #13 overall, Los Angeles Chargers, 2021) and Peter Skoronski, #11 overall Tennessee Titans, 2023) to get drafted in the past 10 years. Slater is a two time Pro Bowler who was second team All-Pro in 2021. Skoronski has started 42 games at left guard for the Titans, across three different seasons. A couple weeks ago, the Titans exercised the fifth-year option on his rookie contract, which would pay him $19 million in the 2027 season.Tiernan was an All-Big Ten second team honoree this past season, as he posted an 84.3 PFF pass blocking grade. That was grade was good enough for third in the Big Ten and ninth nationally among…

This excerpt is published under fair use for community discussion. Read the full article at Yahoo Sports.