Indianapolis Colts left guard Quenton Nelson is still considered one of the elite interior offensive linemen in the NFL as he enters his fifth season.
As Pro Football Focus goes through their rankings at each position, they broke down the list into tiers. The first consisted of three players in the “elite” tier, which included Nelson along with Zack Martin and Joel Bitonio.
When Quenton Nelson is at his best, there’s nobody in his class. However, injury led to a dip in his performance, so it’s only fair to credit Zack Martin, who just keeps on plugging away at an elite level on the Dallas offensive line, regardless of who’s around him. Martin is, if anything, getting better with age, and last season he posted a 93.4 overall PFF grade, which probably would have garnered far more attention if Trent Williams hadn’t been breaking the scale for offensive line grades over in San Francisco.
Quietly, Joel Bitonio has forced his way into this conversation, as well. He may not have the physical gifts of Nelson or the run-blocking pedigree of Martin, but Bitonio is on a streak of six straight seasons with an 80.0-plus PFF pass-blocking grade. He even narrowly beat Martin’s overall grade in 2021, with a 93.6 mark.
At 25 years old, Nelson should still be considered the best guard in the game. He’s likely to get paid like it as well with his contract extension approaching the $20 million mark annually.
According to Pro Football Focus, Nelson allowed 15 total pressures, including one sack, during the 2021 season.
The offensive line for the Colts will likely see some new players starting up front, but Nelson is still expected to lead the unit moving forward.
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