Rams' Kevin Dotson remains blatantly underrated despite obvious excellence

Is Los Angeles Rams guard Kevin Dotson one of the NFL's most underrated offensive linemen? Apparently. ESPN's interior linemen rankings, informed by the opinions of front-office members and coaches across the league, merely listed Dotson as a footnote in the "also receiving votes" tier.

The interior linemen category includes both guard spots as well as centers. Really, it's three position groups lumped into one, creating a larger player pool to draw from. Still, it feels like a blatant snub that Dotson isn't somewhere in the Top 10 or four honorable mentions.

Dotson is, after all, PFF's third-ranked guard, regarded as one of the top performers at his position and a critical pillar of the Rams' offense. His omission doesn't make much sense, except to suggest that Dotson remains underappreciated despite grading out near the top of his class.

Dotson disrespect surfaces in questionable rankings snub

Dotson came over from the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2023 and has been nothing but excellent for the Rams. Measured by Approximate Value, a Pro Football Reference metric, 2025 was his best season yet. That excellence bore out in his PFF grades, especially in run-blocking, where Dotson earned a grade of 89.3. 

While not quite as elite in pass protection, he still graded out in the top 30 percent among guards. In combination, his marks in either category positioned him third overall in PFF's positional rankings. 

That was not enough to merit a spot in ESPN's Top 10 or as an honorable mention. Dotson was accompanied as an "also-ran" by Rams left guard Steve Avila, who graded out ninth with a PFF score of 76.8. 

Dotson isn't only elite, he is also dependable, despite being bit by the injury bug late last season. Nonetheless, he has started 45 games in three Rams seasons, and 62 games since 2022. 

It's a little odd, then, to see someone like new Browns center Elgton Jenkins honorably mentioned coming off an objectively mediocre season after moving over from guard, four seasons removed from his last Pro Bowl in 2022. That Jenkins was limited to nine games by a season-ending leg injury raises uncertainty as to how he will look entering his age-30 campaign. 

Just ask Packers fans, who watched Jenkins during his first seven seasons. It was rough sledding last year. 

Another oddity is Panthers guard Robert Hunt beating out Dotson as an honorable mention. "He's not in the elite group, but as a run-game mauler, there aren't many better. He just wasn't healthy last year," an NFC scout is quoted in the rankings. 

Hunt made a Pro Bowl in 2024, but in his six seasons has never matched Dotson's 9 AV in 2025. If top-tier runblocking is enough to get the nod, then Dotson has as good a case as anyone.

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