2022 NFL Draft – Center Rankings

Complete NFL Draft Rankings – C:

You are currently viewing the best centers in the 2022 NFL Draft. Our top center prospects are selected after thousands of hours carefully scouting the best interior offensive linemen in college football. Even though only about 10 will get selected in the draft, about a dozen more are signed as free agents, and many more receive a training camp invite. Find who is a first round talent, and who is likely nothing more than a training camp body. Find draft sleepers, draft stars, who will be a bust, and who is being undervalued.

BNB Football is the best place for in-depth analysis of 2022 center prospects at all levels of college football. To view other positions, follow the links below.

(Last Updated: April 26, 2022)

2022:  | QB | WR | RB | FB | TE | OT | G | C | DT | EDGE | LB | S | CB | K | P | LS | OVERALL |

Tyler Linderbaum is considered a generational talent at the center position, obtaining ridiculous grades in both pass protection and run protection. Linderbaum’s tape is like watching a football clinic, with exceptional footwork, hand placement, and balance. While he doesn’t have elite size or a 5 star pedigree, he is a great athlete with a very quick initial getoff, and is able to make first contact. He’s also known to have a very high football IQ, great work ethic, and polished approach. The questions teams will have is about his positional versatility (not an ideal fit as a guard), and his overall size (6’3" 290). The last time a center was drafted top 10 was way back in 1968, as there generally isn’t too much value placed in the position. Linderbaum will have a chance to change that in the 2022 draft.

2021 Stats

13 games, 13 starts: 3 year starter at C. 1st Team All-Big10

Zach Tom is a hot name after the way he completely dominated the combine. A 3 year starter at Wake Forest, Tom spent the past 2 seasons at left tackle. He's expected to move inside to guard or center at the next level due to size and length. The athletic measureables were super impressive, measuring in the top 25% percentile in everything. His drills were also impressive, showcasing the knee bend we saw on tape, ankle strength, and foot speed. The reason he's not even higher on the list is positional fit and play strength. Tom has played center before, but not at as high of a level as he did at left tackle. He also struggles to create major movement as a run blocker, and could struggle to anchor against bigger defensive linemen when moved inside.

2021 Stats

14 games, 14 starts. 3 year starter at LT/C. 1st Team All-ACC

Cameron Jurgens was a bit overshadowed in a conference with multiple big time centers, but he's got great potential in his own right. With a very similar frame and athletic traits to Tyler Linderbaum, Jurgens has power well beyond his listed size (6'3" 290). Having started his career as a tight end, Jurgens has put on a lot of extra muscle over the past few years and is still growing into the new body. He moves very well laterally and is great on twists getting to the edge. He has overall quick feet and good body control which should help him continue developing in pass protection. He's advanced a run blocker and has extra toughness. The athletic traits make him a great prospect, but he has struggled mightily with accurate snaps, and is clearly still learning the nuances of the position.

2021 Stats

12 games, 12 starts. 3 year starter at C. 3rd Team All-Big10

Luke Fortner is in his first year at center for Kentucky, having previously started at right guard. He looked like he had been there for years. Fortner is an NFL ready interior offensive linemen with a bit of versatility and good size at 6’5" 305 pounds. While his athletic testing numbers are average at best, his athletic traits are better than they look on paper. He has a strong base and excellent balance, with a powerful first step off the snap to help make initial contact on bigger defensive tackles. His pass blocking could still use some work, but he’s shown great improvement with his hand usage an a good overall football IQ to continue being coached up. I’m not quite as high on him as others, but he looks the part of an NFL center.

2021 Stats

13 games, 13 starts. 3 year starter at C/RG. 1st Team All-SEC

Dohnovan West decided to enter the draft early, as just a 3rd year player. He has decent size for the position, and has the ability to play center along side either guard position if necessary. West has above average athleticism with a good anchor and plenty of power. He didn't have any issues with snaps this past year, and does a good job of initiating first contact off the snap. Hand placement, leverage, and football IQ are all big positives for West, and overall consistency is impressive. He's consistently been one of the highest graded interior offensive linemen in the nation throughout his career, and is quite young compared to the rest of the class.

2021 Stats

4 games, 4 starts. 3 year starter at C/RG. 2nd Team All-PAC12

Complete 2022 C draft rankings

WordPress Tables

2022:  | QB | WR | RB | FB | TE | OT | G | C | DT | EDGE | LB | S | CB | K | P | LS | OVERALL |

At one point this center class was looking pretty strong, but it's fallen off with a number of top prospects opting to return to school. Still, it's hard to talk negatively about a class led by a unanimous 1st round talent in Tyler Linderbaum. If you're looking for a center in the late first round or 2nd round, you might be better off finding a guard you think you can convert. There's a massive dropoff after Linderbaum, and even though there's plenty of time until the draft it's unlikely that void will be filled. As always, there's plenty of late round depth here. Not many centers get drafted, but dozens of centers have 4 or more years of starting experience.