The Los Angeles Rams got some great news this offseason when Andrew Whitworth announced he’d be returning for his 14th NFL season. At 37 years old, it wouldn’t have been a surprise to see Whitworth retire after reaching the Super Bowl, but he’s coming back for one more season.
That’s an added bonus for the Rams, who would’ve had trouble replacing the four-time Pro Bowl left tackle. He may be the oldest offensive lineman in the league, but he’s still one of the best.
Pro Football Focus ranked the 10 best players over 35 (excluding quarterbacks and specialists) and Whitworth made the list.
The gift that just keeps on giving, Whitworth earned a 78.4 run-blocking grade and an 88.5 pass-blocking grade with Los Angeles in 2018, recording an impressive 86.1 overall grade in the process. He’s been nothing but outstanding all throughout his career, earning 70.8 or higher overall grades in all but one season in the PFF era (2006-18).
In his career, Whitworth has missed only nine total games – six of which came in 2008. The one game he missed in 2017 was also due to rest after the Rams had already locked up the NFC West. In other words, he’s incredibly durable.
As long as he’s healthy, he’ll start all 16 games at left tackle again in 2019. He’ll have a new player next to him at left guard with Rodger Saffold gone, but Whitworth and Joseph Noteboom should build chemistry as early as this week’s OTAs.
Whitworth is a huge part of the Rams offense not only in pass protection, but also in the running game. There aren’t many linemen who can get out and block the way Whitworth does, let alone at his age.
