Photo: USA Today Sports

UPGRADES

San Francisco up 7 slots

Left tackle Joe Staley, out since Week 2 with a broken leg, has returned to practice. Barring any setbacks, Staley will get the start on Monday Night Football against Seattle. At right tackle, Mike McGlinchey has also returned to practice after missing multiple weeks with a knee injury. However, McGlinchey is limited and the coaches sound less optimistic about his return this week. Staley is included in the latest ranks while McGlinchey is not. Should McGlinchey return this would arguably be a top-5 line. However, if he is not ready, either Justin Skule or Daniel Brunskill will fill in at right tackle. In a league where many teams have lost players to injury, the 49ers' offensive line is getting healthier as the season progresses, and their depth has been proven. With Staley, this line again grades in the top-10 of the latest rankings.

Oakland up 4 slots

Right tackle Trent Brown missed most of last week's win over Detroit with a knee injury. He and center Rodney Hudson (out since Week 8 with a high ankle sprain) are both questionable for this week's contest against Los Angeles Chargers, with only the short week before Thursday Night Football. However, Brown posted a cryptic message on Instagram hours before kickoff implying he will play, while Hudson has been limited in practice. The rankings assume both of these players will rejoin the lineup for a key divisional matchup at home. With left guard Richie Incognito playing at an All-Pro level, and all five starters healthy (hopefully), the Raiders' offensive line again carries a top-tier grade.

Kansas City up 12 slots

Right guard (and real-life medical doctor) Laurent Duvernay-Tardiff missed last week's win over the Vikings with an ankle sprain. The team turned to Andrew Wylie in his place and elevated Martinas Rankin to Wylie's usual left guard position. While left tackle Eric Fisher did not practice and will likely be inactive again with a lingering groin injury, look for Duvernay-Tardiff to rejoin the lineup this week in time for the home game against Tennessee. This Chiefs' offensive line is a mid-tier group with four starters healthy and has the upside to climb higher in the ranks when Fisher returns to health.

Seattle up 12 slots

Left guard Mike Iupati was able to improve his knee injury enough to start and play 100% of the snaps during last week's overtime against Tampa Bay. Having Iupati and D.J. Fluker healthy at the same time has been a boost to the Seahawks' rushing attack. At center, Joey Hunt has done well replacing Justin Britt. Hunt has been in the system forever and these players essentially carry the same grade. This is a solid run-first offensive line who carries a mid-tier grade headed into a tough divisional matchup at San Francisco.

Houston up 7 slots

Right tackle Tytus Howard returned to the lineup and was part of the team's win over Jacksonville in London. Howard has been excellent at the spot, especially for a rookie. Left tackle Laremy Tunsil missed the contest with a shoulder injury, and Chris Clark and Roderick Johnson split reps at left tackle in his place. With the bye week to recover, Tunsil is expected to be back for Week 11 at Baltimore.

Arizona up 1 slot

Sometimes through a quirk of math, a player gets hurt and the grade in the rankings improves. This is the case in Arizona where right tackle Justin Murray has missed a game with a knee injury and appears to be at least week-to-week in his rehab process. Last year's center Mason Cole was given Justin Pugh's left guard spot while Pugh was given the start at right tackle. While Pugh complained to the media about not being his favorite job (making a joke about having shorter arms than usual tackles), the new-look lineup was extremely solid against San Francisco's defense last Thursday night. Pugh is not a natural right tackle but this might actually be the best five linemen on the team. The Cardinals remain a mid-to-low tier unit, but they are trending in the right direction.

Tampa Bay up 3 slots

Physical right guard Alex Cappa returned to the lineup last week after missing about a month with a broken arm. The offensive line had all five starters healthy during the overtime loss to Seattle. While the team didn't win the day, the offense looks better with Cappa opening holes. Those with exposure to the Tampa Bay offense should monitor the other players, specifically left tackle Donovan Smith (thumb - full practice), right tackle Demar Dotson (hamstring - limited practice) and left guard Ali Marpet (ankle - limited practice). However, all three are likely to play and included in the ranks. Tampa Bay's offensive line can rise in the rankings if they can remain healthy and build cohesion.

NY Jets up 3 slots

Left tackle Kelvin Beachum has been limited in practice with an ankle injury but is reportedly on track to play this weekend against the crosstown rival New York Giants. Assuming Beachum rejoins the lineup, rookie Chuma Edoga could return to the right side, or even the bench if the coaches decide Brandon Shell has done enough to earn his right tackle job over the last month. All three interior players are also on the injury report, as left guard Alex Lewis is playing through a neck injury while right guard Brian Winters has knee and shoulder injuries. Both guards should play but center Ryan Kalil will likely be out with knee injury, giving way to the backup Jonotthan Harrison. It's highly questionable if Kalil has anything left in the gas tank at this stage in his career, and while Harrison is not a world-beater, he might be a small upgrade over Kalil. This line is a low-tier unit but should be slightly better with a new center, and more importantly, their regular left tackle in the lineup.

DOWNGRADES

Detroit down 10 slots

Left guard Joe Dahl missed last week's loss against Oakland with an ankle injury. Dahl did not practice this week and Kenny Wiggins will likely get another start. Wiggins is one of the better substitute guards in the league, having accumulated tons of experience in the role while on the Chargers. However, the loss of Dahl does hurt cohesion in the short term. Center Graham Glasgow was limited in practice with a back injury but he is likely to start this weekend game at Chicago. This line was above average while healthy and falls to slightly below average without a starter.

Denver down 8 slots

This is actually a bit of late housekeeping from last week. Right tackle Ja'Wuan James did not start last week as the article noted a set back to his knee injury could cost him the rest of the season, but the model still carried the veteran's cohesion grade. Elijah Wilkinson is a mixed player in replacement: he can be a load in the run game but vulnerable in pass protection. The Broncos are on a bye week.

NY Giants down 8 slots

Center Jon Halapio was forced from the loss at Dallas on Monday Night Football with a hamstring injury. Halapio did not practice during the week and will likely be inactive for this weekend's game against the Jets. Spencer Pulley (who started 9 games last year) will replace Halapio. Pulley is a good player with experience but there might be a brief hit to cohesion in the near term. Right tackle Mike Remmers has been limited in practice with a back injury but is still in the ranks. Without their usual starter at the pivot, this line falls from the mid to the low tier.

OTHER NEWS

• ATL - LG James Carpenter (knee) Jamon Brown (foot) and Wes Schweitzer (head) all limited in practice, and all are expected to play at New Orleans.
• BAL - LT Ronnie Stanley (knee) and RG Marshal Yanda (illness) missed some practice but both are likely to play at Cincinnati.
• CAR - Sixth-round rookie Dennis Daley has played left tackle for three weeks (replacing Darryl Williams, 80/20 split in SF game, 100% in TEN). Daley has played exceptionally well, look for a cohesion upgrade next week.
• CLE - LG Joel Bitonio limited in practice with a back injury but he is likely to play against Buffalo. Left tackle Greg Robinson has recovered in full from his ankle injury and sent Justin McCray back to the bench - no change to ranks.
• CIN - LT Cordy Glenn has been out of the league's protocol since Oct 16 but no playing time. RG Alex Redmond will likely miss the Buffalo game with ankle/knee but John Miller looks to be recovered from his groin injury in time to face his former team.
• DAL - LT Tyron Smith (ankle), RT Lael Collins (knee) and RG Zack Martin (back/ankle) have all been limited in practice but all are expected to play
• IND - C Ryan Kelly has a stinger but practiced in full and is expected to play
• MIA - C Daniel Kilgore limited with knee, RG Evan Boehm limited with hip, J'Marcus Webb and Jesse Davis have swapped tackle spots - the Dolphins have used 6 different starting combinations this season.
• PHI - LT Jason Peters will have a bye week to recover from his multi-week knee injury.
• PIT - LG Ramon Foster has been limited in practice and is not out of the league's concussion protocol. The rankings assume B.J. Finney will get another start.
• TEN - C Ben Jones has been limited in practice and is not out of the league's concussion protocol. The rankings assume Jamil Douglas will start at center again.

FULL RANKINGS

If you have a question about a player, team or matchup not specifically talked about in this article, please feel free to contact the author via Twitter.

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