2025 NFL Prospect Profile: Georgia Offensive Guard Tate Ratledge

The Cincinnati Bengals recently released their starting right guard. One immediate replacement option could be found on Night 2 of the Draft.

Before entering the 2025 free agency, the Cincinnati Bengals made the tough decision to let starting right guard Alex Cappa go.

Yes, the move clears up space, but it also leaves a major void on an offensive line that has had issues ever since Joe Burrow’s arrival (and, yes, even before then).

While the team is looking for a veteran option in outside free agency, they’ll also look for viable competition in the NFL Draft. Given their penchant for big-school players (namely in the SEC) and their gravitation toward players from the University of Georgia, Tate Ratledge has officially entered the chat.

Ratledge has a strong pedigree, and before the Combine in Indianapolis, he was pegged as a Round 3-4 prospect. However, after testing better than many had anticipated, it’s hard to see a scenario where he falls out of Night 2.

Tate Ratledge

• Height: 6’6”
• Weight: 308-320
• Age: 23 (Turns 24 in April)
• Hometown: Chattanooga, TN
• School: Georgia
• RAS: 9.97 (Unofficial)

Background

Coming out of high school in Tennessee, Ratledge was the No. 39 ranked player in the 2020 recruiting class and chose the University of Georgia over the University of Tennessee. Ratledge only played in one game as a freshman with the Bulldogs but grabbed the starting right guard spot as a sophomore.

Unfortunately, Ratledge suffered a season-ending Lisfranc injury in the first game of the year. He came back and started 14 games in 2022, cementing himself as a solid collegiate starting guard.

However, his career reached new levels in 2023 and 2024. Ratledge earned First-Team All-SEC honors in both seasons while also grabbing First-Team All-American honors for his 2024 efforts.

Strengths and Weaknesses

There is a lot to like about Ratledge’s skill set, particularly with his impressive NFL Combine numbers. The prevailing thought was that Ratledge wouldn’t test as well as he did, which undoubtedly helped his draft stock.

Ratledge anchors well and stands stout at the point of attack in pass protection. Despite going up against both bigger interior players and picking up other rushers, he’s pretty consistent in his form and holds firm.

In the run game, Ratledge routinely looks for a defender to hit. This isn’t to say he is reckless or plays out of the scheme by any means, but there are some fun moments on film where he seeks out and meets linebackers in the hole and runs upfield to take out defensive backs.

Depending on the situation, one could view his older age as a positive or a negative. For the latter, it brings about the question of the player’s “ceiling height” when entering the league as an older player.

But for a team like the Bengals, who have an immediate vacancy at right guard, they may look at his pedigree, film, and age with a preference to take the optimist’s route, chalking it up to “maturity.” This could point to Ratledge’s ability to step in as a starter on Day 1.

Outlook

There aren’t many obvious weaknesses in Ratledge’s game, and his impressive athletic profile definitely boosted his stock to the Round 2-3 range. He has traits that point to an effective, long-term NFL starter.

As mentioned above, teams may have hesitancy about starting a rookie on their offensive line right away, but Ratledge’s age and SEC experience should make him more ready than most. And in the case of the Bengals, he’d be flanked by Amarius Mims, with whom Ratledge has familiarity from their days at Georgia.

Ratledge may not be a Hall of Fame or perennial Pro Bowl guard at the pro level, but he’ll be capable and dependable. He will also bring a tenacity akin to throwback offensive linemen, which would be a good fit for the physical AFC North.

This episode is brought to you in part by FOCO, the “Fans Only Company. One of their upcoming releases is a very special one, not only because of the players featured, but in the fact that it is a limited release of only 75 in production. Check out the Ja’Marr Chase/Carl Pickens Rookie of the Year bobblehead for pre-release purchase here.

Check out our podcasts here on CJ, the Bleav in Cincy podcast feed, Spotify, Amazon, our YouTube channel, and as always, on iTunes!