The 2019 NFL Draft is being held in Nashville, Tenn. starting on Thursday, April 25 and running through Saturday.
Below are some key facts and things to know about Lamont Guillard, a former Georgia offensive lineman who was selected in the sixth round by the Arizona Cardinals with the 179th overall pick.
2019 NFL Draft: Lamont Gaillard came to Georgia as a defensive lineman
Gaillard was a multi-year starter at Georgia, becoming one of the best centers in the SEC. But coming out of high school, Gaillard was projected to be a defensive lineman at the college level.
As a member of the 2014 signing class, Gaillard was rated as a 4-star defensive tackle out of Fayetteville, N.C. Gaillard ended up moving to the offensive line early in his Georgia career. After redshirting as a freshman, Gaillard went on to become a three-year starter for Georgia on the offensive line. The last two seasons came at the center.
2019 NFL Draft: Lamont Gaillard played on one of the best offensive lines in the country in 2018
Georgia was a finalist for the Joe Moore Award, which is given to the nation’s top offensive line. While Georgia didn’t win the award, it joined Oklahoma and Notre Dame — two College Football Playoff teams — as finalists.
Gaillard was a key reason why the Georgia Bulldogs had one of the top offensive lines in college football. He was named First Team All-SEC by the coaches and Second Team All-SEC by the media. Gaillard started all 14 games for the Bulldogs in 2018. He helped pave the way for both D’Andre Swift and Elijah Holyfield to run for over 1,000 yards in 2018.
Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, who the New York Jets took with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft said Georgia was the toughest offensive line he played last season.
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The last two seasons with Gaillard at center, Georgia has had four different 1,000-yard rushers. Sony Michel and Nick Chubb also accomplished the feat in 2017 when Gaillard started all 15 games at center for the Bulldogs.
2019 NFL Draft: Lamont Gaillard could be the next great Georgia center in the NFL
In the past decade, Georgia has produced two NFL starting centers in Ben Jones and David Andrews. And when Gaillard gets selected — he’s expected to come off the board in either the fifth or sixth round — he’ll look to join those two as starting NFL centers.
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Jones and Andrews were both multi-year starters at Georgia before going on to have successful NFL careers. Andrews signed as undrafted free agent with the Patriots after the 2015 NFL Draft. He has been the starting center for New England’s last two Super Bowl winning teams. Jones was an All-American in his time at Georgia. He was then taken in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. Jones is now the starting center for the Tennessee Titans.
“Lamont gets guys blocked and has a great feel for how to work with guys next to him,” ESPN analyst Cole Cubelic said about Gaillard. “He plays with good leverage and is very quick laterally. He doesn’t have great power, but he understands how to get into position quickly.
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