Former NFL offensive lineman thinks Laremy Tunsil is overpaid

USA Today

08-07-2025

Ross Tucker played for the Washington Redskins and is now paid by the Philadelphia Eagles.
The former Princeton lineman was a guest on the "Last Man Standig" podcast with Ben Standig and had some sharp things to say regarding the Commanders' new left tackle Laremy Tunsil.
"Well, I'm always in favor of a team putting a lot of assets in their offensive line," began Tucker. That's certainly what teams should do after seeing what the Eagles did with their offensive line this season."
"The Tunsil thing? I would love to talk with someone who really dives into the analytics and the negative value associated with all his penalties. I mean, it is a lot. I know he's a really good player, and he's an excellent pass blocker. I don't think he's a good enough player that it offsets all the penalties, as it relates to how much he is being paid."
"He's being paid like one of the top two or three offensive tackles in the game. Well, to me, you are not one of the best two or three offensive tackles, if you have that many penalties...you are really hurting your team, you lose that five yards or ten yards, the odds of scoring on that drive drop tremendously."
"Twelve false starts, three illegal formations, so you are talking about 15 pre-snap penalties, and he had 19 (total) on the year. He's getting paid way too much for that, in my opinion," stressed Tucker.
When Standig inquired why Tunsil is getting called for so many penalties, Tucker quickly responded, "He's trying to get an edge. By far, the most important aspect of offensive/defensive line play is initial quickness. It's like anything else in life. You are getting the jump on the other guy."
Tucker suggested that some linemen being penalized a lot may be rationalizing that they can accept being flagged once a game, if it means they are repeatedly getting the jump on their opposing linemen. I can see why the Texans were ready to move on from him (Tunsil). Let's put it that way."
Ross Tucker was a guard in the NFL during his 42-game career. He played in NFL games for Washington in 2001 and 2002, Dallas in 2002, Buffalo in 2003 and 2004, and the New England Patriots in 2005. He finished his career with Washington in 2007 when he was placed on injured reserve after suffering a career-ending injury in the preseason.
Tucker now hosts the "Ross Tucker Podcast" and is employed by CBS Sports, the Philadelphia Eagles, Audacy Sports and Westwood 1 Sports.