NFL Draft Center Rankings: No. 3 – Ohio State’s Josh Myers

Josh Myers' road to the NFL began with battles against his brothers.

With All-Pro Corey Linsley signing with the Los Angeles Chargers in free agency, the Packers will have a new starting center for the first time since Linsley’s rookie season of 2014. Green Bay has three in-house candidates with its starting guards, Pro Bowler Elgton Jenkins and Lucas Patrick, and 2020 sixth-round pick Jake Hanson. Jenkins’ versatility might be too valuable to have him locked into center, and Hanson was not impressive during training camp.

Ohio State’s Josh Myers is our No. 3-ranked center.

You can’t tell Josh Myers’ story without talking about his family.

His mom, Julie, played college basketball at Dayton.

His father, Brad, was an offensive lineman at Kentucky.

Myers is the youngest of three brothers. The oldest, Zach, played at Kentucky.

“Yeah, my dad was pretty good. I mean he was a four-year starter in the SEC,” Myers told the Dayton Daily News. “But my mom is the best athlete of all of us. She was an All-America in high school.”

Once, while playing football in the basement, Zach tackled Josh into a pillar that created a large gash. Fortunately, Julie Myers is an internal medicine doctor and had a sterilized stitches kit in the living room.

“There's still battle wounds down there in the basement from when they were kids,” Brad Myers told BuckeyeExtra.com. “It's unbelievable.”

For a late-season game against Indiana, Myers switched from No. 71 to No. 50 to honor his grandfather.

“I love my grandparents, and I have such a close relationship with them,” he told Lettermen Row before the game. “He passed away a few years ago due to Alzheimer’s, and one thing that my grandma does is that before every season she writes me a letter and then cuts out a square of his jersey from when he played in high school. I wear it in my sock for every game. I just thought it would be a nice thing to wear No. 50 to honor him.”

Myers was offered a scholarship to Ohio State as a high school freshman and he committed as a sophomore. He was the Buckeyes’ two-year starting center, continuing the school’s run of excellence at that position. He was first-team all-conference in 2020 despite a bout with COVID.

Those battles against his brothers gave him a mean streak on the field.

“He is an aggressive, nasty player, and that’s why I love playing with him,” guard Wyatt Davis told Cleveland.com.

Those brotherly battles made him tough, too, as he showed at the end of the season.

“I did get a turf toe injury in the Big Ten Championship Game,” he said at Ohio State’s pro day. “And then I decided to play through it in the Clemson game and ended up hurting it significantly worse in the Clemson game. And then I played in the Alabama game and got an MRI after the season ended and got surgery on my foot. I tore my foot up pretty good. I broke a bone underneath there and had an avulsion of the tension on another bone underneath my foot so I got surgery.”

Measureables: 6-foot-5 1/4, 310 pounds, 32-inch arms. No times (toe surgery), 29 bench-press reps.

Stats and accolades: In seven games, Pro Football Focus charged Myers with two sacks, one hit and 11 total pressures. Sports Info Solutions blamed Myers for three sacks and 14 blown blocks (nine runs, five passes). He was not penalized in his three seasons.

NFL Draft Bible says: A former offensive tackle recruit, Myers brings a long powerful frame to what is ordinarily a squatty position. There is more than enough of a power profile from Myers to work opposing defensive linemen, boasting a powerful set of hands and hips to gain leverage. His background at offensive tackle shows up in pass protection, where he has solid mirror technique inside. With his combination of plus athleticism and power, Myers is a scheme versatile center prospect who should be able to translate well to either zone or power systems. He has Pro-Bowl center written all over him.

About This Series

Packer Central is introducing you to the top prospects, both on and off the field, in this year’s NFL Draft. The series is starting with the top five at each position, then will add additional players as the draft approaches, with a focus on positions of need.

C1: Oklahoma’s Creed Humphrey

C2: UW-Whitewater’s Quinn Meinerz

C3: Ohio State’s Josh Myers

C4: Alabama’s Landon Dickerson

C5: Pittsburgh’s Jimmy Morrissey

WR1: LSU’s Ja’Marr Chase

WR2: Alabama’s DeVonta Smith

WR3: Florida’s Kadarius Toney

WR4: Minnesota’s Rashod Bateman

WR5: LSU’s Terrace Marshall

RB1: Alabama’s Najee Harris

RB2: Clemson’s Travis Etienne

RB3: North Carolina’s Javonte Williams

RB4: Memphis’ Kenneth Gainwell

RB5: North Carolina’s Michael Carter

QB1: Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence

QB2: Ohio State’s Justin Fields

QB3: BYU’s Zach Wilson

QB4: North Dakota State’s Trey Lance

QB5: Alabama’s Mac Jones