Ravens OL coach Joe D'Alessandris discusses Patrick Mekari's versatility

The Baltimore Ravens are known for their incredible ability to find undrafted free agent diamonds in the rough. Many of their undrafted success stories go on to have exceptional NFL careers, with offensive lineman Patrick Mekari being one of those players.

The veteran lineman has extreme versatility, as he can play all five positions on the offensive line. Offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris was asked whether he sees Mekari as a starter or reserve, and while his answer was as a starter, his position is that of a do-it-all player.

“Right now, Pat [Mekari]’s situation is just more of a good quality … I see him in my eyes as a starter, OK? In my eyes, he’s a starter, but he’s in the position where he can play multiple positions, and that’s the role that we’d like to see him in right now. Does that mean … If we have an injury, guess what? You’re starting, Pat. But it’s not that he can’t start, it’s just that we see the versatility and the benefit of that opportunity. There are not many guys in the NFL that can play center, both guards and tackle. The last time we had a guy here that could do both was James Hurst, and he played both tackles and both guard positions, and he just retired with a fantastic career. Pat’s having a nice career.”

Mekari is undoubtedly talented enough to start at the NFL level, evidenced by his consistency and productivity. However, he provides immense value to Baltimore as a plug-and-play injury option at any position on the line, which means he’s best used as a backup unless otherwise needed.