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2025 NFL Draft: Georgia OL Tate Ratledge selected in 2nd round

On3 imageby:Jake Rowe•04/25/25•

JakeMRowe

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(Tony Walsh / UGA Sports Communications)

Tate Ratledge now knows where his football career will continue. After five years at Georgia and three as a full-time starter, the Rome, Ga. native is headed to Detroit. The Lions picked him with the 57 overall pick (2nd round) of the 2025 NFL Draft.

Ratledge signed with Georgia in the 2020 class. He played in just one game of that COVID-impacted 2020 season but by the time the 2021 season rolled around, he had earned a starting role. Georgia began the season vs. Clemson in the Duke’s Mayo Classic with Ratledge at right guard.

Just a few plays into that game he suffered a lis franc injury in his right foot. The injury required surgery and he was forced to miss the rest of the season.

The Darlington School product earned that starting job back to start the 2022 season, serving as the No. 1 right guard for 14 of 15 games as the Bulldogs won their second National Championship in as many seasons. Ratledge was draft eligible after that season but decided to stick around for two more.

He started 14 more games in 2023 as the Bulldogs went 13-1 and beat Florida State down in the Orange Bowl. Ratledge was voted to the AP All-American second team at season’s end. He was a first-team All-SEC performer according to the AP and coaches.

After considering a jump to the 2024 NFL Draft, Ratledge came back for one more season. He started the first three games but suffered high-ankle and MCL sprains in Georgia’s week-three win at Kentucky. It caused him to miss the next four games. In all he made nine starts and played in 10 games, still earning first-team All-SEC honors.

He committed to Sam Pittman in 2019 but Matt Luke had to secure his signature after Pittman moved on to become the head coach at Arkansas. Ratledge ended his career playing for Stacy Searels.

At 6-foot-6 320 pounds, Ratledge was a highly-regarded prospect in that 2020 class. He signed with Georgia as the nation’s No. 41 overall prospect per the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that includes all four websites that publish recruiting rankings. He was the nation’s No. 4 offensive tackle and the No. 7 player in Georgia.

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