Tate Ratledge

Tate Collier Ratledge (born April 26, 2001) is an American professional football guard for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs, where he was an All-American and a two-time national champion. He was selected by the Lions in the second round of the 2025 NFL draft.

Tate Ratledge

No. 69 – Detroit Lions
Position:	Guard
Personal information
Born:	(2001-04-26) April 26, 2001 (age 24) Chattanooga, Tennessee, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight:	308 lb (140 kg)
Career information
High school:	Darlington School (Rome, Georgia)
College:	Georgia (2020–2024)
NFL draft:	2025: 2nd round, 57th pick
Career history
Detroit Lions (2025–present)
Roster status:	Unsigned draft pick
Career highlights and awards
2× CFP national champion (2021, 2022) First-team All-American (2024) Second-team All-American (2023) First-team All-SEC (2023, 2024)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 1, 2025
Games played: 0 Games started: 0 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

Ratledge was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and grew up in Rome, Georgia.^[1] He is the son of Dean Ratledge, a coach for over 40 years.^[2] He attended Darlington School, where he competed in football, basketball and track and field.^[3] Coming out of high school Ratledge was ranked the number 39 overall player in the 2020 class, the number five rank at his position and number six in the state of Georgia.^[4] Ratledge committed to play college football at the University of Georgia over Tennessee, whom he grew up rooting for.^[5]

College career

As a freshman in 2020, Ratledge (#51) played in just one game, playing a total of seven snaps.^[6] He earned a starting spot as a sophomore ahead of the season opener against Clemson, but suffered a Lisfranc ligament fracture in a foot after just four snaps and missed the rest of the season.^[7] In the 2022 season, Ratledge started 14 of the team's 15 games, only missing one game against Kentucky. He also got a start in the Bulldogs' two playoffs games, including in the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship.^[8]

Ratledge was ranked the seventh best returning interior offensive lineman by Pro Football Focus ahead of the 2023 season.^[9] Ratledge was named preseason first-team all-SEC.^[10] Ratledge was also named to the watchlists of multiple awards, such as the Outland Trophy and the Lombardi Award.^[11][12]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	40-yard dash	10-yard split	20-yard split	Three-cone drill	Vertical jump	Broad jump	Bench press
6 ft 6+1⁄2 in (1.99 m)	308 lb (140 kg)	32+1⁄4 in (0.82 m)	10+3⁄8 in (0.26 m)	4.97 s	1.72 s	2.89 s	7.38 s	32.0 in (0.81 m)	9 ft 5 in (2.87 m)	25 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[13][14]

Ratledge was selected in the second round with the 57th overall pick of the 2025 NFL draft by the Detroit Lions.^[15]