Tennessee needs offensive lineman Lance Heard to return in 2026, but one detail could complicate his return to the Vols
The Tennessee Vols need offensive tackle Lance Heard to return to Rocky Top in 2026.
The best case scenario for the Tennessee Vols’ offensive line in 2026 is for offensive tackle Lance Heard to return.
Heard is draft eligible, and he could choose to go pro after a terrific junior season at Tennessee.
The Vols, however, would be a much better team with Heard and rising sophomore David Sanders holding down the offensive tackle spots next fall.
The NFL Draft isn’t the only obstacle, by the way, that could keep Heard from returning to Rocky Top in 2026.
If Lance Heard returns in 2026, who starts at left tackle?
Heard, a former five-star recruit who started his career at LSU before transferring to Tennessee ahead of the 2024 season, has started at left tackle in all 23 games he’s played for the Vols.
Sanders, also a former five-star recruit, is viewed as Tennessee’s future left tackle.
The left tackle vs. right tackle conversation can be a sensitive topic among offensive linemen. Traditionally, left tackle has been the most premium position on the offensive line, but that thinking has started to change in recent years, with some now viewing left tackle and right tackle as close to equal.
That conversation could impact Heard’s decision to return.
“Everybody perceives the left tackle position as the money position,” said said VolQuest’s Brent Hubbs on Friday on 104.5 The Zone’s Ramon and Will. “And so if Lance Heard were to come back, somebody’s got to be convinced that it’s okay to play right tackle. And by the way, (former Vol) Darnell Wright was a top 10 pick for the Chicago Bears (in 2023) playing right tackle — he’s still at the right tackle position for the Bears.
“I think the stigma remains that left tackle is the money spot and the right tackle is a guy who’s not good enough to play left tackle. I don’t think that’s actually completely fair, because I think the pass rushing ability of teams, certainly in the NFL, but even down in the college game, is good from the right and left side. So I think you can be effective and make money at the next level playing both positions. But I can promise you, there’s a lot of agents out there telling kids, ‘Man, you’ve got to be a left tackle because that’s where all the money’s at.’”
I don’t know how that conversation will play out if Heard decides to return.
My feeling is that it would be best for everyone if Heard stays at left tackle and Sanders at right tackle (and then Sanders moves to left tackle as a junior in 2027). Offensive line continuity, after all, is very important — and can be a huge asset for a team in the transfer era of college football.
Ultimately, offensive line development is suffering in football at all levels. The constant transferring and leaving college before being fully ready for the NFL is having a negative impact on offensive line growth and development. It can be tough to pass up NFL money, but Heard’s longterm career would likely benefit from staying at Tennessee for another season.
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