OTish: What is the most important position group on a football team?

I watched a documentary about football that addressed this very question.

Waterboy was the answer 

I would say OLine and QB are 1 and 2. Today's football is so offensive focused that you could make an argument for WR/TE to be next. Personally, I would lean toward DL 3rd though. If I had to chose being elite on one side of the ball and average to worse on the other, I would build an elite offense over an elite defense without question and I coach primarily on the defensive side of the ball. Modern offenses are virtually impossible to stop consistently and the rules heavily favor them.

Offensive line. 100%.

QB...next question

I'd divide it into most important group for offense and defense.

OL and DL.

A lot of people are saying OL...and that's probably my second choice, but isn't that Wisconsin historically?  Average all over the field except OL?  

I know they have had some good individual players but as an entire position group, maybe their LBs a couple years ago could be elite, but for the most part it's a 3 star back with the most experienced/accoladed OL in the country putting up 2k yards from scrimmage. 

OL everything starts up front, if you can't block you can't run or throw. You can only scheme your way through a couple plays. Ask 2013 Devin Gardner how important an offensive line is

DL easily. You can scheme for your own poor or inexperienced OL play, albeit very difficult to do. If you’re soft up front and/or have no pass rush, you have no shot at stopping an offense. It seems like we would know this better than anyone after last year.  

Kickers. They make or break close games.

I'm of the opinion that offense>defense, at least in modern football.

If the OL is one position group then I think the OL wins as it provides benefits to more position groups more consistently and is pretty much a wash against an elite DL. Also, are we counting TE catches as part of the elite group? Because then it wins hands down.

I think QB comes in at close second but that it has more weaknesses against an elite DL and the benefits it gets and provides are more reliant on other groups not being shut down. All other things being neutral, If you shut down the pass game you lose a lot of benefits a good QB provides to the run game, if you shut down the pass game against an elite oline they are just gonna run it down your throat.

I think both groups provide similar boons at the cost of similar faults but that it balances out slightly more in favor of the OL both in benefits and weaknesses.

Now if you split the OL into actual positions, then I think the QB wins hands down.

O line--no doubt.

The question if phrased in an interesting way.  I'd say that QB is the most important position group on the field, without question.

However, if I had to choose between an elite QB and five elite OL...I'd take the latter.

If the OL is just elite as a group but still has a player or two that are not great?  I'm back to QB.  Elite QBs in today's CFB absolutely decide games. 

But if you have a death star OL with no weak points--think OSU's championship team that won with their third-string QB--then that's my choice.  It is virtually impossible for a defense to stop an offense that protects the passer and opens holes for the RBs.

I'm good with QB, OL, DL, but you can't have a super weak link anywhere on the field.  I hate to bring this up, but the DB's and the Sparty game last season prove this out.      

1a. QB

1b. OL

2. DL

Although i would make the argument that you cannot have a weak position group and be an elite team. Football is the greatest sport on earth because it is the greatest team sport where there must be persons with wildly different skills, size, speed, and intensity to win as a group. 

Position coaches.

You can have elite talent and athleticism and a great scheme—and overwhelm subpar and maybe even good teams.

But at the elite level, anywhere there isn't excellence in the fundamentals will be an Achilles heel, and you will be exposed.

So that's my version of "there are no unimportant position groups" or "whatever position group you're weakest in at the moment."

It starts with the OL. You can't run effectively without a good OL. The QB can't throw a pass if he's on his back. The longer you have the ball on offense, the fewer opportunities the other team has to score.

OL. Running and passing behind the best  OL in the country would make even an average QB and RB look above average. Just not sure a single position group on the defensive side is enough to overcome an average offense. 

There are only 3 positions. 
 

DT

CB

players that can’t play either DT or CB

QB and it's not remotely close

QB then CB then blind-side tackle.  As far as CB, look at what happened against MSU last year.  I know that Don Brown didn't do the CBs any favors, but a struggling CB can still bleed you dry.

Offensive and defensive lines. No doubt about it. They aren't kidding when they say the game of football starts upfront. 

An elite offensive line makes a good RB into a great RB because he has necessary holes to run through and get to the second level and beyond. An elite offensive line makes a good QB into a great QB because he has the time necessary to survey the field, go through his reads, and make the throws. 

On the flip side, an elite defensive line helps cover up deficiencies you might have in the backfield, because they get after the QB so frequently that he either has no time to throw, or is pressured into making bad throws. An opposing QB can't pick your secondary apart if he is spending most of the game flat on his back or running for his life. 

If I was ever in a position where I was in charge of building a football roster, I go after the guys in the trenches first. Get the best of the best in those areas, and everything else (more often than not) falls into place. Some people prefer to get the best QB they can get, but I'd rather not put a QB in a position to fail by playing in front of a subpar OL that can't block worth a shit. 

Most everyone here has the same answer and they're right.  It's between OL, DL, and QB.  Given the offensive-favored flavor of modern football, that to me means OL or QB.  And given the examples of Heisman and college cheatcode Lamar Jackson and all-everything QB Patrick Mahomes running for their lives behind mediocre OL's, my final answer is OL.

Ranked:

1. OL (nothing happens without a good 1, nothing great happens without a great line period)  If Mahomes and Jackson can't will their teams to titles and championships without stellar protection, then nobody is.

2. QB, makes an offense work.  Touches the ball every play.  Can improve the play of every other player and function as an additional coach in some instances.

3. DL, makes everyone on defense look better when they're elite.  Forces offenses into quick, short passes if they can rush like crazy, making for 1 dimensional offenses.  Can be gameplanned around though, which is why they're 3rd and not higher.

Fullback

O line or D line easily. Alabama has been so dominant in the trenches over the years.  They're sending waves of players on both lines into the NFL every year. 

Which position group would I choose to be elite?  The weakest one...

I'm not sure it's QB, even in the NFL, especially given the nature of the salary cap and the fact that QBs are so goddamn expensive. There are exactly 2 SB wins shared by the top 10 paid QBs right now (Mahomes and Wentz), and neither of them won the SB while on a list of the top 10 paid QBs...

The OL - by a good margin.

 A common axiom is the Defense wins games.  I would posit that the only time you control your fate is when you have the football - and the best way to ensure that control is maintained is with a superior OL.

Individual position QB!  
Position Group Oline or Dline.  
 

we have seen individual players be difference makers.  But they had to have really good players around them as well.  Most title teams have difference makers and several all conference players.  Almost all have an o or d line that is top five or ten as a group.

Coaching. 

QB, since our D will not be that great. The offense will have to score a lot of points. Shea was good but he failed at making big plays or would make mistakes in the big games. 

This reminds me of Nintendo hockey. My decision will entirely be dependent on my opponents selection.

Offensive line/ offensive tackles in particular

Double post , sorry

Everyone has their own opinions and mine is an easy one. Look no further than the top of the first round in the NFL draft every year. The Money talks. 

OL followed by the DL. Everyone else is a distant 3rd 

For offense: QB

An elite QB can transform an entire offense from "ok" to "elite". I mean how many times did Tom Brady will the Patriots to a superbowl despite having barely any weapons at his disposal? I'm also assuming that "average" in this case means that your "average" OL will protect you more often than not.

For defense: DL

An elite DL is the only thing that can slow down an elite QB. Patrick Mahomes was utterly destroyed in the superbowl because he was constantly under pressure. Even with a terrible game he made some head-turning plays. But he was still human. 

Long Snapper. Without them you can't punt. You'd have to go for it every 4th down.

DL First and Foremost.  If you're constantly disrupting the other offense early and often you're already well ahead.  

Then QB and then OL.  

Just my opinion and as a former OL it hurts to say this, but you can work with an excellent QB behind an average OL, in contrast an Average QB behind an Excellent OL, isn't quite the same.  

Depends on what you mean by "average." If it means "gets the job done but isn't spectacular," then I would choose the elite QB. If, rather, it means "will not hold up against good teams or players" then I'm choosing elite D-tackles. Having said that, if you have any area on a football team that can get exposed, it will. Average corners? Hello, scorched by OSU/Alabama WRs. Average nose guard? Hello, pounded into submission by Wisconsin. Average QB? Hello, can't make big plays or win big games. Etc. Etc.

Brain says OL, gut says Secondary. The most dominant team I’ve seen at the professional level was the LOB in Seattle. If the 4 best football players on your team are your back 4 you can do a whole helluva lot. I tend to believe that the OL is a little overrated. It’s important to have as good of an oline as possible but if you don’t have guys that can impact or change a game then you can’t really pull anything off even with a great OL. Someone’s still gotta execute with the ball in their hand or steal possessions.