Getty Taylor Decker watches from the bench in Detroit.
The Detroit Lions are in a bit of a holding pattern as it relates to their in-person offseason program and the same can be said for some of their contract negotiations.
One of the cases the Lions will have to deal with involves offensive tackle Taylor Decker. Decker is coming to a critical point in his Detroit career where the team will have to decide whether to keep him around or move on after the early part of his rookie career.
As of now, there hasn’t been any talk regarding what the future might be for Decker with the team. As he explained to reporters speaking on a teleconference, Decker has been content to let things play out behind the scenes with his agents, especially in light of what’s going on in the world at the moment.
Taylor Decker, on a Zoom, said quarantine has pushed contract thoughts to the back of his mind. Said it’s important, but he’s leaving it to his agents and whenever it happens, it happens. Hasn’t had any “major” talks with the Lions yet on an extension.
The Lions themselves haven’t had big talks with Decker, something he also confirmed when speaking to reporters.
At this point, it seems to be anyone’s guess if the team gets a deal done or wants to moving forward. Doing a deal with Kenny Golladay might be a bigger priority for the Lions moving forward this offseason. The Lions might be content to let things play out right now.
Taylor Decker Stats
Bob Quinn’s first draft pick from 2016 has run hot and cold in Detroit. While Decker has been a decent piece, he hasn’t been the transformational lineman the Lions probably hoped for when they selected him early on. There’s been a ton of change in Detroit up front the last few years, and it will be interesting to see if Quinn commits to more time with Decker, or if the Lions look elsewhere and try to start over at tackle. Decker has youth on his side, but this is a big decision for the franchise to make.
In his Lions career, Decker has played in 55 games with 55 starts and also has a receiving touchdown to his credit collected in the 2018 season.
Lions Competition Along Offensive Line
The Lions have an interesting situation brewing at guard with Oday Aboushi, Beau Benzschawel, Josh Garnett, Russell Bodine and Joe Dahl. Rookies Jonah Jackson and Logan Stenberg were added in the draft. As it stands today, this group seems weaker than having Graham Glasgow in the mix himself, which is obvious given how solid and stout Glasgow was up front for the team.
Additionally, Tyrell Crosby could be in the mix if the team elects to use him at guard instead of tackle, but he figures to slot in at tackle for the team in 2020 given the newfound depth at guard after the draft.
It’s pretty safe to say seeing what happens at guard will be the major question and the major issue to watch the rest of the offseason and whenever workouts might resume. For now, Decker is one of the players who is seemingly entrenched up front at tackle, but competition will be brewing both now and in the future.
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