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Taylor Decker has been a polarizing player since he joined the Detroit Lions in 2016, with many criticizing his play and others defending the tackle.
Has Decker really been bad at all for the team, however? The answer is likely close to a grey area rather than black and white, and recently, Pro Football Focus and writer Anthony Treash helped to shed some additional light on the matter. The site recently ranked all of the offensive tackles in the league and Decker placed on the list at No. 23
Here’s what Treash wrote:
“Decker has consistently been an above-average player throughout his four-year NFL career. He’s earned an above-average grade on true pass sets and has avoided negatively graded run blocks at an above-average rate, too — both of these are stable metrics for offensive tackles. Decker closed out the 2019 NFL season from Week 8 on as the league’s sixth-highest-graded tackle and will look to continue that in 2020.”
Whether or not the Lions bring back Decker via re-signing before his deal is up is anybody’s guess at this point in time, and those decisions seem to remain fluid in terms of actual negotiations with Bob Quinn and the team.
Obviously, Decker is a player who has graded positively at some points and negatively in others, but PFF seems to think that he should be valued a bit more by this list and some of their metrics which grade him in a more positive light.
How valued he is moving forward for the Lions remains to be seen, but this shows many are expecting a solid 2020 season from Decker.
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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