The Detroit Lions will see a familiar face wearing green and gold.
The Green Bay Packers are signing former Lions starting guard Kevin Zeitler to a one-year deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on September 30.
The 36-year-old brings 213 career starts to a Packers team that has aggressively searched for answers along its offensive line.
For Detroit, the move is noteworthy for another reason.
Zeitler spent only one season with the Lions, but it happened to be one of the best offensive seasons in franchise history. And after months of outside calls for Detroit to bring him back, he will instead return to the NFC North with one of the Lions’ primary rivals.
Kevin Zeitler Helped Anchor Lions’ Record-Setting Offense
Zeitler signed with Detroit in March 2024 after three seasons with the Baltimore Ravens and immediately took over at right guard.
He started 16 regular-season games for a Lions offense that scored an NFL-leading 564 points and finished with a league-best plus-222 point differential. Detroit’s point total was the fourth-highest ever recorded in an NFL regular season, according to Zeitler’s Titans biography.
Zeitler also helped clear the way for Jahmyr Gibbs during a season in which the running back scored a franchise-record 20 touchdowns.
It wasn’t an unexpected performance, either. Zeitler had made his first Pro Bowl with Baltimore in 2023 and was a Pro Bowl alternate following his season in Detroit.
But the two sides separated after one season.
Zeitler signed with the Tennessee Titans in March 2025 and made another 16 starts before becoming a free agent again following the season. He remained unsigned through the entire 2026 offseason and the opening three weeks of the regular season.
Lions Were Repeatedly Linked to Kevin Zeitler Reunion
That lengthy availability generated plenty of speculation about a return to Detroit.
NFL.com’s Nick Shook identified the Lions as a landing spot in March. Heavy covered multiple proposals for a reunion throughout the offseason.
Nothing materialized.
The timing of Zeitler’s Packers deal is particularly interesting because the Lions haven’t exactly eliminated their questions on the interior.
Christian Mahogany entered the season as Detroit’s preferred option at left guard but has battled a hip injury. Ben Bartch has also gotten snaps there, while Detroit acquired Juice Scruggs before the season.
Campbell revealed this week that Scruggs could still become part of the solution at guard after starting center Cade Mays returns.
When Campbell was asked on 97.1 The Ticket whether Scruggs could move to left guard once Mays is healthy, his answer was emphatic.
“Absolutely.”
So Detroit has a plan. Green Bay just chose a considerably older — and much more familiar — solution.
Packers Loading Up on Offensive Linemen
Zeitler isn’t Green Bay’s first attempt to fix its offensive line this week.
The Packers signed veteran Laken Tomlinson off the Dallas Cowboys’ practice squad before adding former first-round pick Mekhi Becton to their own practice squad. Zeitler now gives Green Bay another player with extensive starting experience.
According to the Titans, Zeitler has made 213 starts in 214 career regular-season appearances. His résumé includes stops with Cincinnati, Cleveland, the New York Giants, Baltimore, Detroit and Tennessee.
Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported before the signing that league personnel believed it could require between $6 million and $8 million to convince Zeitler to play this season. Financial terms of the agreement were not immediately reported.
Now the longtime Wisconsin native and former Badgers standout is headed home.
And eventually, that means the former Lions guard will be lining up against Detroit rather than protecting Jared Goff.
Former Lions Starter Kevin Zeitler Signs With NFC North Rival