Getty Logan Stenberg on the field against the Rams in 2021.
The Detroit Lions are making a major decision on their offensive line ahead of the team’s first preseason game, parting ways with 2020 draft pick Logan Stenberg.
The team announced on August 10 that they had waived Stenberg, who started three games in 2022 but spent the rest of his time with the Lions as a reserve guard. Stenberg’s release could pave the way for a pair of rookies to earn spots on the final roster.
Logan Stenberg Had Fallen Down in Depth Chart
As Jeff Risdon of USA Today’s Lions Wire reported, Stenberg was near the bottom of the depth chart in training camp and saw a pair of rookie linemen surpass him.
“He’d been repping all of training camp with the final group of offensive linemen,” Risdon wrote. “Stenberg had fallen behind, among others, fifth-round rookie Colby Sorsdal and undrafted rookie Brad Cecil in the training camp pecking order.”
Report: The Lions are waiving OL Logan Stenberg t.co/gFfnQf4rT8 via @thelionswire
Risdon had previously reported that Stenberg was having difficulty in training camp.
“This is Stenberg’s fourth training camp. If things don’t improve radically, it will be his last,” Risdon wrote on August 1.
The Lions were hit by injuries in their second week of training camp, losing three offensive linemen to injuries, but Stenberg still remained with the bottom group, Risdon added.
“Perhaps the most telling moment came in Sunday’s unpadded walkthrough,” Risdon wrote. “Playing left guard on the third unit, Stenberg quite obviously held reserve DT Benito Jones on a run play. Preventable penalties have been a major issue for Stenberg dating back to his college days at Kentucky, when he led the nation in penalties as a senior. He’s not grown out of that despite years of NFL coaching.”
Stenberg had also struggled in his first career start, which came last season in relief of the injured Halapoulivaati Vaitai. Stenberg committed back-to-back false starts on the team’s opening drive in the September 11 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, and continued to struggle later in the game. As SI.com’s Christian Booher noted, Stenberg received a 25.9 overall offensive grade from Pro Football Focus and a zero in pass-blocking.
Stenberg said after the game that he hoped to improve.
“Run game has always been my strong suit, felt really good in the run,” Stenberg said. “Pass game, a couple reps I wish I could get back, and that’s all technique. So, we’ll just get it cleaned up. We already got it cleaned up in the meeting room, so we’ll get out there on the field and do it throughout the week.”
Rookie’s Opportunity to Shine
Stenberg’s release could give Sorsdal a greater opportunity. The Lions took the former William & Mary offensive lineman with the No. 152 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft, earning some praise for the pick.
NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger said before the draft that Sorsdal had a good chance to grow into an NFL starter.
“William & Mary’s Colby Sorsdal is a day three prospect who wasn’t invited to the combine was has four critical components; he has size, he has experience, moves very well; and most of all he has toughness. Good looking prospect to me,” Baldinger wrote in the tweet.