The Detroit Lions will have to decide whether or not they wish to draft an offensive lineman early, and a big reason they might elect to avoid that could be positional fit.
Most prospects are left tackles in the draft, but it’s possible if the right player was on the board, Detroit would jump at the opportunity to fortify their young offensive line further. If Oregon’s Penei Sewell could be such a player that the Lions would be motivated to jump into the mix for, and that might only be more of the case now after some new information has come to light.
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Recently, it was revealed that Sewell has been training at right tackle and the potential is there for him to be selected by a team with a need at that spot rather than left tackle.
Versatility is key: #Oregon LT Penei Sewell, the Draft’s consensus top OT, has been training at right tackle as well as left tackle (which he played in college). Sewell is preparing for the possibility that someone with an entrenched LT drafts him & puts him at RT for a year.
Obviously, the Lions could fit as such a team given the presence of Taylor Decker on the roster. Putting Sewell at right tackle would be intriguing, and could be a way for the team to have a solid bookend mix in the league.
Lions’ Offensive Line Improved
Even though the Lions have Taylor Decker, Jonah Jackson and Frank Ragnow in the fold as well as quality young depth pieces like Tyrell Crosby, the team could need one more elite piece to perhaps cement their transformation toward one of the best groups in the NFL. While wideout and defense are big needs for the Lions, the team could simply stay put and take an elite talent like Rashawn Slater or Sewell in order to help out their offensive line for the near future.
It’s clear Slater or Sewell are the types of players who could move the needle for the Lions in terms of getting a tough lineman up front. Whether the draft plays out like this or not is anybody’s guess, but if either one of the players can play right tackle consistently, it might make them too good for Detroit to pass up in the end.
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Sewell’s Stats and Highlights
The tackle from Oregon is a mountain of a man and someone who isn’t easily moved up front. Sewell excels as not only a pass blocker but a run blocker, and is as close to complete of an offensive lineman as there has been in the draft lately. While playing for the Ducks, Sewell became the 2019 Outland Trophy winner as the nation’s best offensive lineman and also was a Unanimous All-American and first-team All-PAC 12 player. Though he sat out 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it did little to dampen his stock as a top pick this April.
Sewell’s tape shows a player who can protect as well as move people up front, a deadly combination for the NFL.
With tape like that, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Sewell could be one of the best young lineman to hit the league in decades. If the Lions pick him and insert him in, they could be better for it.
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Potential Lions Pick Reveals New Intriguing Position Versatility