One of the Detroit Lions’ major offseason goals this year was to fix the offensive line. Last year, the retirement of Frank Ragnow took a huge chunk out of the unit’s efficiency, and with injuries and youth along the interior, there was a lot of inconsistency and downright bad play.
Adding to the challenge this offseason were the two aging veterans along the front. Graham Glasgow was due a cap hit over $8.4 million and Taylor Decker just over $21 million. Detroit opted to cut Glasgow, and when Decker refused to take a pay cut, he was gone, too.
Detroit’s response was to get involved in the center free agency market, signing Cade Mays to a three-year, $25 million deal. To fill their big hole at tackle following Decker’s release, they signed Larry Borom to a reasonable $5 million contract.
But there are still likely a lot of moving parts. So today’s Question of the Day is:
What will be the Lions’ starting offensive line in 2026?
My answer: Well, let’s start with where the roster is currently at. Given all of the current pieces, it’s pretty reasonable to say with confidence that their starting offensive line would look like this if no other major additions are made:
LT: Penei Sewell
LG: Christian Mahogany
C: Cade Mays
RG: Tate Ratledge
RT: Larry Borom
Starting at tackle, Lions general manager Brad Holmes gushed over how Borom played at right tackle his entire career, but specifically last year with the Dolphins. Throw in coach Dan Campbell’s comments about his confidence in Penei Sewell at left tackle, and the team is basically telegraphing that this will be the configuration between those two.
Mays and Ratledge are almost certainly locked into their positions, leaving just left guard to decide. Detroit has done a good job building out competition there, so Mahogany will have to earn his spot. Miles Frazier, Juice Scruggs, Ben Bartch, and Seth McLaughlin—among others—will be nipping at Mahogany’s heels, but right now, I’m giving the spot to the incumbent.
I suppose it’s worth mentioning that Frazier could also compete for a tackle job, as Detroit cross-trained him in his rookie season. However, most of his work was done on the interior, so I’m keeping him at guard until Detroit publicly shows a shift in his role.
Of course, this could all be drastically changed depending on what the Lions do in the upcoming draft. It’s logical to think they could draft a starting-level offensive lineman with one of their first two picks. And because I still believe a tackle is the best possible investment they could make in the first round given both their needs and how the draft board may look, I’m going to try and call my shot.
Here’s what I think Detroit’s Week 1 starting offensive line will look like:
LT: Monroe Freeling
LG: Christian Mahogany
C: Cade Mays
RG: Tate Ratledge
RT: Penei Sewell
Freeling’s stock has been on the rise since the NFL Combine, but I’m not sure if that’s reality or the public overreacting to his incredible athletic numbers. His lack of experience may scare some off, causing him to fall into Detroit’s lap. The Lions have never been scared of a project, and this isn’t as much of a developmental player as some make him out to be. He’s played at a high level of competition and shown more polish than you may expect from someone with just 17 career starts. Given his experience at left tackle, there’s no need to move Sewell to that side—although I wouldn’t be surprised if they did it anyways. Campbell seemed to really like the idea.
So what do you think the Week 1 starting offensive line looks like? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.
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