Now that Taylor Decker has asked for his release, the Detroit Lions have a decision to make at left tackle: Find one in free agency, target one in the draft or move All-Pro right tackle Penei Sewell to the position.
Sewell won the Outland Trophy as college football’s best lineman while playing left tackle at Oregon in 2019 but has played primarily right tackle since the Lions made him the seventh pick of the 2021 NFL draft.
Sewell, who sat out the entire 2020 season at Oregon during the coronavirus pandemic, danced around the topic of a potential position change when asked about it after the season by the Free Press. Decker was publicly considering retirement at the time.
Decker announced last week he intended to return for an 11th NFL season, but after the Lions asked him to take a pay cut, he took to social media again Friday, March 6, and said he asked for his release instead.
“I don’t know,” Sewell said in January of possibly moving to left tackle. “It’s one of those things where you have to go be in the situation.”
Sewell played eight games at left tackle as a rookie, when Decker missed the start of the season with a finger injury, and said he practiced there some in his second NFL season in 2022. But he hasn’t played the position much since.
Asked if it should be his choice what position he plays at this point in his career, Sewell, a three-time first-team All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler, said, “It’s definitely going to be a conversation down the road when we get there.”
Along with Decker and Sewell, the Lions have just two other tackles on their roster: Gio Manu, who’s played sparingly in his first two NFL seasons, and Devin Cochran, who signed a future’s deal with the team in January after spending most of last season on practice squad.
The Lions will free up about $15 million in cap room once they release or trade Decker, but they have needs this offseason at edge rusher, linebacker, cornerback and on the interior of their offensive line.
Rasheed Walker, who started 16 games for the Green Bay Packers last season, is considered the best left tackle on the market, though one agent who met with the Lions during the combine before Decker announced he was coming back said the team gave him the impression it would move Sewell to left tackle and sign a right tackle in free agency if Decker retired.
Cam Robinson, who started 12 games for the Cleveland Browns last season, is the only other left tackle scheduled to be a free agent next week with a market value of more than $4 million, according to Spotrac’s contract projections.
Braden Smith of the Indianapolis Colts, Jawaan Taylor of the Kansas City Chiefs, Jermaine Eluemunor of the New York Giants and Jonah Williams of the Arizona Cardinals, who finished each of the past two seasons on injured reserve, are among the starting right tackles set to hit the market.
The Lions also have the 17th pick in the first round of this year’s NFL draft. And while waiting until April to fill a starting tackle spot can be risky, this year’s draft is considered strong at the tackle position.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. ranks six linemen, including four tackles, among his top 25 players in the draft. Miami’s Francis Mauigoa is widely considered the best tackle in the draft and a potential top-10 pick, and Georgia’s Monroe Freeling, Alabama’s Kadyn Proctor, Texas A&M’s Max Iheanachor, Utah’s Caleb Lomu and Clemson’s Blake Miller are other tackles who could be first-round picks.
Kiper also ranks guards Spencer Fano of Utah and Vega Ioane of Penn State as top-25 prospects. Fano played tackle in college but may move inside in the NFL because of his arm length.
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Will Lions move Penei Sewell to LT after Taylor Decker release?
Reporting by Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
