ALLEN PARK -- The Detroit Lions are taking a long look at how to replace veteran offensive guard Kevin Zeitler ahead of next season.
Those options include multiple internal players, not to mention adding someone through the NFL draft or the free-agent market.
Zeitler earned himself a raise, netting a one-year deal worth $9 million from the Tennessee Titans. He had one of the best seasons of his lengthy career with the Lions, starting 16 games and ranking as one of the league’s top run blockers.
Christian Mahogany impressed in two starts as a sixth-round rookie. Graham Glasgow didn’t finish the season on the best note, but the Lions know who he is, and there is some optimism in a return to form with a clean bill of health. Those are the top two in-house options, and they are considering how to deploy the pieces since most of Mahogany’s experience has come on the left side.
“But Graham’s somebody that we still value because he’s got versatility,” Lions head coach Dan Campbell said at NFL owners meetings. “Look, he did, he started the whole season other than whatever that was -- a game that we let him recover from injury at guard (in Chicago), but he can also play center. I think people forget that some. Man, he can do an excellent job at center as a matter of fact, you know? So I think there’s things that he brings to us that are not always easy to find.
“So, yeah, we have confidence in him. And there again, the fact that you know he can play all the positions, man, that lets you breathe easy.”
Campbell added there has been some thought to moving Glasgow back to the right side. However, they are also considering giving someone like Giovanni Manu a shot at guard once the offseason program and training camp begins.
Manu was a fourth-round developmental dart-throw pick out of British Columbia in last year’s draft. He’s massive and moves well for someone his size, and listeners of the Dungeon of Doom podcast are no strangers to this thought process.
With the path at tackle blocked by Taylor Decker and Penei Sewell, the Lions might as well see if Manu impresses at guard. Mahogany impressed in his two starts, no doubt, but two games as a sixth-round rookie is not enough to lock anything into place. And Glasgow needs to show that last year’s struggles were durability-related and that he’s ready to roll with the starters once again.
That said, the Lions are keeping their options open, as they have continued to make bolstering their offensive line the top priority.
“Is it somebody we drafted? You know, you’re gonna do your best to let these guys compete and see where they’re at,” Campbell said. “I mean, does Manu -- do we try Manu guard? That’s a thought. So, we’re gonna try to let these guys compete a little bit and move them around and see what’s right, see where we’re at.
“But, you know, it’s not gonna be set in stone.”
Campbell said Manu was limited to guard reps with the scout team last season. The Lions head coach admitted it would “take a leap of faith” to call for even more of those reps, but he’s continued to have thoughts of trying Manu out on the inside.
Brad Holmes, the team’s general manager, said he believes Mahogany can play from either guard spot, so he isn’t worried about that part of the equation. Holmes noted the inexperience and how two games aren’t enough to write anything in stone, but that he feels Mahogany has starter-level potential.
“They were promising, they were encouraging. We do feel like he has starter-level ability, but he is still a young player,” Holmes said. “So, we still need to make sure that he has competition, and it’s part of -- we bring Yode (Awosika) back, and we’ll still be looking at possibly another veteran to add, and you still have the draft.
“Look, I’m not saying it’s always going to be in the sixth round where we got Mahogany. But you just never know when we’re going to be able to get one of those guys.”
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