For the primary time in a decade, the Lions’ left tackle position is about to be manned by someone aside from Taylor Decker. The team is planning an internal substitute on the blindside.
When talking to reporters on Monday on the league meeting, head coach Dan Campbell said his plan is to maneuver Penei Sewell from right to left tackle. The previous seventh overall pick was in fact drafted as a left tackle, but his five-year profession has to date consisted almost entirely of working opposite Decker. That is about to vary in 2026.
“I’ve talked to him,” Campbell said (via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press) about Sewell making the switch. “We’re ready to try this if need be. I don’t wish to say that right away I’m going to commit to that, but that’s – we’re ready to try this. And all he wants is a pair days to work his left-handed stance a bit of bit… He’ll be effective. He’ll bank some reps and give you the option to do it, but he gives us that flexibility.”
Decker intends to play next season, but his Lions release means he’ll only give you the option to achieve this with one other team. Detroit’s offensive line usually has been seen as a unit in need of stronger play in comparison with 2025 if the team is to return to the postseason. There may be loads of time for more moves to be made up front, especially with the draft still to come back. Nevertheless, moving Sewell to the blindside would fill the emptiness left by Decker’s release for years to come back.
Sewell is among the many core players who’ve inked big-ticket extensions with Detroit recently. The three-time All-Pro landed a four-year deal averaging $28MM per season in 2024. That figure stood out amongst right tackles, nevertheless it is according to other pacts at the highest of the LT market. Sewell, 25, is under contract through 2029.
Adding an offensive tackle would in fact remain a high priority within the event Sewell were to vary positions. The Lions are set to pick seventeenth in next month’s draft, meaning lots of the top blindside prospects will likely be unavailable by the point they’re on the clock. Finding a substitute right tackle to fill in for Sewell may perhaps be a preferable approach to leaving him in place and looking for a plug-and-play left tackle.