As the Detroit Lions return to action following their Week 8 bye, a divisional rivalry against the Minnesota Vikings awaits. While injuries to key players and third-down woes have plagued Detroit through the first seven games of the season, the offense has scored the third-most points per game (30.7) and done as good a job as any team in the league protecting the quarterback.
The Lions have only allowed 13 sacks to quarterback Jared Goff so far, giving their signal-caller plenty of time in the pocket to make some plays downfield. Although offensive linemen Taylor Decker, Graham Glasgow, and Penei Sewell are a big part of that, guards Tate Ratledge and Christian Mahogany have performed well and appeared in enough games to have the rookie tag removed from head coach Dan Campbell, according to The Detroit News' Nolan Bianchi.
"That's done. We're at the halfway point; they're veterans now," Campbell said on Tuesday.
Even with Ratledge in his first season and Mahogany getting limited action in his 2024 rookie season, Campbell has seen enough from them so far to remove the rookie tag and look at them more like veterans. Judging by their performance through seven games, it is hard not to be encouraged.
Tate Ratledge, Christian Mahogany Will Be Treated Like Veterans Moving Forward
Ratledge, the second-round draft pick out of Georgia, has been impressive in his young career up to this point. According to Pro Football Focus, Ratledge has an overall grade of 68.0, good for 20th out of 78 qualified guards. That does not immediately jump off the page, and neither does a below-average pass block grade of 45.9. However, Ratledge has excelled in run blocking, posting the 12th-best run block grade (71.7).
Mahogany, the sixth-round pick out of Boston College in the 2024 draft, is technically not a rookie, but he only played in seven games last season, so his career is still taking off. His overall PFF grade (68.3) and pass block grade (54.7) are both slightly better than Ratledge's, and he also excels in run blocking with an above-average 72.9 grade. Both have given up a pair of sacks, but have only been penalized a combined three times, so they are certainly proving their worth and showing why Campbell is promoting them to veterans now.
But just like what a wise man once said, "With great power comes great responsibility." Now that Ratledge and Mahogany will be treated as veterans moving forward, they can't blame any mistakes on a learning curve. They've had plenty of time to adapt to the NFL level, and now it's time for them to play and act like they've already been here for years.
Sitting at 5-2 and firmly in the mix of the NFC North race through eight weeks of play, the upcoming matchup with the 3-4 Vikings continues to look more favorable with injuries taking over Minnesota's roster. A strong effort from Ratledge and Mahogany would go a long way in proving that Campbell's label-shedding decision was the right one, especially if it helps the Lions take one step closer to catching the Green Bay Packers for the NFC North lead.