The Detroit Lions' offensive line is a glaring concern ahead of Sunday's Week 2 showdown against the Chicago Bears at Ford Field. The frontline played a big role in Week 1's loss to the Green Bay Packers, as the Lions' O-line conceded 13 pressures while finishing with 62.8 pass block (20th) and 49.3 run block (27th) grades on Pro Football Focus.
It's clear that the Lions' offensive line isn't the same after losing guard Kevin Zeitler and center Frank Ragnow in the offseason. Now, the duo's replacements — rookie Tate Ratledge and second-year Christian Mahogany — have been receiving most of the blame for the unit's season-opening struggles. It's easier to blame first-year players rather than veterans, after all.
And while it's easy to pile up on rookies, veteran linemen Penei Sewell and Taylor Decker won't do the same. In fact, the Lions duo's latest comments suggest that the situation won't be dire for long.
"It's Week 1 with a new team. We got young guys in part of the five up front, but the other three, we know what it looks like," Sewell said on Wednesday, per WXYZ Detroit's Brad Galli. "It's our job to bring along the other two... Christian has been in the room with (Ragnow) and the other vets, so now it's just Tate and he's getting it day by day."
Penei Sewell & Taylor Decker Ease Lions OL Concerns in Week 2
Sewell and Decker are both former first-round picks, so if anyone knows what it's like to face a lot of pressure in Year 1, it's them. That's why they're leading by example by taking the heat off Mahogany and Ratledge by admitting that even veterans shouldn't be exempt from criticism.
"Regardless of (Mahogany and Ratledge), there were other people miscommunicating," Decker admitted (h/t @woodwardsports). "The play on the goal line that everybody's talking about how Tate left the defensive tackle? I ran the same play Tate was running; the other three ran a different play. So no, it's not on the two guards: it's on everybody... It's not any one person or two people's fault. That's crazy."
Sewell and Decker's response is exactly what Lions fans needed to hear after the O-line's Week 1 performance. Hiccups were to be expected after losing two key blockers in the offseason, as well as offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, but the past is the past, and Detroit must focus on the future, which includes the looming collision with Chicago this week.
The Bears' pass rush was nothing to write home about in their Week 1 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Chicago's disruptors finished with a 58.3 PFF pass rush grade (T-23rd) after generating eight pressures all night. For comparison, the Lions had to face 19 pressures when they took on the Packers, meaning Sunday's NFC North showdown could be the perfect bounce-back opportunity for Sewell, Decker, and the rest of the O-line.
The Lions only surrendered 8.5 pressures per game in two meetings with the Bears last season. If all goes to plan and history repeats itself, Detroit's offensive line is in a good spot to ruin former offensive coordinator and current Chicago head coach Ben Johnson's return to the Motor City.