ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Penei Sewell sat on a bench near the back entrance of the practice facility last Thursday, removed his gloves and shoulder pads and awaited his turn at the microphone after an OTA session concluded. Passing by him on their way inside was Tate Ratledge and Christian Mahogany — two of the young pups on this Lions offensive line. They spotted him, lingering off the side. They learned he was speaking with the media. They shared a mischievous glance, then decided to hang back and support (read: heckle) their leader.
“We wanna ask you some questions,” Ratledge, the second-year guard said to Sewell.
“Come up there with me,” Sewell responded.
Some playful banter followed, but the scene served as a reflection of Sewell’s new role on this team. This offseason, he’s been tasked with bringing the offensive line with him in ways he hasn’t been previously asked to. Where he goes, others follow.
Sewell, Detroit’s left tackle, finds himself at the center of an offensive line that underwent major changes this offseason. Once viewed as one of the league’s best units, the Lions lost their reputation as the 2025 season unfolded. They’re working to get it back.
It began when the Lions lost veteran guard Kevin Zeitler to the Titans in free agency. The Lions believed they had younger, cheaper alternatives in-house after drafting three guards — Mahogany, Ratledge and Miles Frazier — in recent drafts. To hedge that youth, they still had veterans Frank Ragnow, Taylor Decker and Graham Glasgow to show them the ropes.
Until they didn’t.
Ragnow’s abrupt retirement in June was a major blow to the offensive line’s foundation. An All-Pro talent, Ragnow made everyone around him better, and would’ve helped the Lions account for some youth transitioning in the starting lineup. Instead, it forced them to move Glasgow — coming off a down year — from guard to center. As this all played out, Decker was unavailable for OTAs and a portion of training camp, as he recovered from offseason surgery that was supposed to fix a bad shoulder. However, the pain lingered into the season.
The end result was the deterioration of a once-great offensive line. Ragnow retired. Glasgow was one of the worst starting centers in the league. Decker’s shoulder remained an issue. Mahogany and Ratledge experienced growing pains in their first year as starters. Per Sharp Football Analysis, Detroit’s starting offensive line played just 32.26 percent of the team’s offensive snaps together.
The one constant, in terms of availability and productivity, was Sewell. The Lions knew that, so they opted to rebuild the offensive line around him. They took the field together for the first time when OTAs kicked off in May.
“It’s been fun so far, I’m not gonna lie,” Sewell said. “I love the guys that we have in. … Just trying to get to know them all.”
The biggest on-field focus for coach Dan Campbell, GM Brad Holmes and the Lions this offseason was to fix the offensive line. Because the offense relies on timing and rhythm, its efficiency can plummet without a stable offensive line — even with all the playmakers the Lions have at the skill positions. In an effort to fix it, the Lions made some shrewd, perhaps necessary, moves.
They released Glasgow before free agency began. They asked Decker to take a pay cut, and when he declined, he was granted his release. They signed former Panthers center Cade Mays to a three-year deal. They signed former Dolphins OT Larry Borom, traded David Montgomery for draft capital and backup OL Juice Scruggs and signed Ben Bartch as a potential challenger to Mahogany at left guard. And when the draft rolled around, the Lions used the 17th overall pick on Clemson right tackle Blake Miller, then moved Sewell to left.
Lions left tackle Penei Sewell, middle, takes the field with offensive linemen Miles Frazier (71) and Tate Ratledge (69) at a workout this offseason. (Junfu Han / Imagn Images)
That’s why, when it came time to make decisions on the 2026 offensive line, the Lions chose to lean on their All-Pro.
“I’m putting my eggs in the basket of Penei Sewell in that O-line room,” Campbell said this offseason. “He’s the leader.”
There’s a strong argument that this was already the case. Sewell is a three-time team captain. He’s regarded as one of the best talents in the league and best player on this Lions’ team. He has the respect of everyone in the building, and has since he entered the league.
But while Sewell held the title of captain, Ragnow and Decker were the pillars. They were the voices even Sewell could lean on, considering he’s only 25. They were his vets.
Now, there are new faces relying on Sewell to show them the way.
“It’s so awesome to have those guys, those veteran players out here,” Miller said. “Even just watching them go through indy (individual drills), sitting there on their iPad, clicking through their film and watching how they do things and learning stuff from them, seeing them out there in person, the speed of it — just having those guys out here is awesome. … Just being able to see them do things, you really get a vision of this is what it’s supposed to look like.”
“It’s been great,” Mays said. “Those guys, they welcomed me with open arms. I felt like the relationships are growing really quickly and it’s been awesome. The O-line room’s great. … I feel like I fit in as soon as I got here. They welcomed me with open arms and we just kinda hit the ground running.”
Sewell’s challenge this season is to help the Lions’ offensive line recapture its status as one of the league’s best. He’ll attempt to do so while mentoring players like Miller, and switching from right tackle to left — replacing Decker as he enters his sixth NFL season. It’s a move everyone in the building believed Sewell was ready to make. An All-American left tackle at Oregon, Sewell has experience at the position and was informed early in the offseason that it could be a possibility.
Externally, there’s been debate about the move and whether or not it’s worth it to move a player so comfortable at right tackle to left. But internally, the Lions valued the comfort of having a player of Sewell’s caliber protecting Jared Goff’s blindside.
Assuming he’s an upgrade over what Decker provided last year, the Lions believe that either Miller or Borom can provide quality play at right tackle. The addition of Mays — viewed as an ascending center in the league — gives the Lions a steady option at center. Ratledge played well down the stretch and is expected to take a Year 2 jump, and the winner of the left guard job should benefit from playing next to a talent like Sewell.
At the very least, you can see the vision, in ways you couldn’t last year. Sewell has a lot to do with that.
“He looks like, if not the best, one of the best tackles in football, left, right, middle, wherever you want to put him,” Lions offensive coordinator Drew Petzing said of Sewell. “He is extremely impressive and I think he takes a lot of pride in that. … Just the way that he approaches the job and the way that he thinks about the game and the way he comes in and works and wants to get better every day, regardless of where we line him up, I think has been really impressive.”
This is why the Lions drafted Sewell five years ago, making him the first pick of this new regime. Yes, he was viewed as a generational talent coming out of the draft, but his character allows the Lions to make the sort of moves they did this offseason. He makes others around him better — as Ragnow did at the center position. He can be a sounding board for Miller, who often named Sewell as a player he models his game after during the pre-draft process. He’s already organizing summer barbecues for the offensive line and plans to go hunting with Mays and Ratledge. Scenes like the one last Thursday show this is a group that gets along, and the Lions are banking on that translating to the field Sundays.
Sewell knows what’s expected of not only him, but this offensive line at large. His vets set the standard for him. Now it’s on Sewell to do the same.
“I know every year we talk about (how it’s) a different year, but this one kinda feels a lot different,” Sewell said last week. “Just because all the guys that I came in with are not here anymore. It’s just a lot of new faces. But again, with all that said, the standard’s the same and I’m the one that’s kinda been here the longest in the room. So, it’s up to me to really hold that and to really show the guys, not just tell them.
“You gotta come out here each and every day, because nobody’s gonna follow you if you’re not really doing it yourself.”