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The Detroit Lions offensive line looked a mess in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers, and while circumstances have improved meaningfully since then, the unit remains an area of potential upgrade ahead of the NFL’s November trade deadline. Bill Barnwell of ESPN noted in his trade guide on Thursday, October 30, that greater areas of need for Detroit exist at edge-rusher and in a secondary battered by injury before speculating on the Lions’ stomach for pursuing a deal to augment their offensive front. “I also wonder if the Lions should consider trying to find some additional depth along the offensive line, where Giovanni Manu struggled filling in for Taylor Decker before hitting injured reserve with a knee issue,” Barnwell wrote. It is the tackle position where Detroit’s depth is a major concern, but there aren’t a ton of viable tackles on the trade market. Braxton Jones of the Chicago Bears went on IR with a knee injury shortly after the team demoted him from the starting left tackle position. Evan Neal of the New York Giants is an option, but he hasn’t played a snap all season long and is essentially a bust in his fourth season after going No. 7 overall in the 2022 NFL draft. So if the Lions can’t improve meaningfully at tackle, perhaps they can look to upgrade at the guard position. Both Christian Mahogany and rookie Tate Ratledge are above-average run blockers, per Pro Football Focus, but they are also well below-average pass blockers. Cleveland Browns guard and seven-time consecutive Pro Bowler Joel Bitonio is exceptional in both areas and likely on the trade block if he asks to be. Joel Bitonio in Final Year of Contract With Browns, Still High-Level Player Bitonio was a member of a laundry list of Cleveland’s notable trade candidates, per Barnwell. “When he put together his list of potential trade candidates earlier this month, ESPN’s Adam Schefter included the entirety of the interior of Cleveland’s offensive line,” Barnwell wrote. Wyatt Teller, 30, is another excellent offensive guard in Cleveland whose contract is up after this year. He could be a long-term solution, perhaps replacing Mahogany, if the Lions wanted to travel that route. Bitonio is a shorter-term play at age 34, as he may only have another year or two remaining in his career. Lions Among Most Likely Buyers Ahead of NFL Trade Deadline Whatever Detroit ends up doing, fans should expect the Lions to be active ahead of the deadline given their variety of obvious needs and their overall talent already in place. The NFC North and the conference as a whole are up for grabs, and Detroit is the two-time reigning division champion. The organization has legitimate Super Bowl aspirations and nearly $25.5 million in available salary cap space to add players as of Friday. It wouldn’t be shocking if the Lions make upgrades to at least two of their three position groups most in need of talent acquisition: the edge rush, secondary and offensive line.
