Dan Campbell confirms key Lions starting job is still completely up for grabs, a look at who can win it
Detroit Lions starting left guard job is officially up for grabs. Dan Campbell confirmed the competition is wide open, so we broke down every contender and their path to winning the job before Week 1, plus our pick.
The Detroit Lions came into this offseason looking to completely rejuvenate their offensive line, and they’ve done that.
They have a new center in Cade Mays, Penei Sewell is moving to left tackle, first-round pick Blake Miller is in at right tackle, and Tate Ratledge is expected to get even better. That all leaves it down to who is playing left guard. On Tuesday, Lions head coach Dan Campbell talked about the position.
Dan Campbell confirms that the starting left guard job is wide open
“Yeah, it’s open,” Campbell said. “(Christian) Mahogany is very much in that. I mean, he played a couple of games for us in ’24, and then he started for us until he had the injury, came back, started again, and so we know he’s got ability, he’s got potential, but there’s a reason why we brought in (Ben) Bartch. There’s a reason why (Miles) Frazier’s here. There’s a reason why all those guys are in there, you know? We may try “Giovanni) Manu a little bit, I mean, we’re gonna let this thing go and see what happens.”
This was expected to a degree, but now we know it’s fully on. Let’s take a look at the combatants in this battle.
Christian Mahogany
As Campbell said, Moahogany was the guy there last year. He played fairly well before the injury. Especially when it came to run blocking. Where he struggled across the board was pass blocking. He allowed 27 pressures and six sacks. He needs to be better in this spot because the prime objective for this team, beyond running the ball, is keeping Jared Goff clean.
Miles Frazier
If you’re asking me to pick who wins this job, this is my pick. Frazier played well in the short amount of time we got to see him play last year, and that was with no training camp and very little practice. This year, he has the benefit of all of that, and I believe he shows exactly why I mocked him to the Lions so many times last year. His versatility and athletic ability are pluses.
Ben Bartch
Do not rule out Bartch. He’s played a lot of left guard in the NFL, and he hasn’t been somewhere he could beat out the full-time starter yet, but when he’s got a chance to play, and he’s gotten the starts here and there,e he’s shown that he can handle it well. It helps that in 1,722 career snaps, he’s allowed just five sacks.
Juice Scruggs
The former second-round pick needs to show why he was a second-round pick. He came into the league to be a center, but the Texans moved him to left guard, and he started for them for a bit. He struggled, and they sent him to Detroit in the David Montgomery trade. It’s going to be interesting to see how he fares with Hank Fraley doing the teaching. He has the size and athleticism. He just needs to translate it into his play better.
Giovanni Manu
Speaking of size and athleticism, there is no question Manu has both. But he just hasn’t been able to turn those traits into good football play. This is an experiment for sure. It would be a shock if he won the job.
Michael Niese
The Lions have been trying Niese at both guard and center, and there’s a thought that they would like him to be a do-all guy off the practice squad. Don’t rule him out in this competition because of that thought, though. This is his fifth season with the Lions. Could this be the year he takes a starting job?
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