Detroit Lions didn’t just rebuild their offensive line. They completely changed what it was built to do
Detroit Lions didn’t just replace starters on the offensive line. Brad Holmes appears to have rebuilt the entire unit around a completely different philosophy, and the athletic testing numbers reveal exactly what Detroit is trying to become.
The Detroit Lions’ offensive line conversation has centered on one question all offseason: can this group be as good as the 2024 unit? But that’s the wrong question. The real question is whether this new Lions offensive line can do things the old one couldn’t. The answer, when you look at the athletic profiles Brad Holmes assembled, is a resounding yes. Detroit’s offensive line wasn’t just retooled. It was rebuilt from the ground up around a completely different philosophy, one that aligns with what offensive coordinator Drew Petzing wants to do with heavy personnel, gap scheme concepts, and getting playmakers like Jahmyr Gibbs and Jameson Williams into space.
A different kind of offensive line
The 2024 Lions offensive line was built around experience, power, and intelligence. That group’s job was straightforward: open holes, pass block, form a wall. And they did it well. But when you look at the athletic composite scores, you can see why Holmes didn’t try to simply find younger versions of the same players. He went after a different archetype entirely.
The 2024 starting offensive line had a composite athletic score of 67.1. Taylor Decker came in at 50.1. Graham Glasgow sat at 65.8. Kevin Zeitler checked in at 47.1. Frank Ragnow was the outlier, one of the most athletic centers to ever test, a genuine freak. And Penei Sewell, of course, has always been a special athlete. But as a whole, that group wasn’t built to move.
The numbers tell the story
The projected 2026 starting offensive line carries a composite athletic score of 81.9. That’s a jump of 14.8 points, and that is not a small number.
Sewell slides over to left tackle, and we already know what he brings. Christian Mahogany, the expected starter at left guard, tests at an 86.0 athletic composite. Cade Mays at center is where the group sacrifices some athleticism, and you have to hope he’s better in pads than he is in testing. But then you get to right guard Tate Ratledge, who posted a 95.8 composite. That is an elite number for a guard. And Blake Miller at right tackle was one of the most athletic tackles in the entire 2026 NFL Draft and one of the most athletic tackles to ever test at the position.
What it means for the offense
Everyone loves watching Sewell get downfield and run almost as fast as Gibbs, knocking defensive backs out of the way and forcing cornerbacks and safeties to make business decisions about whether they want to stand in front of that truck. Now the Lions have multiple linemen who can do that. Miller gets downfield the same way, hitting guys in space and creating those same problems for second-level defenders.
The scheme’s implications are significant. You can pull on counter and power. You climb to linebackers more consistently. You execute reach blocks. You get out in front on screens. You operate in outside zone concepts. You block effectively in space instead of only in tight quarters.
It’s not about forming a wall anymore. It’s about opening up as much space as possible. And when you get Gibbs in space, you’ve seen what that looks like. It’s dangerous. When you get Williams in space, same thing. These are players who do the most damage when they have room to operate, and Petzing’s offense is designed to give them exactly that.
Looking ahead
I would venture to say this is one of the more athletic offensive lines in the NFL right now. The Lions didn’t just replace Taylor Decker, Frank Ragnow, Kevin Zeitler, and Glasgow with younger players. Holmes replaced them with players who test dramatically better athletically because Detroit needed to become a completely different kind of offensive line. The goal shifted from “let’s form a wall” to “let’s create space everywhere.” That’s a substantial philosophical change, and the roster reflects it. Let’s see how it all comes together once the season starts.
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