Brad Holmes deserves criticism for the secondary, but what he did with the Lions’ offensive line is incredible
Detroit entered the offseason needing answers at tackle, center and guard. Five games later, PFF has the Lions ranked No. 1, with a rookie tackle thriving and a backup center creating a legitimate controversy.
Look, I’ll be the first to tell you that Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes messed up the secondary this offseason. It could have been much better than what the Lions have right now. There’s no doubt about it, and I won’t give him any leeway on that.
But Holmes deserves a ton of flowers for what he did with the offensive line.
At the end of last season, Pro Football Focus ranked Detroit’s offensive line 12th in the NFL. That’s not horrible, but we could all agree the unit needed help. The Lions needed a new center and a new tackle on one side or the other.
Then we learned Penei Sewell was moving to left tackle. Suddenly, Detroit needed a right tackle and a center, and it could have used some help at left guard. I wasn’t sure Christian Mahogany was that guy.
Here’s what PFF had to say:
“The Lions move into the top spot having been named our Offensive Line of the Week from each of the past two weeks. Penei Sewell has earned a PFF grade above 90.0 in two of the past three games after a slow start having switched to left tackle, but the biggest story is how quickly right tackle Blake Miller has looked comfortable in the NFL. He has yet to allow a sack in the first four games of his NFL career and has given up just nine pressures from 166 pass-blocking snaps.”
It’s unreal.
Holmes stood firm and got his tackle
We’ll start with Miller. Everybody knew Detroit needed a tackle. Holmes went out and targeted a player who started at right tackle for four straight years and never missed a game.
He didn’t trade up. He didn’t trade down. He didn’t panic. He got the guy he wanted, and that guy has shown up. That’s a big deal.
Now, some of you might point out that I put Miller in my losers category after the Arizona game. I did. But the point I was making wasn’t that Miller is bad. I want to see more balance from him.
One week he’s great in pass protection, and the next week he’s great as a run blocker but struggles in pass protection. On Sunday, he was good against the pass and struggled against the run. That was the only point.
He’s four games into his career, and he has a long way to go. He’s also playing well. I think Miller is going to be a very good player for this team.
As for Sewell, I can’t believe people were ever concerned about him moving to left tackle. He looks great over there.
Juice Scruggs has created a center controversy
This might be the most impressive part. Juice Scruggs is the backup center. He isn’t even the real starter, and he’s graded No. 1 among all centers in the league.
When Holmes traded David Montgomery, Scruggs felt like an afterthought in the deal. We all thought the fourth-round pick was the prize, and in many ways it was. That pick helped Detroit land Derrick Moore, who could turn into a good player.
But Scruggs is now the highest-graded center in football, and Cade Mays is coming back after the Lions paid him a lot of money to be their starting center.
That’s how good this offseason was for the offensive line. Detroit has a center controversy.
I think Mays winds up starting at center, so I’m curious to see what the Lions do with Scruggs. There was talk about moving him to left guard, but that’s a tough sell.
Mahogany is the third-highest-graded guard in the league with an 86.4 grade. You have to leave him there. He’s playing great football.
There’s a good chance teams come calling about Scruggs. If and when they do, maybe Detroit can turn him into a starting cornerback.
The depth is better, too
You have to understand the rebuild goes beyond the starters. Larry Borom wasn’t good when he had to start, but as a swing tackle, he’s been an upgrade over Dan Skipper.
Miles Frazier is on the bench, too. Ben Bartch is injured, but when he’s healthy, we know he can start games if needed.
Holmes didn’t just build a decent offensive line. According to PFF, he built the best one in football right now.
You’re right to go after Holmes for what he was unable to do with the secondary. But if you ever wonder why he should be the GM of the Lions, this is your proof.
Maybe he didn’t solve every problem, but he sure solved this one. You’ve got to give him his flowers.
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