The Detroit Lions should draft an Offensive Tackle early in the 2016 NFL draft, regardless if they sign free agent Russell Okung. That may seem like a redundant acquisition to a lot of you, but I assure you that it should be the way the Detroit Lions go.
Adding a guy like Russell Okung would be a vast improvement over their current group. He would be an instant upgrade at left tackle over incumbent Riley Reiff and would allow Reiff to shift over to right tackle, where his game is more likely to thrive. By signing one guy, you’d instantly upgrade two positions. Okung is arguably the best available Left Tackle in a weak free agent class, so signing him will take a significant offer. That offer will come with significant risk due to the fact he is often injured, but he is so damn good when fully healthy. Here’s the full rundown on Russell Okung.
- Russell Okung
- Position: Left Tackle
- Age: 28
- Contract: Unrestricted Free Agent
- Likely will take a one year “prove it” deal or will settle for a long term deal for less than he’s likely worth.
- Stats:
- Draft: 1st round, #6 overall in 2010 by the Seattle Seahawks
- 2015: 13 Games – 13 Starts (all at LT)
- Career: 72 Games – 72 Starts
- #31 Ranked Overall by Pro Football Focus in 2015
- 72.1 Overall
- 71.0 Pass Block
- 74.6 Run Block
He would be an instant pass protection upgrade for Matthew Stafford’s blind side. With the reduction in talent in the receiving core because of Calvin Johnson’s retirement, Stafford will need more time to throw. The Detroit Lions currently have six Offensive Tackles on their roster. It’s a pretty sad bunch and they lack a good option at left tackle. They are as follows:
- Riley Reiff
- Position: Left Tackle or Right Tackle
- Age: 27
- Contract: One Year, $8.07 million – fully guaranteed.
- Became fully guaranteed on 3/9/16
- Stats:
- Draft: 1st round, #23 overall by the Detroit Lions in 2012
- 2015: 16 Games – 16 Starts (all at LT)
- Career: 63 Career Games – 55 Career Starts
- #39 Ranked OT by Pro Football Focus in 2015
- 57.2 Overall
- 49.5 Pass Block
- 85.1 Run Block
- Michael Ola
- Position: Right Tackle or Guard
- Age: 27
- Contract: One Year, $600k
- No guaranteed money and no dead money if cut.
- Stats:
- Draft: Undrafted Free Agent in 2014
- 2015: 10 Games – 7 Starts (at RT)
- Career: 23 Games – 19 Starts
- #35 Ranked by Pro Football Focus in 2015
- 69.7 Overall
- 74.1 Pass Block
- 48.7 Run Block
- Cornelius Lucas
- Position: Swing Tackle
- Age: 24
- Contract: One Year, $607k
- No guarantees, $7k in dead money if cut
- Stats:
- Draft: Undrafted Free Agent signed by the Detroit Lions in 2014.
- 2015: 15 Games – 3 Starts at RT
- Career: 30 Games – 6 Starts
- Unranked OT by Pro Football Focus in 2015
- 45.2 Overall
- 47.4 Pass Block
- 42.8 Run Block
- Lamar Holmes
- Position: Right Tackle
- Age: 26
- Contract: One Year, $760k
- No guarantees, no dead money if cut.
- Stats:
- Draft: 3rd Round, #91 overall by the Atlanta Falcons in 2012
- 2015: Did not play -injured
- Career: 21 Games – 19 Starts
- No ranking by Pro Football Focus in 2015
- Corey Robinson
- Position: Swing Tackle
- Age: 23
- Contract: Three Years, $1.9 million dollar contract
- No guaranteed money, $43k in dead money in 2016 if cut.
- Stats:
- Draft: 7th round, #240 overall by the Detroit Lions in 2015
- 2015/Career: 1 Game – 0 Starts
- No Offensive Snaps played in 2015
- Tyrus Thompson
- Positon: Right Tackle or Guard
- Age: 24
- Contract: Two Year, $990k contract ($450k in 2016)
- No guaranteed money and no dead money if cut
- Stats:
- Draft: 6th round, #185 overall in 2015 by the Minnesota Vikings
- No career games played
- No grade by Pro Football Focus
Riley Reiff will be a fine Right Tackle for the Detroit Lions in 2016 but his contract is up after the season. The rest of the bunch are developmental types that will not be ready to compete at the NFL level in 2016 or guys that just won’t hack it as starters.
This is why the Detroit Lions should take an Offensive Tackle early in the 2016 NFL draft. The Lions could then not force a rookie to play right away, thereby not setting him up for long term success. They would then also have injury insurance for Reiff and potentially Okung for the 2016 season and then would have a replacement at Right Tackle if Riley Reiff decides to walk in free agency after the 2016 season. If they strike out on Okung, the Detroit Lions could then target Kelvin Beachum, formerly of the Pittsburgh Steelers, as a long term solution or the Oakland Raiders Donald Penn as a short term solution.
Either way, the Detroit Lions would be wise to invest early in a Offensive Tackle in the 2016 NFL Draft. It would be my personal wet dream if Jack Conklin of Michigan State fell to the Detroit Lions at number 16 overall, but if not, there are plenty of other guys that would be good investments for Detroit.