By all indications, the Lions expect Penei Sewell to be their starting right tackle in Week 1. Sewell expects the same. Good thing Week 1's a long way off.
Not that it should come as a surprise, but the seventh overall pick is experiencing some growing pains as he switches from the left side of the line, where he played in college, to the right.
"It is not that easy," Sewell said Thursday after the Lions' third practice of OTA's. "Everyone thinks it is, but, man, it’s a whole different feel."
Put it this way:
"I’m right-handed, so I’ve been writing right-handed my whole life. And then one day you’re asked to write your full name left-handed at full speed, the same speed you write it with your right hand," said Sewell. "So yeah, it’s a little bit of an adjustment.
"But I love a challenge and it’s something that I’m looking forward to. It takes me back to my high school days and looking forward to growing at that position."
Sewell is up for this. He was already training at right tackle ahead of the draft in the event he went to a team like Detroit with an established left tackle. And he has all the tools, namely the athleticism, to make it work. The Lions aren't even in pads yet. Time is on Sewell's side.
Remember, he has some natural rust to knock off after opting out of the 2020 season. He also missed rookie minicamp after contracting COVID-19, costing him a few days of work earlier this month. Asked prior to Thursday's practice how Sewell has looked thus far, Dan Campbell said, "He looks like a rookie."
That is, he's raw. Unrefined. Anything but a finished product.
"He looks like what you would think he would look like," Campbell said. "Man, he’s got talent. He’s hungry. He’s aggressive. So again, let’s center back to, 'Calm down, watch how everybody does it, watch your footwork here, take your steps, watch the cadence, listen to these things.'
"Look, even in three days you see him improving, and that’s all you can ask for right now. So it’s good to have him here and to be with those guys (on the offensive line). It’s exactly what you want."
The real evaluation of Sewell will begin when the Lions start practicing in pads later this summer. For now, he's happy to be back on the field and back to full health after his bout with COVID.
"I’m feeling good now," he said. "Being out here now for a couple days and getting that ramp-up period of really recovering from all that has been wonderful. Being on the field really helps a lot because it creates different vibes for me. I get to be out there with the guys and play the sport that I love and create that chemistry to build to something special."