Over the course of his rookie season, Tate Ratledge was welcomed to the NFL. Once by "a different animal" in Chris Jones: "That was a learning curve for me," Ratledge said after the Lions' Week 6 loss to the Chiefs. Again by one of his former Georgia teammates in Jalen Carter: "He got me pretty good in the early drives" of the Lions' Week 11 loss to the Eagles. His takeaway from year one as a pro?
"Football's a lot harder up here," Ratledge said with a laugh. "I mean, in college, not that it was easy, but guys up here get paid to do this for a living, so it’s a different world."
But along the way, the NFL also got introduced to Ratledge. The 22-year-old guard played every game and almost every snap for the Lions and paved the way for some explosive plays next to right tackle Penei Sewell. It was the first time since high school that Ratledge went a full season without missing a game, "so I took pride in that," he said. "That was a big thing for me."
Ratledge wasn't quite as pleased with his performance: "I think I progressed over the year, but obviously wasn’t where I want it to be." He cleared some hurdles and stumbled over others, as you'd expect for a rookie offensive lineman. The unit as a whole took a significant step back after losing Frank Ragnow and Kevin Zeitler, two Pro Bowl-caliber vets on the interior. Even Sewell said Monday that he had a "down year." Restoring the offensive line as a strength is maybe the most pressing item on the Lions' offseason agenda.
"It kind of lights a fire under your ass a little bit," said Ratledge. "I mean, it’s hard not to. Just seeing how this offensive line has played over the past few years and then coming in and not performing as a unit the way we wanted to or hoped to, it definitely lights a fire under you to get going."
Or keep going, in the case of Ratledge. He doesn't plan to waste much time once he gets home to Georgia for the offseason. His teammates "all tell me I need to take a month off, but I don't know if I can do it," he said. Moreover, while the line sprung leaks this season, Ratledge helped plug one of them at right guard. He was an asset to the team as the season wore on, and a player on the rise down the stretch.
"Tate was almost like a completely different player by the end of the year than he was at the beginning," said Graham Glasgow, the biggest mentor for Ratledge in Detroit's O-line room.
Ratledge ranked 21st out of 61 NFL guards who played at least 50 percent of their team's snaps -- one spot behind perennial Pro Bowler Joel Bitonio of the Browns -- and 10th in run-blocking, per PFF. He ranked sixth in pass-blocking over the final five weeks of the season. He ranked third overall among guards drafted in the past two years. His pass protection does need polishing, but the Lions have the makings of one of the top run-blocking duos in the league on the right side of the line.
The Lions are unlikely to shift Ratledge to center with the likely departure this offseason of Glasgow. They abandoned that experiment after three days of camp last summer, which tells you all you need to know. Ratledge is better and more comfortable at his natural position, which is exactly where the Lions should leave a player with Pro Bowl potential. It's incumbent upon GM Brad Holmes to find a competent center this offseason.
Ratledge, for the record, says he'll do whatever the team needs him to do, and intends to take some center reps this offseason to prepare for anything. But he prefers to play guard. "I’ve been a guard my whole life," he said, "so it would definitely be a changeup." Either way, the offensive line could look a lot different next season, with longtime left tackle Taylor Decker also mulling retirement.
The experience in that room was crucial this season for a trio of young players in Ratledge, Christian Mahogany and Miles Frazier. For Ratledge, Glasgow "meant more to me this year than anybody has my whole career," a resource who had an answer to every question, be it physical or mental.
"Anytime I was struggling, that’s a guy that I went to," Ratledge said. "He kind of took me under his wing, so that meant a lot to me."
"I think it’s pretty fun to go and give somebody a coaching point and maybe it helps them see something easier, maybe it makes their life a little easier," said Glasgow. "And Tate was really open to listening to me and to (O-line coach) Hank (Fraley) and to anybody who was willing to give him any sort of pointers. I would give Tate the credit in that regard because you can tell somebody how to do something a million times, if they don’t want to do it, they’re not going to do it. I think Tate’s a good player, and he’ll only get better."
The offensive line was the engine that powered the Lions to the top of the NFC North. It stalled out this season, and they plunged back to the bottom. It needs some new parts, specifically a center, quite possibly a tackle. At right guard, it looks like the Lions have what they need.