On paper and in practice, the Lions starting offensive line looks like one of the best in the NFL. It didn't disappoint in its debut.
After waiting more than a year to take the field as a unit, Taylor Decker, Jonah Jackson, Frank Ragnow, Halapoulivaata Vaitai and Penei Sewell showed their dominant potential in the Lions' preseason opener against the Falcons.
"We were all excited to finally be out there together," said Decker. "We’ve had the (intrasquad) scrimmage, but first time our projected starting five has been out there for a game. The coaches said, ‘Be ready to play a quarter. If you guys go out there and do what you need to do, you might come out, you might not.’"
They came out after one drive. They had done what they needed to do. They flexed their muscles and led the Lions on a 10-play, 79-yard touchdown drive where Jared Goff had all the time he needed and D'Andre Swift and Jamaal Williams averaged more than five yards per carry. It was a tantalizing glimpse of what they can do.
"That’s what we want to be," said Decker. "We want to be that gritty, tough team that’s going to establish the line of scrimmage."
After Swift was stood up on the first play of the drive, the offensive line took over. It opened holes and finished blocks in the run game. It kept the pocket clean in the passing game. It proved its athleticism as much as its power, like when Vaitai and Jackson picked up a pair of linebackers in the second level to set up a seven-yard gain by Swift.
"That’s beautiful music right there," former longtime offensive lineman and Audacy NFL insider Brian Baldinger said in a film review on Twitter. "That's the sounds of Motown."
Baldinger said the O-line "has to be special with the way Detroit wants to play football," namely by running the ball to set up the play-action pass. That's when Goff is at his best. He hit Amon-Ra St. Brown for a 20-yard gain on a roll-out deep in Falcons territory when the defense was drawn out of position by the threat of a run. St. Brown said he saw the linebackers "flowing to the ball" as he was running his route and realized "Oh, this is going to be wide open."
"Already knew right as the play started," he said. "A good run game just opens up everything."
The Lions had a good run game last season despite playing without Decker and Ragnow for a combined 21 games. They're aiming for the best one in the league this season, and heads up if they come close. That could spark a dangerous downfield passing game, which could create one dynamic offense.
"We can be one of the best offenses in this league," said St. Brown, "if we listen to our coaches, execute, and limit the turnovers and penalties."
The biggest 'if' might be health. Sewell, Jackson and Vaitai all missed at least a game last season, too. But if the offensive line can stay healthy ... "it’s going to be lights out," said linebacker Derrick Barnes, who would know from clashing with them in practice.
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"You’re talking about, you got some of the best tackles, the best guards, one of the best centers, it’s unbelievable to see that type of lineup in one program," said Barnes. "Going against those guys is a challenge. I can see them going really far."
They've yet to go anywhere together. Decker was the first to note the "small sample size" of one drive in a preseason game, as impressive as it was. There is tons more work to be done, starting this week in practices against the Colts and their strong defensive line. The hype, said Decker, "doesn't matter if we don't put the work in every single day." The talk, said offensive line coach Hank Fraley, "is just talk."
But they walked the walk in their first game as a group, and the Lions were off and running because of it.
"Our O-line," said St. Brown, "is a bunch of beasts."
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