The Lions will be busy in the trenches this offseason. On offense, two question marks loom over their roster in 2026 and beyond: who's playing center? And who's playing left tackle?
The Lions need an upgrade at center whether or not incumbent starter Graham Glasgow retires (or gets cut). They need a succession plan at left tackle whether or not Taylor Decker retires. They also need an answer from Decker in the near future to avoid the trap they fell into last year with Frank Ragnow, whose sudden retirement in June left the Lions exposed at center throughout the season.
"Look, sounds like they’ve been doing a lot of homework on free agent tackles," NFL Draft insider Daniel Jeremiah said Thursday, while previewing next week's scouting combine. "So we’ll see what happens with Decker, but it feels like there could definitely be a need there."
Signing an offensive tackle would not preclude the Lions from drafting one. In fact, it might be their most sensible route if Decker walks away, which would free up about $11.5 million in cap space in 2026. A veteran stopgap opposite Penei Sewell, who could flip to the left to protect Jared Goff's blindside, would allow a young tackle to find his NFL footing before taking over on a team with Super Bowl expectations. It would also provide necessary injury insurance for Decker should he stick around.
Of course, that type of player would remove the Lions from the running for the top tackles on the market. Rasheed Walker of the Packers and Braden Smith of the Colts will both command multi-year contracts. A longer-term deal would make sense for Walker, who will be 26 next season, but only if the Lions view him as a solution across from Sewell and not a placeholder. Walker was good not great as the Packers' left tackle, but strong enough in pass protection to push $20 million per year on his next contract. The market's the market.
Smith, who turns 30 next month, has played a lot of solid football over eight years with the Colts, but has missed 16 games over the past three seasons due to various ailments. He's still probably worth north of $15 million per year on the open market, which is a lot of risk to assume for a seemingly injury-prone player entering his ninth season.
Jermaine Eluemunor is another veteran coming off a strong season with the Giants, but he's likely to stay in New York after a breakthrough year and feels headed for a multi-year deal either way. He turned 31 in December and entered the NFL only one season after Decker. The Lions do have a link to Eluemunor in new offensive assistant Mike Kafka, whose scheme as offensive coordinator of the Giants helped Eluemunor reach a new level the past two seasons as a pass protector.
Speaking of ties to current coaches, would the Lions give Jonah Williams a look? The former 11th overall pick failed to live up to his draft pedigree with the Bengals, but spent the past two seasons in Drew Petzing's offense with the Cardinals. Williams missed more games than he played over that stretch due to a knee injury in '24 and a shoulder injury in '25 that required season-ending surgery, but if Petzing liked what he saw out of Williams when healthy, the Lions could bring him aboard on a relatively cheap one-year deal.
Fred Johnson might hold some appeal to Detroit. He started 14 games the past two seasons on the Eagles' vaunted offensive line, including eight last season at right tackle in place of injured star Lane Johnson. He didn't wow anyone, but has shown some power as a run blocker. He turns 29 in June and could be an upside play for the Lions, who would probably have to give him a two- or three-year deal. He'll have suitors.
Other veterans who could be on Detroit's radar: Elijah Wilkinson, who started every game at right tackle for the Falcons last season after their starter went down in camp, and held his own. He also started nine games at guard for Petzing and the Cardinals in 2023 on an offense that had one of the best rushing attacks in the NFL. Wilkinson might be a match with the Lions on a short-term deal.
Braxton Jones played pretty well over his first three seasons as the Bears' starting left tackle and will be 27 next season. He lost the job last year after a poor start and then suffered a knee injury that cost him the rest of the regular season, but Jones has put some good tape out there in the NFL. The injury concern are real -- he also missed chunks of 2023 and 2024 with neck and ankle issues -- but he's still young enough and talented enough to warrant a look and potentially land a starting job.
Cam Robinson, 30, has started more than 100 games at left tackle over nine years in the NFL, but has never been better than average and struggled last season in 12 starts with the Browns. Trent Brown has been a sturdy tackle when healthy, but turns 33 in April and has missed the bulk of the last two seasons.
Jamaree Salyer started five games at left tackle for the Chargers last season and turns 26 this summer; he also has starting experience at guard. Yosh Nijman, 30, is a capable swing tackle who spent the past two seasons with the Panthers.