Breaking down a potential Detroit Lions draft target at guard/center for each round of the 2025 NFL Draft
The one open starting spot on the Detroit Lions offense comes up front, after right guard Kevin Zeitler opted to leave for the Tennessee Titans in free agency. Depth was already something of an issue on the interior offensive line, making guard/center the biggest immediate need for new offensive coordinator John Morton and his staff to fill.
Fortunately, it’s a very good draft year to need help on the interior offensive line.
Wide receivers
EDGEs
Offensive tackles
Safeties
Defensive tackles
The Lions aren’t going to draft an interior offensive lineman in each round, of course. The goal here is to show which types of talents are fits for the Lions in each round of the draft to help identify talents, and also the relative value that projects to be available for Detroit in those rounds. As an example, here’s last year’s CB for every round that pegged Ennis Rakestraw as the second-round pick.
Detroit doesn’t currently have a pick in the fifth round, but trades happen all the time, so it’s included here. Prospects for the first three rounds here are skewed toward where the Lions will currently select in each round: No. 28, 60 and 102 overall, respectively. The approximate draft round projections are as of April 14th.
State of the position
The Lions have to replace right guard Zeitler after one year. Last season’s sixth-round rookie, Christian Mahogany, sure looked like the long-term solution in his late-season audition.
Left guard Graham Glasgow returns, but this is a spot where the Lions can get better. Glasgow was PFF’s lowest-graded offensive lineman over the final six weeks of the season, and the eye test validated his brutal score. He turns 33 this summer and the Lions have a fairly easy out on his contract after 2025, so a long-term replacement is in dire need here, even if Glasgow rebounds for a better upcoming season (and he can!)
Center is set with All-Pro Frank Ragnow, who admitted after the season that he’s healthier than he’s felt in some time. The 28-year-old has battled through injuries but remains locked in as the leader of the line and is under contract through 2026. Glasgow is his primary backup, which is (again) the role for which the veteran is best-suited at this juncture.
The rest of the depth is up for grabs. Kayode Awosika returns and has proven a capable run blocker in spot duty, though it’s probably telling that a player with his experience couldn’t even get league-minimum contract offers elsewhere this offseason. Enigmatic Giovanni Manu, whom the Lions used this year’s third-round pick to obtain in the 2024 NFL Draft, is very tall for a guard ― aside from being a complete football greenhorn. Still, coach Dan Campbell did leave open the potential for Manu to play inside. Colby Sorsdal flamed out quickly in his move from tackle to guard, too. Veteran Netane Muti was pushing Glasgow in training camp last summer before suffering yet another major injury (shoulder), something that has dogged the 26-year-old throughout his football career. If healthy, Muti is an ideal No. 3 guard. Big “if”…
Kingsley Eguakun, an undrafted rookie in 2024, can challenge for the backup center role, as can Michael Niese, who returns for a second season. In total, the depth could be worse, but it also can be upgraded for 2025 and beyond in this draft.
First round: Donovan Jackson, Ohio State
He might be an even better prospect at tackle after his starring turn at left tackle in Ohio State’s title run, but Jackson is generally regarded as an NFL guard. Jackson is the rare case of a five-star recruit who also qualifies as a collegiate late-bloomer, taking a big jump in his technical skills and play strength in 2024.
What I like:
- 3-year starter in a pro-style offense that uses similar blocking schemes to the Lions
- Ideal build for a guard at 6-foot-4 and 315 pounds with strong arms and big hands
- Sustains blocks at an elite level
- Good puller with power and vision
- Excellent anchor strength at both guard and tackle
- Quick to engage on double-teams and keep his eyes and feet ready to move off and help
- Fast initial punch that improved in hand placement in ’24
- Adapted quickly to pass protection duties at left tackle (2 sacks in debut vs. Penn State and then didn’t allow a QB hit in the next eight games)
- Flagged for two penalties in his final 2,000 snaps
- 4-time Academic All-Big Ten
Negatives:
- Hands are still growing consistency and will get too wide at times
- Not always sudden off the snap
- Will get too far over his skis in second-level blocks and lose leverage
- Struggled with foot frequency earlier in his Buckeyes tenure
Second round: Tate Ratlege, Georgia
Ratlege brought the intensity as a three-year starter at right guard for Georgia. He’s a taller prospect at 6-foot-6 but doesn’t lose the leverage battle often.
What I like:
- Very good short-area athlete with quick feet and excellent balance
- Plays with good pad level in pass protection
- Impressive core strength and recovery quickness
- Plays like he wants to punish his opponent on every snap
- Explodes off the snap and can move folks in the run game
- Decent recovery athleticism if beaten initially
- Can get to the second level and engage with control
Negatives:
- Guilty of playing with blinders on at times (Notre Dame and final Texas games stand out here)
- Has natural bend but can be slow to uncoil and move laterally
- Second-act hand moves are sluggish and often too high
- Had Tightrope surgery in 2024 for a left high ankle sprain; missed the 2021 season with a foot injury suffered on the 4th play of the year
- Has only ever played right guard and doesn’t appear to offer ability at center or tackle
Third round: Charles Grant, William & Mary
Grant comes from the same FCS program as Colby Sorsdal, starting at left tackle while Sorsdal was on the right side for two seasons together. Grant offers more at guard in the NFL but could stick at tackle in the right situation. He’s more of a developmental player than a plug-and-play asset in his rookie season.
What I like:
- Giant wingspan (over 81 inches) and great length
- Textbook balance and bend in pass protection
- Decent mirror quickness to his outside shoulder
- Wrestling background shows in tight quarters
- Good range in the run game
- Can sink his hips and drive his feet impressively in the run game
Negatives:
- Still growing into his bulk; gained over 60 pounds in college and could continue to add more
- Slow reload on his punch
- Didn’t face high-level competition and the gap showed during Senior Bowl week
- Impatient in pass protection and will move himself out of good position
- Needs polish in his hand placement and positional discipline at either tackle or guard
Fourth round: Seth McLaughlin, Ohio State
McLaughlin would almost certainly have been a top-75 pick, and perhaps the top true center in the draft, if not for an Achilles injury suffered in practice in November. He still won the Rimington Award as the best center in college football despite missing Ohio State’s final six games.
What I like:
- Three-year starter in two high-level programs (played 4 years at Alabama before transferring to Ohio State)
- Compact frame for a guy who measures 6-4 and 304; doesn’t look that big in person
- Exceptional at pre-snap recognition and setting up the blocking
- Very good hand placement and reactionary quickness to stymie pass rush counters
- Strong anchor strength with fast foot resets
- Gets out into the second level quickly and under control
- Has some snarl to his game
- Graduated from Alabama with a 4.0 GPA
Negatives:
- Will miss at least the start of his rookie season as he recovers from Achilles surgery
- Has only ever played center and might not have the size to play guard
- Short-armed (31 inches) and it shows in his second-level block engagement
- Had a penalty issue at Alabama (10 in two years)
Fifth round: Luke Kandra, Cincinnati
Kandra got better every year in college, following his head coach in moving from Louisville to Cincinnati for the last two seasons. He’s a player our Russell Brown profiled earlier this offseason. Lions fans who liked one-time fourth-rounder Logan Stenberg but didn’t like his penalty-heavy style should find Kandra quite appealing.
What I like:
- Very much looks the part of an NFL guard at 6-foot-4 and 315 with a powerful frame
- Impressive shoulder strength and core strength
- At his best in gap/duo concepts like the Lions favor in the run game
- Very fast hands and quick reactions throughout the upper body
- Oddly good catch-blocker in pass protection
- Guilty of one enforced penalty in college
- Plays through the last whisper of every whistle
Negatives:
- The athletic quickness in his upper body stops at his hips
- Doesn’t have functional range beyond about two steps in any direction
- Slow recovery footwork
- Turns 24 in August and might have maxed out athletically already
Sixth round: Luke Newman, Michigan State
A three-year starter at left tackle for Holy Cross, Newman played one season at Michigan State as a grad transfer and kicked inside to left guard. He was quietly one of the best all-around guards in the country.
What I like:
- Played almost 3,000 snaps of college football between Holy Cross and MSU
- Explosive athlete with quick feet and twitchy build
- Strong upper-body and grip strength
- Brings consistent power on gap run assignments
- Played some center during Shrine Bowl week and took to it very quickly
- Squares up bull rushes nicely
- Excels at selling play-action fakes
Negatives:
- Lateral range is average at best and sacrifices power when reaching to the side
- Will drop his head when engaged at times
- Short arms (31 inches) and doesn’t always hit full extension in run blocks
- Projects better at center than guard even though he’s never played center in a game; learning curve
Seventh round: Addison West, Western Michigan
Undersized and underexposed while playing in the MAC, West earned first-team All-American status as a senior, allowing just two QB pressures and zero sacks the entire season. Despite that, West was a combine snub.
What I like
- Played in a very Lions-familiar blocking scheme as a 3-year starter
- Statistically the best guard in the country in pass protection in 2024 per PFF
- Experience playing all three interior OL positions, though mostly at RG
- Finishes his blocks well
- Very good at getting to second-level targets
- Wins with quick hands/feet and very impressive reactionary quickness
Negatives:
- On the smaller side at 6-2/300 and his frame is maxed out
- Will turn 25 as a rookie
- Anchor strength is below-average
- More of a crease opener than a people-mover in the run game
- Battled penalties prior to 2024 (had 17 combined in 2022-23)