2021 NFL Team Draft Page

The Lions are going to need to sell a lot of fan cutouts this season in order to pay for the six-year, $85 million extension to LT Taylor Decker. In a move that signifies the team's value it places on Decker and the need for stability at the position, Decker is being considered a cornerstone piece for the "foundation" of the roster, or so Matt Patricia put it.

In fact, Patricia stated that this move was part of the re-signings the team is looking to finalize in the near future. Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, Duron Harmon, and Frank Ragnow are just a few of the other names Detroit may look to extend, further painting a picture of which players they look to build around.

Prior to the Decker extension, offensive line still could have been debated as a position of need for Detroit. The loss of Graham Glasgow this past offseason most definitely was felt as Detroit attempted at bandaging up the offensive line. Additions of Jonah Jackson and Logan Sternberg via the draft gave the line some youth and potential building blocks for the future. The signing of Halapoulivaati Vatai also gave the line some additional veteran presence.

With Decker being considered a mainstay, Leatherwood may come off our board for Detroit in future mocks. However, close eyes will be placed on the right side of the O-Line to determine if O-Line, yet again, needs to be a focus in next year's draft.

- Doug Hyde, Lions Analyst