Detroit Lions linemen Mason Miller (63) Tate Ratledge (69) Kingsley Eguakun (65) and Miles Frazier (71) on the first day of practice for Detroit Lions rookies at the Detroit Lions Allen Park training facility on Friday,
The Detroit Lions are coming off a 15-win season and second straight first-place finish in the NFC North.
Even so, roster turnover hits every team and the Lions have some spots that needed to be plugged in with free agents and with their newly acquired rookies out of the NFL Draft.
One of Detroit’s rookies has garnered plenty of interest after getting his name called in the second round of April’s draft — guard Tate Ratledge.
A two-time national champion and 2024 First-team All-American at Georgia, Ratledge may be in line to be one of the most impactful rookies in the NFL.
A recent ESPN article put the No. 57 overall pick at No. 8 among offensive rookies drafted after the first round who could make the biggest contributions in year one.
“Lions GM Brad Holmes has made it a point to target reliable and extremely tough players in the draft. That describes Ratledge well,” ESPN draft analyst Field Yates said in the article. “He allowed only one sack in each of the past two seasons at Georgia and exudes toughness on tape.”
The key to Ratledge getting early opportunities to shine also comes with how thin right guard is looking for the Lions since veteran Kevin Zeitler departed for the Tennessee Titans in the offseason.
MLive’s projected depth chart for the Lions coming out of the NFL Draft includes Ratledge as a starter — as does ESPN’s — and he’s the only Detroit rookie currently projected as a starter.
First-round pick Tyleik Williams is expected to have an important role in the Lions’ D-line rotation but likely won’t begin the year as a full-time starter in a talented and experienced room.
Ratledge will have plenty to prove before he gets penciled in as a starter for the season-opener in September.
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The Lions are cross-training him at center, a key part of having versatile linemen in offensive line coach and run game coordinator Hank Fraley’s room.
They also traded up to take Ratledge off the board, so there’s clearly a lot of confidence in the kind of contributor he could be for the Lions.
There’s a growing belief that could be fairly soon.
“He plays the game the right way. He’s tough. He’s physical. He’s a lot more athletic than you may think and he’s got a lot more versatility than people may realize,” Holmes said in April. “That’s really when he rose through the process for us.”
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