ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- He wasn't the most indispensable player the Detroit Lions had, that's quarterback Matthew Stafford. But the man protecting Stafford's left side -- the side he can't see -- is up there, too. That's Taylor Decker, the left tackle the Lions lost for an undetermined amount of time after shoulder surgery Monday.
To say it's a loss would be softening the impact Decker's injury could have on the Lions. After Stafford, the list of most important players to have healthy for Detroit's success in 2017 could be grouped together as Ezekiel Ansah, Ameer Abdullah, Glover Quin, Darius Slay and Decker.
Decker had a strong rookie season, playing every snap at left tackle. He was a stabilizing player, one Stafford could rely on to give him time to make the critical throw. His immediate emergence allowed the Lions to move Riley Reiff to right tackle and then feel comfortable enough to let him leave town because Decker was -- and still is -- the team's future at left tackle.
It leaves the Lions with two starting offensive linemen -- Decker and right guard T.J. Lang (hip) -- coming off injuries that will keep them out all or part of the practices heading into training camp. That'll hurt the Lions, as reps together and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the guy playing next to you is so critical for offensive linemen. It's part of why the Lions revamped their offensive line over the past two years. A combination of injuries and age had kept the Lions rotating linemen at various positions. That was part of why Stafford ended up sacked so many times and Detroit's backs had little room to run.
It's better for Detroit that Decker's injury happened now versus two months from now, but it still puts left tackle in a murky position.
On Tuesday, the Lions used a combination of Joe Dahl and Cornelius Lucas at left tackle. Dahl played 20 NFL snaps last year, but none at left tackle and he's still learning the NFL game after having to scrap almost everything he did during his career at Washington State. Lucas has some experience at the position -- he filled in the one game Reiff missed in 2014 -- and that was his natural position in college at Kansas State. But he's still a question mark. Corey Robinson, who will end up in the competition if it appears Decker is going to miss regular-season time, has his own injury issues and hasn't participated in any open OTA.
"Lucas has played a bunch for us," Lions offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter said. "We're comfortable with him. It's that time of year, everybody's going to get a ton of reps and look forward to finding out what we have."
But Lucas is not the definitive starter now. He and Dahl split reps in the OTA practice and that will be a battle that will continue throughout training camp once pads come on.
There's also a chance -- something Lions coach Jim Caldwell didn't rule out --of the Lions looking outside to try and fill the void. The options at this point, though, aren't obvious.
Ryan Clady is a good talent, but shoulder and knee injuries have limited him two of the past three seasons. King Dunlap was a starter for the Chargers last season, but has his own injury issues after playing in 19 of 32 games over the past two years. He was also arrested in February for violating a protective order -- a case that was later dismissed according to WKRN. Will Beatty dealt with shoulder and pectoral injuries in 2015 and then barely played for the Giants in 2016.
Nick Becton isn't an upgrade from Lucas after playing only six games in three seasons --starting none. Sebastian Vollmer retired last month. Garrett Reynolds, who has familiarity with Detroit's system and, like Dahl, can play multiple positions, is not a true left tackle.
The Lions have already made some inquiries here, as Cyrus Kouandjio tweeted Tuesday night he was headed to Detroit for a visit.
So it's a situation for the Lions where the franchise has to weigh the internal options versus free-agent players -- and what they hope Decker's unannounced timeline might be -- and then figure out how to try and adequately replace one of the most important players on their roster.
