Brad Holmes Didn’t Just Rebuild the Offensive Line. He Changed What It Does.
Everyone keeps asking the same question about this offensive line. Can it be as good as the group we had in 2024?
Wrong question.
The real question is whether this new group can do things the old one couldn’t. And when you look at the athletic profiles Brad Holmes put together, the answer is absolutely yes. This is not a replacement. This is a complete philosophical shift in what the Detroit Lions want their offensive line to be.
What the Old Line Was Built to Do
The offensive line from 2024 was built around experience, power, and intelligence. Taylor Decker, Graham Glasgow, Frank Ragnow, Kevin Zeitler. These guys knew their jobs. Open holes. Pass block. Form a wall.
They did it well.
But athletically, they were not built to move. Decker tested at a 50.1 athletic composite. Glasgow at 65.8. Zeitler at 47.1. Ragnow was a freak, one of the most athletic centers to ever test, and Penei Sewell has always been special. But as a whole, that group’s composite athletic score sat at 67.1.
That is not a number built for gap schemes, pulling guards, and getting playmakers into space.
What the New Line Is Built to Do
The projected 2026 starting offensive line carries a composite athletic score of 81.9.
That is a jump of 14.8 points. That is not a tweak. That is a complete reorientation of what this unit is supposed to be.
Sewell slides over to left tackle, and we already know what he brings. Christian Mahogany at left guard tested at an 86.0 composite. Cade Mays at center is the one spot where the group sacrifices athleticism, and you have to hope he’s better in pads than he is in testing. Tate Ratledge at right guard posted a 95.8 composite, which is an elite number for a guard. Blake Miller at right tackle was one of the most athletic tackles in the 2026 NFL Draft and one of the most athletic tackles to ever test at the position.
This is not the same kind of offensive line. This is a line built to move.
What Drew Petzing Wants to Do With It
Everyone loves watching Sewell get downfield and flatten defensive backs, running almost as fast as Jahmyr Gibbs and making cornerbacks reconsider their career choices. Now the Lions have multiple linemen who can do that. Miller gets downfield the same way. Ratledge can pull and climb to linebackers. Mahogany can reach block and operate in space.
The scheme implications are significant.
You can pull on counter and power. You climb to linebackers more consistently. You execute reach blocks. You get out in front on screens. You operate in outside zone concepts. You block effectively in space instead of only in tight quarters.
This is not about forming a wall anymore. This is about creating as much space as possible. And when you get Gibbs in space, you have seen what happens. When you get Jameson Williams in space, same thing. These are players who do the most damage when they have room to operate, and offensive coordinator Drew Petzing’s offense is designed to give them exactly that.
What It Means Going Forward
This is one of the more athletic offensive lines in the NFL right now. Holmes did not just replace Decker, Ragnow, Zeitler, and Glasgow with younger players. He replaced them with players who test dramatically better athletically because Detroit needed to become a completely different kind of offensive line.
The goal shifted from let’s form a wall to let’s create space everywhere.
That is a substantial philosophical change, and the roster reflects it. Whether it works the way it looks on paper, we will find out soon enough. But this much is clear: Brad Holmes knew exactly what he was building, and it was not a replica of what came before.
So, is this the kind of offensive line that finally gets this offense over the hump, or are we all just buying into another offseason narrative that falls apart Week 1? Drop your take below.
