Detroit Lions Midseason Grades: Interior Offensive Line Report Card

Sep 15, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) throws the ball as offensive guard Larry Warford (75) defends against Arizona Cardinals defensive end Darnell Dockett (90) during the first half at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

The Detroit Lions have reached the midpoint of their season, which also happens to be their bye week.

That’s advantageous timing for the Lions, who need an opportunity to get healthy and regroup for a second-half playoff push, but the 14-day stretch between the eighth and ninth games of the season is also perfect time to do some looking back and evaluating of the season’s first half.

So to help make up for a cold two weeks without Lions football, SideLion Report is going to be grading every player currently on the Lions’ 53-man roster (and also coaches) based on their first-half performance.

Each player will be graded on an A-F scale in four areas: Production (raw stats), Impact (game-changing plays/clutch performances), Vs. Expectations (how big is their impact compared to preseason expectations), and Overall (not necessarily a composite of the other three grades).

This series will run for a week, covering one or two position groupings each day (each in a separate piece), on the following schedule:

Tuesday, October 29 – Guards/Centers & Linebackers

Wednesday, October 30 – Offensive Tackles & Cornerbacks

Thursday, October 31 – Tight Ends & Safeties

Friday, November 1 – Running Backs & Defensive Tackles

Saturday, November 2 – Special Teams

Sunday, November 3 – Coaches

Monday, November 4 – Wide Receivers & Defensive Ends

Tuesday, November 5 – Quarterbacks & Overall Grades

So, everybody got that? Ready to go? Okay, great. We’ll start with the most underappreciated guys on the field: guards and centers.