Lions Bring in Saints guard Tim Lelito for Visit

Lions continue to look for depth along offensive line.

Bob Quinn has brought in yet another offensive lineman to the Lions’ revamped offensive line. Tim Lelito, the 27-year-old guard, formerly with the New Orleans Saints, visited Detroit today. Lelito is — similar to T.J. Lang — a Michigan native and played his football locally at Grand Valley State.

In all probability, Lelito is just a good depth signing that is capable of starting if needed. He started 24 games for New Orleans over the past four seasons. Laken Tomlinson hasn’t been very productive during his first two seasons since being the team’s 2015 1st-round pick. It could be more of a schematic issue with Tomlinson, as Kent Lee Platte points out below.

Lelito fits into the Lions’ trend of drafting highly-athletic offensive linemen. Quinn certainly likes players that are versatile, evidenced by last year’s third-round pick, Graham Glasgow, who played games at both center and guard.

Glasgow’s versatility was extremely valuable down the stretch when the team lost center Travis Swanson to a concussion, just as Glasgow was settling in at left guard. The Lions also grabbed Joe Dahl in the draft last season, another athletic, flexible lineman that can be an asset for depth.

Lelito’s visit could be a sign the team is looking to move on from Tomlinson, or at least have depth if they do pull off some kind of trade. One thing is for certain, they are keeping their options open.

Check out Lions Draft Profiles: LB- T.J. Watt, DE – Derek Barnett, DL- Malik McDowell and OT – Cam Robinson. Plus, Like SLR on Facebook and follow Matt on Twitter @MattUrben88