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Detroit Lions all-time offensive line in ‘Tecmo Bowl’ era

By James F. Puzzuoli

LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 20: Kevin Glover #53 of the Detroit Lions battles against Lionel Washington #48 of the Los Angeles Raiders during a game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on September 20, 1987 in Los Angeles, California. The Raiders won 27-7 (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 20: Kevin Glover #53 of the Detroit Lions battles against Lionel Washington #48 of the Los Angeles Raiders during a game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on September 20, 1987 in Los Angeles, California. The Raiders won 27-7 (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images /

THE FINAL GUY

The last guy for the ‘Tecmo’ team is guard T.J. Lang. Like Warford, Lang made the Pro Bowl last season, so the Lions lost one Pro Bowler but replaced him with another. Lang has a bit more tread on the tires as he enters year 10, while Warford enters year six.

Lang only played in 13 games last season, which was his first in Detroit. But if he can give the Detroit Lions a few more semi-complete years, he should be an impact player for the current O-line.

Lang just is one of those guys that plays the position with the right amount of toughness and savvy. Yes, the sample size is small, but he has already played at a high level.

FINAL THOUGHTS

There has been a long period of not acquiring Pro Bowl offensive lineman in Detroit. That period starts nicely with the Millen era and was only broken recently by Bob Quinn. Of course, he gave up a Pro Bowler to do it.

In five years, it would be nice to say that left tackle Taylor Decker has earned a spot on this all-time team. He certainly has the size and has shown flashes in his first two years, despite losing half of 2017 to an injury. We shall see.

That single playoff win in 1991 happens to coincide with having two of Detroit’s best lineman in Glover and Brown. The years that they (and yes Barry Sanders) were here are the only ones when Detroit was a true threat in the playoffs.

Next. Detroit Lions all-time wide receivers in the ‘Tecmo Bowl’ era. dark

The current focus on reloading the O-line with talent by the current regime is refreshing. This is a major part of getting any kind of running game started, and it is always nice to keep quarterback Matthew Stafford upright. It is key to any kind of future success.

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