It took until Day 2 of training camp for the Detroit Lions to receive its first, and hopefully only, long-term injury development.
In his morning presser on Thursday, head coach Dan Campbell announced that offensive lineman Giovanni Manu will miss an estimated 12-14 weeks with an undisclosed injury. The announcement comes one day after he was placed on the active/non-football injury (NFI) list.
This latest setback for Manu comes after he missed most of last season with a knee injury, playing four games and starting one in place of tackle Taylor Decker.
Manu's injury depletes an already thin depth chart at left tackle behind Penei Sewell. Given his role as the backup LT last season, Manu was expected to be the favorite for the job entering training camp. Instead, it's beginning to look like it'll be Larry Borom's job to lose unless the team dives into the free agency pool, where Decker still remains.
Free agent signee Larry Borom does have experience across the O-line, including LT, but has primarily been at RT throughout his five-year career. Borom was expected to be the veteran safety net for rookie RT Blake Miller. However, per Al Karsten of Pride of Detroit, Borom was getting reps with the second-team unit at LT, signifying a possible shift over the left in the wake of Manu's injury.
Another possibility would be Devin Cochran, who has been a member of the Lions' practice squad since signing with the team on September 9th of last year. Like Manu, Cochran has one career start to his name, back in 2024 with the Cincinnati Bengals. Cochran did play RT in college, so it's possible he could be the one backing up Miller this season, who now figures to have the starting RT job locked up.
Manu's injury impacts the competition at guard as well
The ripple effect of Manu's injury extends beyond both OT positions. During OTAs, Manu was also receiving reps at guard. At the time, Campbell said, "Let's experiment a little bit," adding that the experiment "actually kind of worked out good" so far.
At left guard, Christian Mahogany is by no means a lock for the job. Given that uncertainty, it never hurt to shore up the depth, there, as well as behind second-year Tate Ratledge over at right guard.
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The Lions did add two veterans at guard this offseason. First being Juice Scruggs, who was acquired from the Houston Texans in the David Montgomery trade. The other being Ben Bartch, who the Lions signed in late-March. Both Scruggs and Bartch saw play last season, with Scruggs playing all 17 games and starting once, while Bartch played six games, starting twice, for the San Francisco 49ers.
The Lions also have second-year Miles Frazier, who was limited most of last season with a knee injury. Now healthy, Frazier is fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster. Frazier bounced around the O-line in college, but spent most of his time at RG, starting 27 of his 54 games at the position. The Lions could see Frazier's eventual niche being behind fellow 2025 pick Ratledge at RG, while the veterans compete to start at LG.
Manu was likely a longshot to start or backup at guard, but much like the competition at tackle, it's one less player in the mix for the time being. Training camp has only just begun, so there's still plenty of time to see where things go from here across the O-line.
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