For the first time since being fully assembled with the addition of Penei Sewell, the Detroit Lions had all five of their projected offensive line starters together for a game (or even a single snap) in Week 1. Kyle Meinke of MLive observed left tackle Taylor Decker leaving the locker room after the game in a walking boot, and head coach Dan Campbell addressed his ankle injury the day after the game.
"Deck’s a tough SOB, man. To watch him battle out there, it was impressive. We’ll know a lot more in a few days, but I’m encouraged because I know, there again, he finished out that game.""Dan Campbell
Tuesday is typically the players' day off in a normal week for NFL teams. But coming off a Thursday night game, the Lions returned to work on Tuesday. How heavy a practice it was can surely be debated, but Decker was the only player not spotted on the field.
LT Taylor Decker (ankle) not practicing for Detroit today. I saw him head for the bus in a walking boot in KC. Matt Nelson is the backup.
— kyle meinke (@kmeinke) September 12, 2023
Pretty good attendance at the Lions' first day of practice for the Seahawks. Only Taylor Decker (ankle) is absent.
— Justin Rogers (@Justin_Rogers) September 12, 2023
Detroit Lions injury report: Could Taylor Decker miss Week 2 vs. the Seahawks?
For the first of what is lined up to be four practices this week, Decker's absence should be overreacted to. If this were Thursday, then there'd be some well-warranted concern. Keep in mind Decker once played a game with appendicitis, and he played most of the game against the Chiefs with this ankle injury (and played well, allowing just two pressures). A rest day for him whenever the Lions were back at practice this week was likely, and it happened.
But if Decker were to miss Sunday's game against the Seattle Seahawks, what would replacing him look like?
When Decker missed the first eight games of the 2021 season, Sewell moved over to left tackle while Matt Nelson stepped in to start at right tackle. Nelson could just step in at left tackle for Decker, but that's a bad idea because he's barely roster-worthy-let alone starting-caliber. Another option is to shift Halapoulivaati Vaitai out to right tackle, where he started his Lions' career, and install Graham Glasgow at right guard.
Wednesday's post-practice injury report will be more telling about Decker's status as this week goes on. He surely would not necessarily have to practice at all to play on Sunday, but being held out completely all week would be a red flag.