Jonah Jackson is not in. Kevin Zeitler is in. The veteran interior offensive lineman was allegedly signed by the Detroit Lions to a one-year contract on Monday night. Pro Football Focus reports that Zeitler has played 12,035 of his 12,041 career NFL snaps at right guard. The Cincinnati Bengals drafted Zeitler in the first round of the 2012 draft.
The 34-year-old most recently played for the Baltimore Ravens. He played three seasons as a blocking back for two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson, making his Pro Bowl debut in 2023. By all accounts, Zeitler was a free agency gold mine for Detroit general manager Brad Holmes. With his depth of expertise at the position, I’ll argue that he gives the Lions a high-level temporary fix at one of the guard spots, most likely right guard. I anticipate fellow seasoned lineman Graham Glasgow, who was recently re-signed by Detroit, to join me on the journey.By all accounts, Zeitler was a free agency gold mine for Detroit general manager Brad Holmes. With his depth of expertise at the position, I’ll argue that he gives the Lions a high-level temporary fix at one of the guard spots, most likely right guard. I anticipate that fellow seasoned lineman Graham Glasgow, who was just re-signed by Detroit, will take Jackson’s place at left guard as a result of the transfer. Now that Zeitler has joined the team, the Lions have a player at every offensive line position who is rated 15th or above by Pro Football Focus. With an overall rating of 71.6, the Baltimore Ravens player was ranked as the 15th best guard in the NFL by PFF in 2023.
