It may be a necessary evil, but I hate preseason football nevertheless.

Players get injured. The on-field execution is sloppy. And, worst of all, social media becomes unbearable.

That’s right, folks. We’re halfway through our slog and, depending on whether you ask the live football doomsday cultists or the confirmation bias homers, either the sky is falling or everything will be fixed in the next two weeks. If your coping skills are well-developed, some aspirin and a brief hiatus from social media should suffice. But, if you’re less well-adjusted, you’ll likely spend your free time arguing with strangers on the internet and penning a defense of Taylor Decker, who actually had a solid game against the Giants, so shut up, you jerk.

Now, the Lions franchise left tackle certainly didn’t have a perfect game. He could have done a better job of generating a vertical displacement in the run game, and he did have a rep on which he overset and yielded a hurry to New York’s third-round pass rusher, Lorenzo Carter.

But, Decker was wrongly scapegoated for two sacks and was widely maligned for performing poorly. Fans watching the game criticized his ability to anchor, citing the frequency at which he found himself deep in Detroit’s backfield on passing plays.

So, we’ll take to the film and revisit a few plays that looked worse during live viewings than they really were.

The Oliver Vernon sack

We’ll start with Olivier Vernon’s second-quarter sack, and it’s important that we evaluate offensive linemen – all players really – with an emphasis on context.

On this 2nd & 9, the Lions attempt to execute a quick passing concept with quarterback Matthew Stafford taking a three-step drop from under center. After examining the depth of the routes and how they synchronize with the footwork of the quarterback, it appears reasonable to assume that Stafford is supposed to execute a ‘hit and throw,’ meaning he should deliver the ball once he plants his back foot on the final step of his drop. Therefore, the offensive line should not have to protect for as long as they would on a play that required a five- or seven-step drop.

Vernon is lined up as a seven-technique, which means he is slightly wider than normal and no part of him is shading Decker. To the inside of him is Damon Harrison, who is aligned in a one-technique (shading the center). And to Harrison’s left (offense’s right) is the three-technique, Dalvin Tomlinson. This makes Harrison the closest to Stafford, meaning he has the best chance of disrupting the play.

So, upon the snap, Frank Ragnow will set and make sure that Harrison doesn’t bullrush Graham Glasgow back into Stafford. Simultaneously, Decker will execute something called a jump set, which means he will set out virtually parallel to the line of scrimmage in an attempt to engage Vernon more quickly.

The jump set is a more aggressive technique that requires tackles to gain control early in the rep. On most plays, Decker employs what’s called a vertical set – more on that in a minute – but in this instance, he calls upon the jump set because he only needs to make sure Vernon doesn’t win quickly.

It wasn’t pretty, but it forces Vernon to slow down and redirect his momentum inside, where Decker should have assistance. But, Ragnow is late to help off Harrison, and the rookie guard finds himself forced to engage from a compromised position. Even now, Vernon is still a few yards away and Stafford is already loading up to deliver the ball. But, something happens, and the franchise signal caller clutches the ball and resets.

Suddenly, what shouldn’t have been a problem, becomes a problem. You know the rest. Sack. Loss of seven yards. 3rd & 16. Run play to give the punter some breathing room in the shadow of his own end zone. Kick it away.

Decker’s vertical pass set

Now we’ll circle back to Decker’s aforementioned signature pass set. The vertical pass set is a less common, deeper-setting technique most effectively employed by more athletic tackles.

It requires superior balance, coordination, and agility because 1) the player must move almost straight backward, quickly, and 2) the player will be moving through space for a longer period before ultimately engaging their opponent. There are several benefits of this technique, but the main one is that it allows the tackle to gain depth more quickly. The kicker is that it puts them closer to the man they’re trying to protect, so the ability to anchor quickly is paramount.

Last year, Decker rushed back from injury and his once-effective vertical set was wonky. He was clearly out of practice, his footwork was inefficient, and it compromised his ability to anchor. Pass rushers using speed-to-power frequently drove him back into the quarterback and he saw a dip in his effectiveness from his rookie year.

Against the Giants, however, he was explosive out of his stance, demonstrated smooth footwork in his vertical sets, and anchored quickly, which should come as good news to Lions fans.

Interior OL jump sets

But, a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. According to Brandon Thorn of USA Football, teams that use vertical-setting tackles are trying to create tall, narrow pockets for their passer to step up into (as opposed to shorter, wider pockets). What this means is that it’s crucial that interior offensive line players preserve depth.

That’s why Bob Quinn spent a first-round pick on Ragnow, who didn’t allow a sack in three years against SEC play. It’s why he signed TJ Lang, an elite jump-setter who uses his hands very well and cat-quick out of his stance. So, if Lang is on the bench while Ragnow is calibrating to NFL competition and the rest of the interior unit is otherwise struggling, Decker is going to look bad, even when he’s doing his job.

Take, for example, this first quarter sack by Kerry Wynn. Wynn is lined up as a three-tech over Kenny Wiggins, who started in place of TJ Lang. Wiggins quickly concedes a bull rush to the fifth-year end, and a tall, narrow pocket becomes a short, narrow pocket. So, when nothing develops downfield and Stafford has to hold onto the ball, there’s no space for him to step into. And when there’s no space for him to step into, he has to stand stationary, and the vertical setters eventually find their way home.

Quarterback play

The only thing worse than interior pressure is an incompetent third-string quarterback who locks onto his first read and then shuffles towards pass rushers instead of stepping up into the pocket. Which is exactly what happened on a Lorenzo Carter blindside sack, although it was ultimately negated by penalty.

I am not legally allowed to show you the video, not because of copyright laws or any dumb rules that Lions Wire editor Jeff Risdon believes in, but because Jake Rudock attempting to play football is considered graphic content, and we’re a wholesome, family-friendly media site.

Bottom line

As for Decker, the third-year tackle looks healthy and appears to be poised for a comeback campaign. There are still things that he and the rest of the team need to improve, but, at this stage, he looks much closer to rookie Decker than rushed-back-from-shoulder-injury Decker. Don’t let the timeline tell you otherwise.