The Detroit Lions have faced two strong defenses to start the season, and their offensive line has exceeded expectations. Let’s take a closer look at how they’ve performed, by using game observations and stats provided to Lions Wire by Pro Football Focus (PFF) analyst Brett Whitefield.

RT Rick Wagner

When Rick Wagner signed with the Lions, he became the highest-paid right tackle in the NFL. So far, he is proving worth the investment.

Wagner has had two very difficult assignments to start the season, facing off against Cardinals’ Chandler Jones and the Giants’ Jason Pierre-Paul. Per Whitefield, Wagner earned an 85.1 overall grade in week one and 76.1 in week two, bringing his overall grade on the season to 83.5, good for the fifth-highest offensive tackle grade in the NFL.

Pierre-Paul is one of the best edge rushers in the league; Wagner only allowed him to generate two pressures on “Monday Night Football,” per Whitefield. With this kind of consistent performance, Matthew Stafford can feel comfortable dropping back knowing he won’t feel the heat from his right side.

When left tackle Taylor Decker went down with a shoulder injury in mini-camp, there were a lot of concerns surrounding the offensive line, but Wagner has stepped up his game, taken on big responsibilities and proven to be a reliable cog in this rebuilt unit.

RG T.J. Lang

The signing of Pro Bowl guard T.J. Lang was the Lions’ best move of the offseason. His leadership, confidence and on-field performance is exactly what a young Lions’ offensive line needs to take their game to the next level.

According to Whitefield, “T.J. Lang continued his strong start in a Lions uniform and was effective as both a run blocker (82.1 run block grade) and in pass pro (80.5 pass block grade).” This brings Lang’s overall PFF grade for the season to 82.5, good enough to hold the tenth spot for all NFL guards.

On 30 pass blocking snaps, Whitefield points out, Lang only allowed one pressure. Lang had one penalty, a questionable holding call on a screen pass in the second half, but it’s worth noting PFF did not hold that play against him. It’s nice to see this recognition of a poorly officiated penalty call not applied to Lang’s grade.

C Travis Swanson

Against the Giants, Travis Swanson found himself matched up with Damon “Snacks” Harrison, one of the best nose tackles in the league. At the completion of the game, Swanson finished with a respectable 71.3 grade (per Whitefield).

Swanson performed admirably in pass protection, receiving an 81.4 grade, and while his run blocking grade of 60.3 was lower than desired, it shouldn’t be surprising as Harrison is an elite run stopper.

Swanson has been tested early in the season and so far he is holding his own. The Lions are a pass first team and Swanson is grading out very well there, but as the Lions continue to try to establish the run game, Swanson will need to improve.

LG Graham Glasgow

No Lions offensive lineman made as big of a leap from week one to week two as did Graham Glasgow, scoring an overall grade of 81.7, per Whitefield.

Not only did Glasgow have a strong showing on passing plays, he also showed marked improvement in his run blocking. His pulling cut-block on linebacker Jonathan Casillas in the first half was the difference between a run for a loss and the 24-yard gain that Ameer Abdullah was able to achieve.

With only 13 NFL starts, it’s still very early in Glasgow’s career. But after this week performance against a strong Giants defense, his arrow is pointing up. With cohesion such an important part of offensive line play, if Glasgow continues to improve his consistency, the entire unit will see an uptick in their overall results.

LT Greg Robinson

Greg Robinson had a difficult Week 2 against Olivier Vernon, which is why he ended up being one of the Duds in my “Studs and Duds from the Lions’ victory over the Giants” post-game article.

Per Whitefield, Robinson accounted for three penalties as well as allowing five pressures. He ended up with a grade of 34.2, which was the lowest of any Lion in week two. His 34.8 overall score the season ranks him near the bottom of the starting offensive tackles in the NFL.

But there was some optimism to be found in the second half of game against the Giants: Robinson’s mistakes were dramatically reduced.

This improvement in play can be attributed to a shifting of gears in the second half, opting for a run-heavy scheme, and playing to Robinson’s strengths. This change in game plan was implemented because the Lions’ had a two-score lead and running the ball allowed them to control the clock.

Make no mistake, the Lions will need Robinson’s pass protection to improve; they may consider keeping tight end Darren Fells next to him on passing plays. But it is encouraging that when the Lions want to establish the run, they know Robinson can get the job done.

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