The Detroit Lions are dealing with some déjà vu.
After spending the offseason pumping up the potential of the team’s offensive line, Detroit lost one of its starting five to an injury suffered somewhere between the preseason finale and regular-season opener for a second consecutive year.
On Monday, the team placed right guard Halapoulivaati on injured reserve, meaning he’ll miss at least the first four games. And from the way Dan Campbell talked about the situation during a Tuesday morning interview with 97.1 The Ticket, it could be considerably longer.
“It hurts to lose Big V, man,” Campbell said. “He was a big part of what we did and he was a great team guy. He’ll still be in the building, but that’s life in the NFL, and we move on.”
Despite the frustration, Campbell is putting on a brave face in light of the news. Referencing both his coaching emphasis on being able to overcome adversity, as well as the offensive line’s performance in 2021 after losing Taylor Decker and Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow for significant stretches, Campbell is expecting the group to deliver once again.
“Yeah, it’s frustrating, but by the same token, man, this is what we preach about all the time with our team: Nobody’s going to handle adversity better than us,” Campbell said. “We went through so much last year and we adapted and our guys were ready to go and it was next man up. Man, this is nothing for us. We’ll overcome this; we’ll be fine.”
Campbell highlighted a number of options the Lions have to replace Vaitai, including the seemingly more unrealistic possibilities of moving Ragnow or second-year right tackle Penei Sewell to guard.
Here are the three most-likely options:
► Insert Tommy Kraemer in Vaitai’s spot
No one should be putting much stock in the team’s unofficial depth chart. That said, they’ve got Kraemer filling the Vaitai-shaped void ahead of Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles for good reason.
An undrafted rookie out of Notre Dame last season, Kraemer started three games for the Lions in 2021, including two at right guard. And while he allowed a little more pressure than you’d like to see from an interior spot (six hurries, two hits, no sacks), he more than held his own, given his lack of experience.
To further make his case, he looks much improved coming into his second year. He only appeared in two preseason games, but in 114 snaps, he more consistently opened run lanes and didn’t allow a single QB pressure.
► Shift Jonah Jackson to right guard and start Logan Stenberg
The versatile Jackson began his career at right guard, but was shifted to the left side a couple of games in. He’s made that spot home, earning Pro Bowl honors in his second season last year.
But Kraemer wasn’t Detroit’s only interior depth option who had a strong preseason. Logan Stenberg, a fourth-round draft pick in 2020, logged an offense-high 167 snaps and showcased his nasty demeanor as a run blocker while allowing only three quarterback pressures on 109 pass plays.
The downside is Stenberg has less positional flexibility when compared to Kraemer. Stenberg played left guard exclusively during the preseason, just as he did as a four-year starter at the University of Kentucky.
Moving Jackson wouldn’t be an issue for the player, but could further disrupt the chemistry of the unit, given the familiarity Decker and Ragnow have established practicing and playing alongside Jackson on the left side the past two years.
► Reward backup center Evan Brown after 2021 performance
While Kraemer held his own in spot-start duty last season, Brown thrived replacing Ragnow after the starting center went down because of a toe injury in the fourth game of the 2021 season.
Brown’s taken just 16 snaps at guard the past two preseasons and hasn’t seen game action on the right side since Week 15 of the 2018 season. Still, it’s difficult to ignore how well he played in Ragnow’s stead last year, particularly as a pass protector, allowing a mere eight pressures (one sack) in more than 450 pass-blocking situations.
The 6-foot-3, 320-pound Brown looks to have bulked up this offseason, which reduces concerns about his ability to hold up in one-on-one situations against defensive tackles he rarely faced when snapping the ball.
Captains named
The Lions named the following six players captains on Tuesday: Ragnow, quarterback Jared Goff, linebackers Alex Anzalone and Josh Woods, safety Tracy Walker and defensive lineman Michael Brockers.
Goff, Ragnow and Anzalone were also captains for the team in 2021.
jdrogers@detroitnes.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers