Free agent grades: Kevin Zeitler signing makes Detroit Lions offensive line best in NFL

After a few days without a signing, the Detroit Lions are back to making moves. On Monday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Kevin Zeitler would sign with the Lions on a one-year deal on Tuesday with a physical pending. According to The 33rd Team’s Ari Meirov, the deal supposedly has a $6 million base, but no other details have come out yet. Zeitler replaces guard Jonah Jackson, who signed with the Los Angeles Rams, but expect Zeitler to play right guard and Graham Glasgow to move back to left guard.

Last week, the Lions were active in the first week of free agency, and it ended with the signing of defensive tackle DJ Reader. Most Lions fans thought that was the final splash move the team would make, but general manager Brad Holmes was still in the kitchen cooking up some deals and came away reinforcing an already strong offensive line.

Zeitler was a first round of the NFL Draft in the 2012 NFL Draft with the Cincinnati Bengals. After five solid seasons with the Bengals, Zeitler moved on to the Cleveland Browns for two seasons, then did the same stop with the New York Giants, before heading to the Baltimore Ravens for the last three seasons.

Let’s take a look at how Zeitler joining the Lions helps Detroit’s offensive line, changes their draft plans overall, and puts this team at the doorstep of a Super Bowl appearance and possible championship.

How good is Kevin Zeitler?

Coming off, surprisingly, his first Pro Bowl season Zeitler is one of the best guards in the NFL. Zeitler is an instant upgrade over Jackson, and while Zeitler plays right guard—compared to Jackson playing left guard—it’s still a great move by the Lions to sign him. One of Zeitler’s greatest strengths is his ability to stay healthy. If you have been following the Lions the past few years, you know that the offensive line rarely operated at full strength, as multiple players would miss time, forcing backups to play. Since getting drafted in 2012, Zeitler has only missed 12 games in his career.

Last season, according to PFF, Zeitler was ranked 15th in overall offensive grade for guards who played at least 20% of snaps with a grade of 71.6. When it came to pass blocking, he was ranked second with a grade of 82.5, while run blocking wasn’t as strong, getting a grade of 62.4, ranking him tied for 27th.

His overall PFF grade history has been very solid, with his worst year being in 2020 with a grade of 65.9. Outside of 2020, his grades have been in the range of 71.6 to 88. Zeitler is a better pass blocker than run blocker, as his grade ranges have been between 68.7 and 91.7. His run blocking isn’t his greatest strength as his range of grades for that has been between 59.7 and 82.8.

How does this affect the Lions?

This move easily gives the Lions the title for best offensive line in the NFL and it’s not even close. This is the starting five the team will have come Week 1 for the 2024 season.

Note: All of these grades are for players who have played at least 20% of snaps in 2023 according to PFF.

LT - Taylor Decker (16th ranked tackle, 81.1 offensive grade, 79.4 pass blocking grade, 73.9 run blocking grade)

LG - Graham Glasgow (8th ranked guard, 74.9 offensive grade, 54.8 pass blocking grade, 82.1 run blocking grade)

C - Frank Ragnow (1st ranked center, 88.8 offensive grade, 70.3 pass blocking grade, 91.3 run blocking grade)

RG - Kevin Zeitler (15th ranked guard, 71.6 offensive grade, 82.3 pass blocking grade, 62.4 run blocking grade)

RT - Penei Sewell (1st ranked tackle, 92.8 offensive grade, 79.2 pass blocking grade, 95.1 run blocking grade)

The signing of Zeitler will likely move Glasgow back over to left guard, where he started his career in 2016. While Glasgow had his best year at right guard, Zeitler has only 12 snaps at left guard in his 12-year career. It will be easier to move Glasgow back to left guard and slide Zeitler into right guard, rather than have Zeitler learn left guard. Also, Glasgow is close friends with Ragnow and Decker, so there is a natural chemistry there.

This also means that the Lions don’t need to draft a guard early on in the draft. Their goal will likely be to add a guard to sit behind Zeitler and compete for a starting job in 2025 with Colby Sorsdal. It changes the Lions draft strategy once again, with it coming down to a possible best player available selection at pick 29.

Was he worth the price?

100% yes. A $6 million base is pretty cheap for a veteran starter coming off a pro bowl season. We don’t know the details of the total value of the contract, but one the surface, it seems like a good deal for both sides. Zeitler usually signs with a team for at least two years, but with him just turning 34, his time in the NFL is coming closer to an end so one-year deals are going to be more common for him here on out.

For that price, he is helping the entire offensive line out with his knowledge, and possibly passing that down to the younger guards that will take over in 2025. Zeitler is doing two things for this team, playing at a high level and educating the future to make sure this line doesn’t downgrade when he leaves after his contract is up.

Final thoughts and grade

Grade: A+

Overall, this signing overtakes the Reader signing. While Reader was a bigger need, boosting the defensive line to a respectful level, adding Zeitler to the offensive line strengthens the best position group on the team. The offense will improve with this signing as Zeitler is an established pass blocker who can keep quarterback Jared Goff upright. And while he doesn’t do as well in run blocking, the rest of the offensive line excels in it and can help him out. Running backs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs should have another fantastic season if all five can stay healthy.

This also makes it so the Lions could really attack the draft with a best player available mindset. The only other real need on this team is an edge rusher that doesn’t have an injury history as extensive as Marcus Davenport, and if the team signs another veteran edge rusher, that erases that as the top need. The Lions could still use depth at safety, cornerback, wide receiver, and defensive tackle, which all could be in play now at pick 29, making it a real unknown for what the team could do come April.

This signing also helps strengthen the real possibility that the Lions could not only make the Super Bowl next season but could win the whole thing. An upgraded offensive line, with a solid running back duo, a good quarterback who can throw to a selection of helpful receivers and tight ends, along with a defensive line that can create pressure, and a linebacker group that can do whatever you need it to do, mixed with an improved secondary and you got yourself a strong championship level team.