With two weeks in the free agency market, the Detroit Lions continue to build their offensive lineup, and a new name is now emerging as a potential piece to support the offense.  

Eric Edholm from NFL.com suggests that the Detroit Lions might take a chance on the star tackle Monroe Freeling from Georgia for their O-line build-up.

“Freeling could replace Taylor Decker, or the Lions could move Penei Sewell to the left side in Decker’s place and ask Freeling to play right tackle,” Eric Edholm wrote. “He’s a bit green (18 college starts) but has a ton of natural ability,” he added. “Detroit can still address the edge position in Round 2.”

Supporting him, another analyst, Lance Zierlein, also suggested that the Lions can go for the Georgian offensive tackle. “will eventually be a plus starter,” Lance said. While targeting athleticism as a parameter, Zierlein wrote, “Freeling offers coveted length and athleticism at right tackle.”

But Lance Zierlein also warned about signing Monroe Freeling, “There is some buyer beware on tape, but if smoothed out, he has the ceiling of a quality NFL starter,” Zierlein wrote, considering his experience on the field.

“With only one season as a full-time starter, filling out his frame and improving his technique should be early priorities,” Lance wrote while pointing to his only 17 games started stats. Further adding to his pointers, Zierlein wrote, “His quickness brings first-phase positioning advantages, but he needs more play strength to carry that over to block sustain and finish.”

Comparing Monroe to the other tackles coming out of Georgia, he has a Pro Football Focus (PFF) rating of 71.4, whereas Pittsburgh Steelers‘ Broderick Jones has a rating of 57.7, and Cincinnati Bengals’ Amarius Mims with 67.6.

This clearly shows that Monroe has outshone the others and could be a better fit for the Lions.

What could be some other options for the Detroit Lions

For the whole free agency period, the Detroit Lions have not made a big move, but rather signed multiple short contract deals. But who could be the other options for the Lions? 

Answering the question, NFL analyst Daniel Jeremiah suggested that two prospects, Francis Mauigoa from Miami and Spencer Fano from Utah, could be a better fit. He strongly emphasized Spencer Fano for the interior offensive lineman. He also showed his doubts that they might be long gone before the  No.17 overall pick.

An ESPN analyst, Mel Kiper Jr., ranked Monroe at No. 13 pick for his overall 2026 picks. “Freeling is still developing — he has started 18 games, and only five of those came before last season,” Kiper wrote. “But his year-over-year improvement stood out, especially in pass protection,” he added. 

With the young talents Larry Borrom and Juice Scruggs already in the Lions lineup, the signing of Monroe Freeling will solely depend upon how they feel about his upside in the O-line.

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Written by

Kunwar Yashaswee Chhaunker

Edited by

Joyita Das