When Oregon Ducks fans ponder the past five years of professional football athletes produced from the Duck football program, offensive tackle Penei Sewell seems to always be near the top of the list. The 24-year-old Detroit Lion signed a $112 million contract in the offseason to keep him in Detroit until 2029. So far this season, Sewell hasn’t allowed a sack in 640 snaps and has been a rock for Detroit’s offense.
In a recent episode of ESPN’s “Get Up," Sewell was called the best offensive tackle in the NFL.
“And I think the reason that [the Detroit Lions] are what they are, is that you cannot separate this from the offensive line,” said ESPN analyst Mike Greenberg. “The offensive player of the year, we made this point yesterday Dan [Orlovsky], is Penei Sewell. Penei Sewell is the best offensive player in the National Football League. Linemen don’t win those awards. They’re basically not even eligible for those awards, but he is actually the best player, and he is a weapon.”
Echoing that praise was fellow analyst Adam Schefter, who referred to his own social media post from 2021 when the Lions’ first drafted Sewell as the seventh overall pick. At the time of the draft, Schefter revealed that an NFL head coach told him that Sewell was the "one surefire Hall of Famer" in the 2021 draft.
Sewell became of the highest drafted offensive linemen for the Ducks since offensive guard Kyle Long was taken 20th overall by the Chicago Bears in 2013. In fact, Sewell is only behind former Oregon offensive guard Gary Zimmerman, who was taken by the New York Giants third overall in 1984’s NFL Draft.
“I’ll say this: when you speak to people around the league about Penei Sewell right now, He’s the best offensive lineman in the game and it might not be close,” Schefter said.
“He is the right-sided version of Trent Williams,” former NFL quarterback and analyst Dan Orlovsky said.
For those unaware of the trench monster legend, Williams is considered one of the best offensive tackles of all time, making an appearance in eleven Pro Bowls and four All Pro Teams for the league. He’s also considered one of the 90 greatest Washington Commanders players of all time: high praise for Sewell to be in comparison with a great.
The Lion’s 26-23 win against the Houston Texans on the road in Week 10 was considered one of Sewell’s worst performances in his career, even though he paved the way for several big plays in the second half. After Sewell allowed two defenders to reach quarterback Jared Goff in the first half, he had strong words for himself moving forward.
"The last game I definitely took a rough start and not up to my standard,” Sewell said on the "Twentyman in the Huddle" podcast after the Texans’ game. “So, I've already taken it upon myself starting Wednesday when we came in, I think I need to show how much those guys mean to me, and not only those guys but the whole offense."
That statement from Sewell precluded a 52-6 domination of the Jacksonville at home, with the Lions’ pass game rated by Pro Football Focus at a 93.2, the run game at 76.3, and run blocking at a similar 76.3 grade.
The Detroit Lions face off against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday at 10 a.m. PT.
