Tag: Hank Fraley

Lions not worried about new OL Kevin Zeitler learning the offense despite missing time already

Lions not worried about new OL Kevin Zeitler learning the offense despite missing time already with preexisting injuries

The Detroit Lions have a new starting right guard for 2024 in Kevin Zeitler. The veteran signed as a free agent this offseason after three seasons with the Baltimore Ravens.

However, Zeitler still hasn’t been available to practice for Detroit at any of the sessions open to the media. The 34-year-old is still dealing with knee and ankle injuries that ended his 2023 Ravens season early. Zeitler was at minicamp but didn’t participate in any on-field team drills.

Offensive line coach Hank Fraley brushed off any concerns about Zeitler not being ready to roll in Detroit.

“He’s got a lot of experience,” Fraley said recently. “He’s doing new things, a little bit of new technique maybe he hasn’t been asked in a while to do. Offensively, we do a lot here, a lot of variety, and it’s been fun for him. Some of it can be challenging for him, which is good, to keep you engaged. So it’s been good for the room, and these guys get along, they gel and he’s been professional. I think that’s what guys get to see.”

The experience is readily evident. Zeitler has played at least 1,000 snaps in eight of the last nine seasons, including last year. He’s done that with four different teams (Cincinnati, Cleveland, New York Giants, Baltimore) in a variety of different offenses. With PFF scores consistently in the upper 70s overall, he’s handled the variety with aplomb repeatedly.

Fraley expects Zeitler back for training camp in July, and he expects him to be ready.

“We’ll really get it when training camp comes up front,” Fraley stated. “When the pads go on. We like to joke around, this is like being in underwear for us up front. D-line and O-line, it’s tough. That’s where we’re going to join, get it.”

Zeitler’s arrival pushes Graham Glasgow, last year’s right guard for most of the season, to the left guard spot. Glasgow took a lot of reps at his new spot in the spring. Free agent Netane Muti, Kayode Awosika and sixth-round rookie Christian Mahogany got the vast majority of the right guard reps in the sessions open to the media in OTAs and minicamp.

NFL insider reveals Ben Johnson’s potential OC if he lands a head coaching job

If the Commanders hire Ben Johnson, his offensive coordinator could be a longtime former NFL offensive lineman.

The Washington Commanders’ search for a new head coach may need to wait at least one more week. With the Detroit Lions and Baltimore Ravens winning in this weekend’s divisional round, four of the reported eight candidates cannot hold a second interview this week as teams prepare for the conference championship games.

The Commanders interviewed Detroit’s coordinators (OC Ben Johnson and DC Aaron Glenn), Baltimore’s defensive coordinator (Mike Macdonald), and associate head coach/defensive line (Anthony Weaver).

Washington can pursue second interviews with other candidates this week but will most certainly wait to speak to others, specifically Johnson, who is reportedly the Commanders’ top target.

While there is a long way to go before we know who Washington’s next coach will be, Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network hinted at a name who could follow Johnson to his next destination as the offensive coordinator: Detroit offensive line coach Hank Fraley.

Fraley, 46, has been Detroit’s offensive line coach since 2020. The Lions’ offensive line is considered one of the five best in the game. If Fraley followed Johnson to Washington or anywhere else, he would not call plays, as Johnson would likely continue to do that.

Fraley is from Gaithersburg, Maryland, and played collegiately at Robert Morris in Pennsylvania. He was undrafted in 2000 but enjoyed an 11-year playing career, including six seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he started on the interior of the offensive line for Andy Reid. He would also play several seasons for the Browns.

He began his coaching career in 2012 at San Diego. He had his first NFL job with the Minnesota Vikings as an assistant offensive line coach in 2014. Fraley spent three seasons with the Vikings before going to UCLA as the offensive line coach in 2017. After one year in college, he came back to the NFL as Detroit’s assistant offensive line coach. He was promoted to his current position in 2020.

If the Commanders landed Johnson, Fraley would be an excellent choice to help rebuild Washington’s offensive line.

 

What OL options do the Lions have if LT Taylor Decker can’t play?

The Lions have multiple options to replace LT Taylor Decker in the unlikely event he can’t play against the Seahawks.

The Detroit Lions came out of Kansas City in Week 1 without any serious injuries. That’s a cherry on top of the delicious victory sundae of beating the Chiefs. But there was one injury that popped up that could sour the Week 2 lineup against Seattle.

Left tackle Taylor Decker suffered an injury to his ankle in the win over the Chiefs. He didn’t miss any snaps in the game, but Decker was in a walking boot afterward. The veteran also missed practice on Tuesday due to the ankle.

Head coach Dan Campbell doesn’t seem too worried about not having Decker in Ford Field on Sunday. Here’s what Campbell said about his left tackle,

“He played the whole game with it and finished out, which man, that was outstanding. I mean, Deck’s a tough SOB, man. So, to watch him battle out there, it was impressive. So, look, we’ll know a lot more in a few days, but I’m encouraged because I know, there again, he finished out that game and we’re pretty good everywhere else.”

Replacing Decker — in the unlikely event he misses the Seahawks matchup — would not be easy. The Lions do have some moving pieces and parts that give Campbell and offensive line coach Hank Fraley some options, however…

Frank Ragnow’s troublesome toe highlights the Lions unproven OL depth

Ragnow’s toe injury cannot be fixed by surgery, and that means the Lions’ unproven depth could be challenged

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Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow is the driving force behind the Detroit Lions’ very impressive offensive line. He’s one of the elite talents at his position.

He’s also playing through a lot of pain. Ragnow suffered a significant injury to his left foot and toe early in the 2021 season. It’s not something that has healed on its own, and Ragnow knows it cannot be fixed with surgery.

“So it would have to be an experimental procedure to get that done and that’s not something the NFL O-linemen are in the business of,” Ragnow said via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.

Ragnow also told Birkett that the toe is “inoperable” and the pain was “brutal” for most of last season.

In that 2021 season, Ragnow missed the final 13 games. He was replaced by Evan Brown, who played well in his absence but not at the same consistently high level. Brown also filled in for Ragnow in Week 2 last season, a win over Washington.

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Brown is now in Seattle, signing as a free agent. The current backup center is Ross Pierschbacher, who has played exactly one offensive snap since being a fifth-round pick by Washington in 2019. Graham Glasgow replaced Brown on the roster as a reserve interior lineman, but he’s struggled through major injuries of his own during his three-season sojourn in Denver; he was one of the worst centers in the league in 2022.

It’s a perilous position for the Lions. Coordinator Ben Johnson’s intricate, creative scheme requires strong line play to be effective. Ragnow is the central catalyst to all of that. The rest of the line is highly skilled in its own right, no question about it. But they’re only as great as the weakest link, and if Ragnow’s chronic toe problem becomes too much for him to play or remain at a Pro Bowl level, the weak link is the critical pivot point.

Glasgow was signed as insurance, and he’s a smart signing for that purpose. The thing about insurance is, it’s better to have it than to actually use it. Glasgow has always been a better guard than center. Pierschbacher has virtually no experience. Fifth-round rookie Colby Sorsdal is likely transitioning from FCS-level tackle to NFL guard (he could remain as the swing tackle as well), so expectations should be modest at best. Logan Stenberg Young vets Logan Stenberg and Kayode Awosika aren’t likely to make the team without dramatically better offseason showings than they’ve had in the past.

Even with the outstanding Hank Fraley as the line coach, the depth on the interior is concerning. It could be fine, however. It’s critical to remember expectations for Brown were quite low when he arrived in Detroit. Brown was (deservedly) cut by the Browns and Giants and had shown little reason to engender confidence. He turned out to be a very good long-term fill-in starter at both center and right guard.

Backup center is a situation to watch closely during the offseason and training camp. Whoever gets the job will get considerable practice time, as it appears Ragnow will once again practice no more than once a week.

Signing Graham Glasgow gives the Lions options on the offensive line

Bringing back Graham Glasgow in free agency gives the Lions options on the offensive line

Graham Glasgow has returned to Detroit as a free agent. The veteran lineman rejoins the Lions, where he played from 2016-2019, after three seasons with the Denver Broncos

With Glasgow back, offensive line coach Hank Fraley has some options with his unit. It’s a group that returns every starter except right guard but has some question marks beyond that returning foursome–which might be the league’s best.

Glasgow could plug right into the role vacated by Evan Brown, who signed with the Seahawks as a free agent. While Brown started at right guard in 2022 and center in 2021, he was pegged as the team’s top interior reserve. Brown proved how valuable having a quality reserve who can capably step in and start at either position can be. Right now the only other center on the roster behind Pro Bowler Frank Ragnow is Ross Pierschbacher.

With starting experience at both positions — in Detroit, no less — that’s a natural fit for Glasgow. The $4.5 million salary for 2023 is high-end for a reserve or insurance policy, however. Which leads to a different option…

Glasgow could step into the starting right guard role. He would take over for Halapoulivaati Vaitai in that capacity.

Vaitai was supposed to be the starting RG in 2022 but missed the season with a back injury. Brown took over and played well, but Vaitai remains on the Lions roster and is penciled in as the current starter. “Big V” is also an expensive presence, with a base salary of $9.4 million and a cap hit of just under $12.5 million.

Should Glasgow take over at RG, there are options with Vaitai–presuming he’s healthy enough to play. He can accept a pay cut, similar to what Charles Harris just did on defense, and become the top reserve lineman. Vaitai’s starting experience at both guard and tackle makes him well-suited for such a role.

Vaitai could also become the Lions’ best option for the extra tackle on offense. Detroit uses a third tackle more than all but one other team, and a healthy Big V is a better blocker in space and pass protection option in that role than Matt Nelson, who was brought back but is far from a lock to make the team. Again, for Vaitai to get that role he’d need to reduce his cap hit in 2023 and also prove he’s healthy, or at least be on track to be physically capable by September. We haven’t heard a status update on Vaitai’s back other than an ambiguous response from GM Brad Holmes at the combine.

Detroit could also move on from Vaitai and place a greater emphasis on the right guard/swing tackle position in the upcoming draft. It’s an intriguing, middle-round heavy draft class in those spots. The Lions could very well draft an option there regardless, but dumping Vaitai would elevate that need higher up the priority chart.

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Dan Campbell heaps praise on Lions OL coach Hank Fraley

Dan Campbell heaps praise on Lions OL coach Hank Fraley after a fantastic Week 2 from his makeshift unit

Hank Fraley is one of the few Detroit Lions holdovers from the prior regime that is still around the new-look team. The offensive line coach proved once again on Sunday why head coach Dan Campbell and GM Brad Holmes were smart to keep Fraley in Detroit.

All Fraley did was help prepare replacement starters at all three interior line positions for Sunday’s game against the Washington Commanders, a team featuring one of the league’s best defensive fronts. Dan Skipper had one practice at left guard before being asked to start at the unfamiliar position, his first NFL start no less.

Fraley’s pupils graded out pretty darn well on their test. Detroit ran for 191 yards and QB Jared Goff had enough time to toss four touchdown passes behind the makeshift line.

Campbell heaped praise upon Fraley in his press conference on Monday.

“He’s been very important,” Campbell said of Fraley. “Hank’s got a good feel of it, having played the position, but also coached it. And he’s got a real good feel of those guys, what they do well, how to develop the talent, and he just – he’s got a real good feel of how to pull it out of them.”

Fraley played center in the NFL for a decade and did so despite not being an outstanding athletic specimen. He sees himself as more of a teacher than a coach, something he told me in an interview at the Senior Bowl this year. His teaching skills are readily evident. Campbell knows and appreciates how well Fraley pulls it off,

“I mean, that’s – one of the things that’s not always – when you’ve played at this level like he has and played for a long time, and you’re not the best athlete –like, I wasn’t the best athlete, but you’ve got to understand the technique and you can give guys things that they need to survive and that’s what Hank’s able to do. And so, it’s one thing to do that, but man, you’ve got to be able to communicate and you’ve got to be able to motivate to push these guys. Because sometimes, man, when you’re an ex-player the – there’s a lot of guys that’ll start backing off and taking it easy because you feel a little bad for them because you know what that’s like, man, that’s hard. It’s hard, but you can’t do that, you’ve got to continue to push and he’s got a good balance of that. So, he’s very important to us.”

Fraley is in his third season as the Lions OL coach and fifth overall in Detroit. He’s been critical in developing not just premium talents like first-rounders Penei Sewell, Taylor Decker and Frank Ragnow but also capable reserves such as center Evan Brown, Tommy Kraemer and now Skipper.

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Dan Campbell confident in rookie OL Tommy Kraemer, credits coach Hank Fraley

Kraemer is in line to play against the Bears with Halapoulivaati Vaitai still battling a concussion

Tommy Kraemer got extensive action for the Detroit Lions at right guard in the Week 11 loss to the Cleveland Browns. Now Kraemer, an undrafted rookie from Notre Dame, figures to play even more in the Week 12 matchup with the Chicago Bears.

Starting right guard Halapoulivaati Vaitai is still battling the concussion that knocked him out in Cleveland. The Lions signed Kraemer to the active roster on Tuesday from the team’s practice squad, and he could very well start on Thursday.

Detroit head coach Dan Campbell seems confident in Kraemer after reviewing how the rookie played in emergency duty in Cleveland.

“It was good to see. I thought he did some good things, went in there and didn’t bat an eye,” Campbell said Tuesday. “We liked what we saw. We like Kraemer. He’s kind of a tough, gritty guy and he’s smart. He’s growing, man. We’ve been giving him center reps in practice, so he’s been guard, center. He’s a good, quality dude. He comes to work, puts it in and you like him. He’s tough.”

Campbell gave credit to Lions OL coach Hank Fraley, who has managed a litany of injuries across the line and still managed to field an above-average unit all season.

“I think Hank (Fraley)’s got a lot to do with that. I think Hank is a hell of a coach. He’s done a really good job with them. He gets them prepared, ready to go.”

The head coach also noted that injured center Frank Ragnow remains a big presence in the locker room despite being on IR after toe surgery. Ragnow continues to attend meetings and help in any way he can.

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Evan Brown earns some serious praise from PFF for his great game vs. Rams

Brown earned the highest pass-blocking grade of any center in Week 7 for posting a personal clean slate against the Rams

When Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow went down with a toe injury that will force him to miss the rest of the 2021 season, it sure looked bleak for the Detroit Lions. His replacement is Evan Brown, a young journeyman who didn’t stand out in brief trials in his first two seasons while playing for four different NFL teams.

While he’s not Ragnow, Brown has more than acquitted himself nicely as the starting center for the rest of the season in his place. Brown, 25, was the leading component of a Lions line that played a very strong game against Aaron Donald and the Los Angeles Rams in Week 7.

Pro Football Focus noticed how well Brown played. Brown earned the highest pass blocking grade (85.2) of any center in the league in Week 7. PFF didn’t find a single pressure allowed by Brown against one of the NFL’s best pass-rushing defensive fronts.

Brown isn’t close to the run-blocking force Ragnow offers in the pivot, but for a backup wearing his fourth NFL uniform since going undrafted out of SMU in 2019, he’s playing some very good football. Give some credit to Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley, who has worked closely with Brown and is a former center who played with a similar style and almost identical build.

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Lions OL coach Hank Fraley ends talk of keeping Penei Sewell at LT once Taylor Decker returns

Detroit Lions OL coach Hank Fraley ends talk of keeping Penei Sewell at LT once Taylor Decker returns

The discussion of what to do with Penei Sewell once Taylor Decker returns to the Detroit Lions lineup has dominated the talk around the team recently. After an impressive debut in Week 1 at left tackle, there is a groundswell of support to keep Sewell, the team’s highly-touted first-round pick in 2021, on the left side.

It’s a worthy discussion that has merits on both sides of the argument aisle. But the man primarily responsible for making the decision, Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley, put a swift end to any thoughts of keeping Sewell at left tackle once Decker is healthy. Sewell will go back to right tackle when Decker, the team’s longest-tenured player and one of the NFL’s better left tackles, recovers from his finger injury.

“I’ll just be honest, there’s been no discussion on that stuff,” Fraley told reporters on Thursday. “When we cross that bridge (we will). Right now Taylor, in my mind, is our left tackle and Penei is our right tackle. And when Taylor is not playing, Penei is left tackle and Matt Nelson is the right tackle.”

It’s a pretty emphatic statement and tone from Fraley, who has devoted hundreds of hours since April teaching Sewell to master playing right tackle. Fraley also brought up the fact that Decker hasn’t played right tackle since 2013, when Sewell wasn’t even in high school yet.

“I’ve never seen Taylor play right tackle,” Fraley replied. “I just know this, if you ask any of our guys to do whatever, they will go out and compete wherever they go, but that’s not even been brought up.”

Fraley did leave some room for a potential move later down the road.

“I’d love to entertain that, but we’re so far away from that right now. We’re just, how do we put the best lineup out there for Green Bay right now? We’ll worry about that when Decker comes back, but right now, I know that we feel good with Sewell being at left,” Fraley stated.

Lions OL coach Hank Fraley expecting big things from ‘Big V’

Fraley declared Vaitai a big piece of the Lions OL

The Detroit Lions project to have one of the NFL’s best offensive lines in 2021. With standouts Taylor Decker, Frank Ragnow and top-10 pick Penei Sewell anchoring the line, it’s got high-end potential. Left guard Jonah Jackson showed legit promise in his rookie season too.

Then there’s right guard, where Halapoulivaati Vaitai is penciled in as the starter. Vaitai had a rough debut season in Detroit, flopping as a high-priced free agent while bouncing from tackle to guard, all the while battling an injury. Some expected the Lions to dump Vaitai, but that’s clearly not in the cards. Instead, he’s a building block that the team remains quite high on.

Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley made it clear in his press conference this week that Vaitai will be a significant piece of the puzzle. And Fraley’s quite happy and bullish about that, too.

Fraley was asked if he considers Vatai to be a long-term piece on the line. His answer was a telling one.

“Yeah why wouldn’t you,” Fraley said in a bemused tone. “That guy can do a lot of things that a lot of people in this league can’t. He’s athletic he’s big. He can move the line of scrimmage. He can pull. He can pass protect. He’s played a lot of ball. (The Eagles) won a Super Bowl with him playing left tackle. I’m excited for him.”

Fraley’s indignance at the notion that Vaitai is a lost cause should erase any doubt that Big V will be the starting right guard. The financial aspect almost guaranteed it, regardless; only Trey Flowers and Jared Goff will earn more than Vaitai in 2021, and the Lions save no money at all by cutting him this year. With significantly less depth across the line–Joe Dahl, Oday Aboushi and Kenny Wiggins are all gone, replaced (for now) by undrafted free agents–it’s clear the team still believes in Vaitai.

As Fraley indicated, seeing if Big V can bounce back from an injury-marred year where he made a position change is the smartest way to proceed.