Lions first-round pick Penei Sewell spent the offseason and summer transitioning to right tackle after playing on the left side at Oregon, but Taylor Decker’s finger injury meant Sewell was back on the left side for his first NFL game.
That game was against the 49ers and defensive end Nick Bosa, but Sewell didn’t get overwhelmed by the opposition. Bosa got the best of him at times, but Lions head coach Dan Campbell said that the rookie “performed pretty well” in his debut. Sewell said he felt comfortable, but has “to get better at a couple things” in the weeks to come.
After spending the 41-33 win tangling with Sewell, Bosa thinks those improvements will come.
“He’s going to be good,” Bosa said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “He’s more comfortable on the left. I could tell. The tape I saw on the right was . . . I told him after the game, he’s better on the left and he’s more comfortable on the left. He’s going to be a solid player, for sure.”
There’s no sign that the Lions are rethinking their plans for the line once Decker is able to return to action, but they are likely feeling pretty good about the direction they chose to go at the top of this year’s draft.