Detroit Lions OL Colby Sorsdal ready to put 'worker's hat on, get to work'

Colby Sorsdal got a new haircut this offseason, and some time at his old position.

A fifth-round pick out of William & Mary in 2023, Sorsdal cut his signature shoulder-length hair before the start of the Detroit Lions' formal offseason program – "It’s kind of awesome cause it’s not over in my neck and not hot. Less maintenance," he said – and spent much of the spring practicing at right tackle.

A right tackle in college, Sorsdal moved to guard as a rookie, though he saw emergency time at tackle in his NFL offensive debut against the Atlanta Falcons because of injuries to other members of the Lions' offensive line.

With starting left tackle Taylor Decker sidelined this spring by foot and ankle surgery, Sorsdal played tackle with the first- and second-team offense during organized team activities and minicamp to get ready for the multi-faceted backup role he should have this fall.

“As an offensive lineman you take pride in knowing every position so just kind of adding to your resume of being able to play everything and anything when the time comes is huge," Sorsdal said. "You saw last year, too. Atlanta, was playing tackle, that was my first NFL snaps and then guard the rest of the year. So anyway that helps the team, for real."

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The Lions return four of five starters on an excellent but aging offensive line, signed Kevin Zeitler to fill the fifth starter role and expect to play a host of up-and-comers as backups this fall.

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Swing tackler Dan Skipper is the veteran of the group, while tackle Gio Manu and guard Christian Mahogany are 2024 draft picks and interior linemen Kayode Awosika and Netane Muti are only 25 years old.

Sorsdal's versatility should give him a leg up both in making the Lions' roster and landing an active spot on gamedays.

He can play right tackle or either guard position, where he made three starts as a rookie.

Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley said Sorsdal appears to have "definitely taken the next step forward" with his development this offseason, though he cautioned it's impossible to tell with linemen until the pads come on in training camp.

"He worked on some stuff we talked about in the offseason, challenged him more," Fraley said. "We’re going to move him around a little bit more probably, or positional flex because he’s gifted enough to do that. He’s in a lot of good competition with those guys around him, but what he had to work on so far he’s shown. He went back home and he got better at what he needed to and so I’m excited to see when this summer he comes back, how much better he is in this next month."

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Sorsdal said he feels comfortable playing on the interior line now after feeling "like a deer in headlights" early last year. And he said he's matured as player overall heading into what could be a prove-it second season with Decker and Zeitler both on expiring contracts.

"That’s kind of a hard thing to kind of pinpoint, but I’m out here knowing what it takes to win," Sorsdal said. "Obviously, we made it so far last year and how much more it’s going to take this year to go where we want to go, so I know what it looks like every day to come out here and be like, 'All right, let’s go Let’s put our worker’s hat on, get to work.'"

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on X and Instagram at @davebirkett.

Exhibit A: Giants

Matchup: Lions (12-5 in 2023) at N.Y. Giants (6-11), exhibition opener.

Kickoff: 7 p.m. Aug. 8; MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.

TV/radio: TBD; WXYT-FM (97.1).

For openers: Lions vs. Rams, regular-season opener; 8:20 p.m. Sept. 8, Ford Field, Detroit; NBC.