Lions third-year offensive lineman Christian Mahogany may be the frontrunner to start at left guard, but he will have to battle for the job. Mahogany will face “real competition” from Ben Bartch and Miles Frazier, per Colton Pouncy of The Athletic.
Despite earning first-team All-ACC honors as a senior at Boston College in 2023, Mahogany lasted until the sixth round of the ensuing draft. A torn ACL cost Mahogany his entire junior season at BC, and injuries have continued troubling him in Detroit.
Mahogany began his career on the non-football injury list and played just seven games (one start) as a rookie. In the wake of Frank Ragnow‘s retirement, Graham Glasgow moved to center last year. That opened up left guard for Mahogany, who became a full-time starter when healthy. However, a fractured fibula held him to 11 games. The results weren’t great when Mahogany took the field, as Pro Football Focus ranked his performance 47th among 79 guards. Mahogany’s pass-blocking grade (40.7) was PFF’s sixth-worst at his position.
Entering free agency in search of guard depth, the Lions added Bartch on a low-cost deal (one year, $1.22MM) in March. The former Jaguar and 49er has started in just 24 of 55 games during his career. As is the case with Mahogany, injuries have been a problem for Bartch. The 27-year-old has missed between two and 14 games in each of his seven seasons. He opened last year as the 49ers’ starting left guard, but he never got the job back after going down with a high ankle sprain in Week 2. While Bartch returned from injured reserve in November, a foot sprain ended his season a few weeks later.
A three-year starter at LSU, Frazier joined the Lions as a fifth-rounder in the 2025 draft. Like Mahogany, he was unavailable at the beginning of his career. Frazier began the season on the reserve/PUP list as a result of a knee injury and did not debut until Week 13. The 6-foot-6, 325-pounder came off the bench in five games and was on the field for just 46 offensive snaps, but he could take on a much larger role if he impresses over the summer.
The Lions have a few months to figure out left guard, whereas the rest of their offensive line looks set. Elite tackle Penei Sewell is on track to switch from the right to the left side, replacing released 10-year starter Taylor Decker. Sewell’s presence on the left should benefit whichever guard lines up next to him. On the other side of the line, first-round rookie Blake Miller is the favorite to start at right tackle. Second-year man Tate Ratledge has right guard locked down, and former Panther Cade Mays will start at center in the first season of a three-year, $25MM contract.