Taylor Decker on Lions' Identity: We Want to 'Outwork People'

Taylor Decker is committed to ensuring Lions sustain success in 2024.

Detroit Lions offensive tackle Taylor Decker (68) celebrates Lions' 21-20 win over Kansas City Chiefs. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Detroit Lions are back in town. 

Dan Campbell's squad returned to Allen Park Wednesday for its first full practice of training camp, marking the official end of the offseason.

Campbell & Co. have entered camp with heightened expectations, coming off an NFC North division-winning season that culminated with a trip to the NFC Championship Game.

Veteran left tackle Taylor Decker, the longest-tenured member of the Lions, understands that he and his teammates can't afford to rest on their laurels if they want to sustain last season's newfound success. 

“I think the mark of any good team is going to be consistency,” Decker told reporters Wednesday. “Just like on the individual level, the mark of a good player is going to be consistency. You need to be able to show up. At this point, nobody cares what we did last year. It doesn’t matter. It’s going to have no bearing on this season moving forward. If anything, it’s going to be even harder for us, so we can’t take that for granted. It’s hard to have a great season, and then refocus and get back to doing things the right way. I mean, I had it in college (at Ohio State), we won the national championship. The next year, we had a good year. But, it wasn’t up to expectations.”

It's hard to be a consistent winner in the NFL. It's why there are numerous teams that regress on a yearly basis. Yet, Decker doesn't envision it happening in Detroit, due to the winning culture that has been established by both Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes.

“Again, I think that goes back to Dan and Brad bringing in the right people who are culture fits, who won’t let that happen,” Decker said of why the Lions won't suffer a setback in 2024. “If you have the right core group of guys, they’re not going to let that happen. And, I think we've got that here.” 

Decker and the Lions were a relentless bunch a season ago, seemingly never allowing any opponent to outwork them. It catapulted Detroit to a 12-5 campaign and another two wins in the postseason. 

The veteran offensive lineman sees him and his teammates embodying that mentality and playing style once again this upcoming season. 

“I don't think we have to find our identity. I think we know what our identity is,” Decker said. “I think, you hear all the buzz words, tough, gritty, all those things. But, that's truly what we are. We're kind of old school in that mindset, and we just want to show up and outwork people.” 

Decker, a first-round pick of Detroit in 2016, is set to embark upon the final season of a four-year, $60 million contract extension he signed in 2020. Over time, the Ohio State product has become a fan favorite with Lions supporters, garnering a serious amount of admiration and respect for his grit and tenacity.

He's also developed into one of the best blind-side protectors in football. 

This past season, he logged a career-high 1,243 snaps (counting both the regular season and postseason), and earned a 79.4 pass-blocking mark from Pro Football Focus. It was the 14th-best pass-blocking grade among all offensive tackles in 2023. Plus, he received an overall grade of 81.1 from PFF, the ninth-best overall mark for an OT in ‘23. 

Decker conveyed Wednesday that he's “hopeful” he and the Lions can hammer out a new contract.

“I’m hoping to hear fairly soon. But, as far as like anything of numbers, substance, I haven’t had too much,” the longtime NFL lineman expressed. “I will say, it’s something that I am hopeful of. I mean, I’ve even gone up and I had some conversations with Dan during OTAs, just to talk to him about it. I feel good about the messaging. I know what the timeline looks like. But, as far as anything of substance, not really.”