Penei Sewell’s struggles at left tackle make Tristan Wirfs look even more impressive

The Detroit Lions took a page out of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ playbook this offseason, moving their All-Pro right tackle Penei Sewell over to the left side, the same way the Bucs did with Tristan Wirfs in 2023.

Wirfs earned First-Team All-Pro honors in his first season after the change, becoming the first player in NFL history to be named All-Pro on both sides of the line.

The Lions dusted off that blueprint, but they’re quickly finding out that it’s not as easy as Wirfs made it look.

Detroit Lions’ Penei Sewell is finding out how difficult Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Tristan Wirfs’ position switch really was

Moving from right tackle to left tackle isn’t as simple as lining up on the other side of the line and blocking your assignment. Offensive tackles have spent their entire careers building muscle memory on one side of the line, so balance, footwork and hand placement are all major adjustments that must be made.

Wirfs knows that firsthand. He provided a colorful description,comparing the feeling of switching sides to wiping your butt with the opposite hand -- and the physical adjustment wasn’t the only challenge he faced. 

Wirfs revealed on The Pivot Podcast that the move was so difficult for him mentally that he dealt with severe anxiety and sought help from a sports psychologist. 

"I remember having nightmares of giving up sacks, clean strip sacks, end of game — there were nightmares where I couldn't take a pass set, just stupid stuff. I was like, 'What am I doing?'"

That makes what Wirfs accomplished in his first season on the left side even more impressive. Once the games started, he picked up right where he left off, playing at an All-Pro level. 

Sewell, meanwhile, is experiencing some of the growing pains that Wirfs described. In the season opener against the Saints, Sewell gave up a strip-sack that was controversially overturned, but while it doesn't count in the stat sheet, the tape shows him getting bullied by Chase Young. In Week 2 on Thursday Night Football, Sewell was beaten badly by Bradley Chubb to allow another sack.

In 2023, Wirfs’ first season as a left tackle, he allowed just one sack all season long. Sewell has already matched that total in just two games.

Many took it for granted that Sewell could seamlessly make the change, but his struggles so far are putting Wirfs’ rare feat into perspective. Detroit trusted Sewell to make the same transition because of how dominant he has been on the right side. If anyone could follow in Wirfs’ footsteps and make the switch look easy, Sewell seemed like the obvious candidate. 

They’re quickly finding out that there is only one Tristan Wirfs.

That doesn’t suddenly make Sewell a bad offensive tackle. He entered the season with a strong case as the best tackle in football. Last season, Pro Football Focus ranked Sewell as the NFL’s No. 1 offensive tackle, with Wirfs right behind him at No. 2.

Sewell will turn 26 next month, and Wirfs is only 27, so the two stalwarts will be debated as the NFL’s best for years to come. They’re both on Hall of Fame trajectories this early in their careers.

Sewell’s early struggles making the transition have put into perspective just how remarkable Wirfs’ accomplishment was. It’s one thing to switch sides of the line. It’s another to immediately do it at an All-Pro level. Wirfs continues to stand alone in NFL history.

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