The Detroit Lions tried to copy a move the Tampa Bay Buccaneers pulled off with Tristan Wirfs, sliding Penei Sewell from right tackle to the left side this offseason. On paper, it looked like a clean handoff. In practice, it’s been anything but.
That’s what makes Wirfs’ 2023 switch stand out even more. He moved to left tackle, earned First-Team All-Pro honors in his first season there, and became the first player in NFL history to be named All-Pro on both sides of the line.
Sewell was supposed to be the latest elite tackle to make that leap look routine. Instead, the early returns have shown just how rare that feat really is.
Moving from right tackle to left tackle is not just a matter of flipping sides and going to work. Tackles spend years building their technique, balance, footwork and hand placement on one side, and that muscle memory does not disappear overnight.
Wirfs has described the adjustment in vivid terms, comparing it to wiping your butt with the opposite hand. He also said on The Pivot Podcast that the mental strain of the change was so intense that he dealt with severe anxiety and got help from a sports psychologist.
And yet, once the games began, Wirfs didn’t just survive the switch. He thrived.
Sewell, on the other hand, is already dealing with the growing pains Wirfs talked about. In the season opener against the Saints, Sewell gave up a strip-sack that was controversially overturned.
It won’t show up in the stat sheet, but the tape showed Chase Young bullying him on the play. Then in Week 2 on Thursday Night Football, Bradley Chubb beat Sewell badly to create another sack.
Sewell has already allowed the same number of sacks Wirfs did in his entire first season at left tackle. Wirfs gave up just one sack in 2023. Sewell has matched that in two games.
That doesn’t change the bigger picture on Sewell. He’s still one of the best tackles in football, and Detroit had every reason to believe he could handle the move after how dominant he’s been on the right side.
Last season, Pro Football Focus ranked Sewell as the NFL’s No. 1 offensive tackle, with Wirfs right behind him at No. 2.
Sewell turns 26 next month. Wirfs is 27. Both are on Hall of Fame tracks this early in their careers, and both figures will stay at the center of the “best tackle in football” conversation for years.
But for now, Sewell’s rough start at left tackle has put Wirfs’ accomplishment in sharper focus. Switching sides is one thing.
Doing it immediately at an All-Pro level is something else entirely. Wirfs still stands alone.
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