Lions' Taylor Decker eyes improvement through offseason surgery; has talked new contract

Allen Park — Detroit Lions offensive tackle Taylor Decker suffered a high-ankle sprain in last year's season opener, sidelining him two games and exacerbating a foot injury that dated to his junior year to college. This offseason he did something about it, having an elaborate surgery to repair both.

On Tuesday, the day after the Lions reported for the start of the voluntary portion of the offseason program, Decker detailed the procedure.

"It was a deltoid repair and a sesamoidectomy with a tendon transfer, and (the removal of) a couple bone spurs," Decker said. "The sesamoid is a bone in the ball of your foot. I had stress fractures vertically and horizontally. I've been dealing with it since probably junior year of college, so it's just gotten progressively worse. And it was to the point when I injured the ankle, it was putting more stress on the ball of my foot and the arch, because the deltoid (ligament) was torn.

"They went in there and did their special CT scan that they do, and they were like, 'We got to take it. Your bone is necrotic. It's dying,'' Decker continued. "It's hurt me forever. Then, two days after the surgery, I felt incredible. I took pain meds for one day. Walking around fine now. I feel really, really good."

In a strange way, Decker views this procedure as potentially his best chance to improve, year-to-year. It's not as if he won't continue to grind through the offseason, trying to better his technique or get stronger, but eight years into his career, and nearly 31 years old, it's difficult to make significant gains in those department.

"I was talking to my trainers in the offseason and they're like, 'You're not going to have this thing just nagging at you all the time,'" Decker said. "Maybe be able to maximize it even more. Maybe I'll feel even younger, and I really do feel like I do." 

Overall, Decker hasn't had too many injury issues during his career. He missed a half season in 2017 with a shoulder, and another eight games in 2021 due to a broken finger. Both to those injuries occurred in practice. He's played every game four of his eight seasons, and the decision to have surgery to put himself in position to be closer to full strength heading into the 2024 campaign comes at a good time, since he's entering the final year of his current contract.

The Lions have several extensions they're considering this offseason, led by quarterback Jared Goff and wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. Decker, who repeatedly has said he wants to play his entire career in Detroit, has almost become the forgotten man when the topic is discussed. But internally, that's not the case. He acknowledged there have been some initial conversations between the sides to extend the marriage.

"I think my agent and the Lions are on the same page, so it's very much an amicable conversation so far," Decker said. "But super-early stages, nothing of substance really other than, 'OK, we're going to try to figure something out, whether it's multiple years or it's not.' But we're very much on the same page, so I feel comfortable with that."

Post-surgery, Decker was off his feet until mid-February. He also expects to be limited through the early stages of the offseason program, but anticipates being full-go by the start of the season.

jdrogers@detroitnews.com

@Justin_Rogers