Lions sign T.J. Lang to 3-year deal; former Packers guard stays in NFC North

Another one of the Green Bay Packers’ top free agent priorities has made his decision about his future. Packers fans won’t like it.

Guard T.J. Lang is agreeing to a contract with the Detroit Lions, as his agent announced on Twitter Sunday. Lang’s contract will run for three years, and monetary details are not yet known.

This leaves the Packers with a Pro-Bowl sized hole at right guard, as Lang earned his first such honor in 2017. It also leaves the team in the unenviable position of replacing both starting guards within a single calendar year; the team released Josh Sitton just before final roster cuts prior to the 2016 regular season. Both of them ended up within the division as well, with Sitton settling in Chicago.

Lang was a fourth-round draft pick of the Packers’ in 2009, and became a full-time starter in 2011, starting at left guard and moving to right guard in 2013. Since then, he had missed just five games, although three of those came in 2016.

The Lions had a gaping hole at guard this offseason, as Larry Warford left Detroit to sign with the New Orleans Saints. They have now invested heavily in their offensive line this offseason, as they signed former Ravens right tackle Rick Wagner to a deal worth over $9 million per season earlier this week. Lang’s dollar value will likely be in the realm of $10 million per season.

Stay tuned for more on the financial details and how the Packers will respond moving forward.