Lions Rookie May Have the Most Leverage of Any of the NFL's Unsigned Second-Round Picks

The Detroit Lions find themselves in an unexpected situation right now.

With the start of training camp quickly approaching, the Lions haven't agreed to a contract with second-round pick Tate Ratledge.

It's a situation most teams around the league have found themselves in this offseason.

After the Houston Texans signed 34th overall pick Jayden Higgins to the first fully guaranteed contract ever for a second-round pick, the Browns were the NFL's only team to follow suit, signing 33rd overall pick Carson Schwesinger to a fully guaranteed deal of his own.

In the two months since the Browns signed Schwesinger, the other 30 second rounders have remained unsigned and Tre Harris has become the first to officially hold out with the Los Angeles Chargers officially starting camp.

While all of these second rounders were obviously selected with their respective teams expecting them to have an impact early in their careers, Ratledge is the only one who may be carrying his team's Super Bowl aspirations on his shoulders.

I've talked a lot about the Lions' offensive line situation since Frank Ragnow's retirement. Basically, they're in a really tough spot.

They need to replace an All-Pro at center and a very good veteran at right guard while also worrying about the declining play of their left guard.

The Lions' ability to successfully handle this situation depends on Ratledge being able to immediately succeed in a starting role.

The Lions' status as contenders will depend on their ability to handle the situation on the interior of their offensive line.

This is a team who has risen to contender status because of their offense. Last year it was the league's best.

The O-Line's ability to create running lanes and give Jared Goff time to throw has been a big part of that success.

Even if Christian Mahogany is able to take on one of the starting guard spots, which seems to be the hope after a couple of solid starts last season, Ratledge will still need to take on a starting role from day one.

Detroit simply can't afford to have Ratledge missing practice time this offseason because of his contract, especially if he's going to move to center.

Every day he misses, the Lions' chances at finally making it to a Super Bowl get worse.

The clock is ticking and that might just mean the Lions have to cave in and give a fully guaranteed deal to a guy they should be anticipating getting four good years out of anyway.

If they can't expect that out of Ratledge then they have bigger problems than the little bit of guaranteed money they'd be giving up.