Penei Sewell Can Make History With Unique Award

Inagural Double OL Awards

If Sewell is able to take home the Protector of the Year award, he’ll have won the Outland Trophy as the best interior lineman in college football and a similar honor at the NFL level, making him the first offensive lineman to achieve both. It would truly set Sewell apart as the premier right tackle of his era.

One of the cool parts about receiving honors at the end of the season is looking back on the journey to accomplishing those goals and the work that was put in to make it possible. Sewell, whose work ethic was lauded in college at Oregon, talked about how focused he was this offseason and his dedication to improving. 

Sewell was a standout left tackle during his time in college, only playing two years at Oregon after the 2020 season was shortened by the global pandemic. Still, he quickly became one of the top left tackles in college football regardless of age, and his potential is revealing itself even after making the move from left to right tackle.

Offseason Grind

“I was just working out. I just stayed here in Michigan working out with the strength staff. At the end of the day, it’s just moving big weight fast,” Penei Sewell said this offseason. “So just always trying to up the weight. Obviously, you’ve got to be smart with it. There’s also some risk going into lifting those types of weight. I just leaned on the strength staff here, they do a great job. It’s just moving the big weights fast.”

To see where that work is close to landing, Sewell is amazing to witness and can be reflected in the field with his play. Just five seasons into his career, Sewell is shaping up to have an irrefutable Hall of Fame career. It all started to become a reality in 2019 in Oregon, and now Sewell has proven to be among the very best in the NFL regardless of position. 

Now, as great as Sewell has been, it’s not a formality, as there are several other deserving offensive line candidates such as Lane Johnson, Trent Williams, Laremy Tunsil, and Joe Thuney, but Sewell remains the frontrunner with one game remaining. All things considered, though, Sewell has to feel good about where the current trend is pointing.