The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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60 THE WOLVERINE ❱ APRIL 2023 BY ANTHONY BROOME F ormer Michigan interior offensive lineman Graham Glasgow is return- ing to the state after signing a one-year deal for $4 million with the NFL's De- troit Lions. It is a homecoming for the Wolverine alum, who is reuniting with the team that selected him in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft. "When I ended up getting released [by Denver], I told my agent right away that this was a place I was very inter- ested in," Glasgow said during his re-in- troductory press conference in Detroit. "I wanted to gauge their interest in me, and they were interested. It came down to here, San Francisco and Car- olina. But I was mainly just [thinking that] if we can get to where the contract would be where I'd be fine with it, I'd want to go through with it as soon as possible. And that's what happened. "I wanted to be a part of that offensive line room. I wanted to be back with my buddies, and I wanted to be a part of this team. They are all good guys." Glasgow, a former walk-on at Michi- gan out of Aurora, Ill., started 58 of 62 games played in a Lions uniform from 2016-19 and appeared to be part of the future in Detroit. The regime, led by general manager Bob Quinn and Matt Patricia, let him walk in free agency before the 2020 season and then was ousted by the organization later that year. Glasgow signed a four-year, $44 mil- lion contract with the Denver Broncos that offseason and appeared in 37 games with 33 starts in three seasons. He was released by the Broncos before the start of the 2023 league year and now finds himself back in the Motor City with the organization in a much different place. The Lions went 9-8 last season and enter the 2023 season as the betting fa- vorites to win the NFC North. Glasgow acknowledged he returns to an organi- zation with a brighter outlook. "I'm super excited about it," he said. "A lot of the stuff is the same, and a little bit is different. And now that I'm actually here, everything is becoming a lot more real. I'm just excited to be back in a good way." The Lions are in the third year of a transformational overhaul under GM Brad Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell. Detroit finished the 2022 season on an 8-2 run, and Glasgow gets to plug back into a team that has high expectations. "The demeanor here is fantastic," Glasgow said. "It seems like we have a lot of straight shooters here on the coaching staff and it just seems like the overall culture is good. It's positive. "[To win 8 of 10 games to end the year] takes a certain type of team and a certain group of players to be able to do that. A lot of people would just throw in the towel at that point. Seeing that made me want to come here and be a part of it as well." Unfortunately for Glasgow, his first two stints with NFL teams came in periods of darkness and change. The first go-round in Detroit went south in a hurry, with the team falling from a playoff contender to an underachieving squad. The Broncos had high hopes af- ❱ WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Graham Glasgow Returns To State Of Michigan For Unfinished Business Glasgow, a former walk-on, made 42 appearances with 37 starts — 22 at center and 15 at guard — at U-M from 2013-16. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN