Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
Detroit Lions
Kansas City Chiefs
New York Jets
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Carolina Panthers
Dallas Cowboys
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Los Angeles Rams
The NFL has determined that neither the Lions nor Matt Patricia will not be subject to discipline in regards to previous allegations made against the head coach. The league met last week with the Lions and Patricia and opted against launching an investigation. 
“Our office reviewed the matter with the Lions and Mr. Patricia, and ensured the club engaged in appropriate and thorough hiring practices and that the coach did not mislead the team during the interview process,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement. “We determined that the Lions handled the interview process in a thoughtful and comprehensive manner and fully and appropriately complied with all applicable employment laws. As we learned from both Mr. Patricia and the Lions, the matter was not part of his employment interview process for job opportunities outside of or within the NFL. He was under no legal or other requirement to raise this issue.”
The NFL faced a similar issue in 2017 when it came to Raiders cornerback Gareon Conley. Conley was accused of sexual misconduct before the 2017 NFL Draft and the league did not conduct a thorough and costly investigation as it has in the past for other players. The accusation against Patricia took place in 1996 and and the case was dismissed in January 1997. Patricia, like Conley, has denied any wrongdoing.
“The truth is on my side,” Patricia said in a news conference earlier this month. “I lived with the mental torture of the situation where facts can be completely ignored or misrepresented with disregard to the consequence and pain that it would create for another person. I find it unfair and upsetting that someone would bring this claim up over two decades later for the sole purpose of hurting my family, my friends and this organization with the intention of trying to damage my character and credibility.”
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
The Lions are still in need of reinforcements at defensive tackle, and it seems inevitable Detroit will make a free agent addition before the regular season gets underway, as Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com writes. Although the Lions have already added a few new players to their interior, veteran Sylvester Williams and fourth-round pick Da’Shawn Hand aren’t likely to be full-time contributors. Detroit’s front four ranked in the bottom third of the league in both adjusted line yards and adjusted sack rate, an indication the unit struggled against both the run and pass. Free agents such as Alan Branch and Ricky Jean-Francois could make sense for the Lions given their familiarity with new head coach Matt Patricia‘s defensive scheme, while Johnathan Hankins, while Quinton Dial, Karl Klug, or Frostee Rucker could also speculatively be on Detroit’s radar.
The Lions announced that they’ve signed third-round safety Tracy Walker, and in doing so have now inked their entire 2018 draft class.
It’s not clear exactly how quickly Walker will see the field in Detroit’s starting lineup, as the Lions already have Glover Quin and Tavon Wilson in place as starters at safety. Quandre Diggs, meanwhile, is capable of playing both nickel corner and safety, further pushing Walker down the depth chart.
Many draft analysts had Walker pegged as a late-round selection, but the Lions weren’t the only club that was targeting the Louisiana product on Day 3. Following the draft, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reported the Panthers were prepared to take Walker at pick No. 85 before Detroit scooped him up three slots earlier.
Walker’s four-year rookie pact will be worth roughly $3.3MM and comes with an $847K signing bonus, per Over the Cap. During his rookie campaign, Walker will count for just $691K on the Lions’ salary cap.
Here’s the entire Lions crop of rookies:
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
Cleveland Browns
Detroit Lions
Los Angeles Rams
Philadelphia Eagles
San Francisco 49ers
Today’s minor moves (so far):
Arizona Cardinals
Baltimore Ravens
Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers
Chicago Bears
Cincinnati Bengals
Cleveland Browns
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Los Angeles Rams
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints
Oakland Raiders
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
Washington Redskins
The Lions have not held any “substantive” extension talks with wide receiver Golden Tate, who is entering the final year of his current contract, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
Tate joined the Lions on five-year, $31MM deal prior to the 2014 campaign, and has subsequently outperformed that contract by nearly any estimation. In four years with Detroit, Tate has averaged 93 receptions, 1,056 yards, and five touchdowns per season. Tate has also played like one of the league’s most efficient receivers: in 2017, for example, Football Outsiders ranked Tate 17th in DVOA, meaning he provides excellent value on a per-play basis.
In his contract season, Tate will earn a base salary of $7MM and count for roughly $9.4MM on the Lions’ salary cap. On an annual basis, Tate is now just the 34th-highest-paid wide receiver in the league, sandwiched between Marqise Goodwin and Travis Benjamin.
“The wide receiver market is very high right now, and it wasn’t very high when I came out when I was in free agency the first time, unfortunately,” Tate said. “It’s pretty exciting. It’s almost like, with these guys that are signing their first big deal, it’s been set. I would have never thought receivers today would be getting paid I guess what quarterbacks were getting paid just four years ago.”
The Lions have re-invested in the receiver position since signing Tate in 2014 (and seeing Calvin Johnson retire after the 2015 season). Marvin Jones is on a five-year contract that will keep him in Detroit through 2020, while the Lions used a third-round pick on Kenny Golladay a year ago.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Here are today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
Detroit Lions
Despite starting 11 games last season, Lions running back Ameer Abdullah only compiled 552 rushing yards on 165 carries. After three seasons in the league, the former second-rounder was hoping for a larger role, and he acknowledged that he was frustrated with his workload during an appearance on Michael Rapaport’s podcast.
The 24-year-old might not get his wish in 2018. Detroit did hire a new head coach in Matt Patricia, but Jim Bob Cooter stuck around as offensive coordinator. The Lions also signed veteran running back LeGarrette Blount, and they used a second-round pick on Kerryon Johnson.