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Detroit Lions News & Rumors

Lions Expected To Sign K Randy Bullock

March 18th, 2021 at 6:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

Matt Prater‘s defection to the Cardinals means the Lions will have a new kicker for the first time in seven years. It appears Randy Bullock will fill that role.

The Lions are finalizing a deal with Bullock, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). Bullock spent the past four seasons as the Bengals’ kicker.

Bullock, 31, has bounced around the league a bit. But for the most part, he has kicked in Houston and Cincinnati. Bullock spent the first three years of his career with the Texans. However, Houston cut Bullock early in the 2015 season. After he bounced between the workout circuit and gigs with the Giants, Jets and Steelers, the Bengals stabilized his career late in the 2016 season.

The Bengals signed Bullock to an extension in 2018, and he played out that deal. Bullock made at least 80% of his field goals in each of his four Cincy seasons, though his make rate dropped to 81% last season. While Bullock may not have Prater’s range, he was more accurate last season and has held a steady role for several years now.

Prater kicked with the Lions from 2014-20, making one Pro Bowl. But he committed to rejoin one of his former special teams coordinators in Arizona on Wednesday night.

Lions To Sign WR Breshad Perriman

March 18th, 2021 at 5:40pm CST by Sam Robinson

Breshad Perriman‘s journey around the league will make a stop in Detroit. The former first-round pick agreed to a deal with the Lions, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.

Perriman will sign a one-year, $3MM deal with the Lions, who have also added Tyrell Williams this offseason. Detroit has said goodbye to Marvin Jones and is expected to lose Kenny Golladay soon as well.

This marks an interesting agreement. Perriman’s father, Brett, was a standout for the Lions in the mid-1990s, joining Herman Moore in becoming the first teammates to each catch 100 passes in a season in 1995. Thirty years after Brett signed with the Lions, with whom he played six seasons in a 10-year career, his son will be part of a Detroit rebuild.

The Lions will be Breshad Perriman‘s fifth NFL team. While the younger Perriman did not catch on with the Ravens, who drafted him in the 2015 first round, he has been productive elsewhere. The Browns, Buccaneers and Jets have coaxed 500-plus-yard seasons from the auxiliary wideout. Perriman averaged 17.9 yards per catch with the Bucs in 2019, coming on down the stretch, and he totaled 505 yards and three TDs in 12 games with the Jets.

This move comes after the Lions hired Antwaan Randle El to coach their wide receivers. Randle El was in Tampa during Perriman’s quality season as the Bucs’ WR3. The Browns were also interested in a potential Perriman reunion, but they have since re-signed Rashard Higgins to stay with their Jarvis Landry–Odell Beckham Jr. tandem.

Lions To Sign Charles Harris

March 18th, 2021 at 3:34pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Lions are adding an interesting piece to their defense. Detroit is signing defensive end Charles Harris, a source told Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Harris is well known for being the 22nd overall pick of the Dolphins in the 2017 draft. He didn’t pan out in Miami from the jump, and was traded to the Falcons in May of last year for a seventh-round pick. He had the highest sack total of his career in Atlanta, registering three in 13 games while playing just under 27 percent of the defensive snaps.

The Lions finished with just 24 sacks as a team last year, tied for sixth-fewest in the league, so they can use all the pass-rushing flyers they can get. Harris was a first-round pick for a reason and just turned 26 earlier this month, so it’s a decent low-risk signing for a rebuilding team that could pay dividends if he ever unlocks his potential.

Detroit just re-signed Romeo Okwara to a big deal to be their top edge rusher, but they don’t have much besides him at the position other than Trey Flowers, who only played in seven games last year. There’s a path to real playing time for Harris if he earns it.

Lions To Sign QB Tim Boyle

March 17th, 2021 at 9:35pm CST by Ben Levine

Tim Boyle is sticking around the NFC North. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reports (via Twitter) that the veteran quarterback is signing with the Lions. NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets that it’s a one-year deal worth $2.5MM, including $1.5MM guaranteed.

Boyle joined the Packers as an undrafted free agent back in 2018, and he became a bit of a cult hero as Aaron Rodgers‘ backup over the past few years. The 26-year-old has seen time in 11 career games, mostly as a human victory cigar; he has 18 “carries” for -16 yards. He’s attempted four passes in his brief career, connecting on three of them for 15 yards.

The 26-year-old was set to hit restricted free agency this offseason, but the Packers decided to not tender the fan favorite. The Packers will move forward with 2020 first-rounder Jordan Love as the definitive backup quarterback.

The Lions were presumably looking for some reinforcement at the position after letting go of Chase Daniel earlier this week. Boyle will likely compete with David Blough for backup reps behind Jared Goff.

Rams Trade Michael Brockers To Lions For Seventh-Round Pick

March 17th, 2021 at 9:56am CST by Zachary Links

Early Wednesday, the Lions acquired defensive lineman Michael Brockers from the Rams. The cost? A 2023 seventh-round pick, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). 

Lions GM Brad Holmes kicked off his new responsibilities by shipping Matthew Stafford to Los Angeles in a blockbuster trade. This week, he went back to the Rams’ well for Brockers, a 2012 first-round pick who was a bit too pricey for L.A., even though he’s been productive. Last year, Brockers notched five sacks and 51 total stops in 15 games (all stars).

The Rams re-upped Brockers last year on a three-year, $24MM deal after his would-be Ravens agreement fell through. Brockers was a good bet to get cut, saving $6.17MM against the cap with $3.67MM in dead money. Instead, they got something in exchange for him — even if it’s not all that much.

Brockers will join Trey Flowers and newly re-signed edge rusher Romeo Okwara in the Lions’ front seven. Meanwhile, last year’s top nose tackle Danny Shelton is out of the picture following his release.

Keanu Neal Drawing Significant Interest

March 16th, 2021 at 8:37pm CST by Rory Parks

Free agent safety Keanu Neal is attracting significant attention on the open market. Per veteran NFL reporter Josina Anderson, the Cowboys, Jets, Lions, Vikings, Colts, and Panthers have all expressed interest in the Falcons’ defender (Twitter link).

After seeing his 2018-19 campaigns almost completely wiped out by injury, Neal managed to suit up for 15 games (14 starts) in 2020. He wasn’t brilliant, but he did pick up 100 tackles while grading out as Pro Football Focus’ 33rd-best safety out of 94 qualifiers. The fact that he was able to stay healthy and will only be 26 when the regular season starts is certainly driving the interest in his services.

After all, prior to suffering a torn ACL in the 2018 opener — he also sustained a torn Achilles during the third game of the 2019 season — Neal was establishing himself as one of the better young safeties in the game. He was selected by Atlanta with the No. 17 overall pick in the 2016 draft, and he racked up 106 tackles in 14 starts in his rookie campaign.

He built on that performance in 2017, starting all 16 games and piling up 116 tackles en route to a Pro Bowl nod. He moved with fluidity and demonstrated a nose for the football, as evidenced by his high tackle totals and the eight fumbles that he forced over his first two seasons in the league. Though he did not force any fumbles in 2020, nor was he as strong in coverage as he was before the injury trouble, there is reason to believe that he can return to his previous levels of performance.

Dallas, of course, has long been looking for a long-term solution at safety, while the other clubs Anderson mentions also have clear openings on the back end of their secondaries. The Jets, who recently hit Marcus Maye with the franchise tag, are an interesting fit, as GM Joe Douglas has been said to be opposed to paying big money to safeties. A Maye-Neal tandem would be a talented but expensive pairing, though trading Maye would certainly be a possibility.

One way or another, it does not sound like Neal will be returning to the Falcons, who are also preparing to bid adieu to safety Damontae Kazee and who have already parted ways with DB Ricardo Allen.

NFL Contract Details: Bolts, Griffin, Broncos

March 16th, 2021 at 3:44pm CST by Sam Robinson

With the tampering period in full swing, here are some of the latest contract details to emerge:

  • Chargers C Corey Linsley: Five years, $62.5MM. $26MM guaranteed, $13MM signing bonus. Linsley is due $26MM through 2022, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. Linsley’s 2021 base salary ($4MM) is fully guaranteed. His 2022 base salary ($9MM) is guaranteed for injury at signing; it becomes fully guaranteed if he is on the Bolts’ roster on Day 2 of the 2022 league year, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets.
  • Jaguars CB Shaquill Griffin: Three years, $40MM. $23.5MM fully guaranteed, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. $12MM signing bonus, base salaries of $1MM, $11.5MM and $11.5MM. Griffin is due a $1MM roster bonus in 2023, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
  • Lions DE Romeo Okwara: Three years, $39MM. $14MM signing bonus, $20MM fully guaranteed. Another $5MM will be guaranteed by next March, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter).
  • Broncos DL Shelby Harris: Three years, $27MM. $9MM signing bonus. Harris’ $1MM 2021 base salary and $5.5MM of his $7.5MM 2022 base are guaranteed, Wilson tweets.
  • Patriots DB Jalen Mills: Four years, $24MM. $2.5MM signing bonus, $3MM base salary in 2021, $4.5MM in ’22. Williams will have $3.5MM of his 2022 base salary fully guaranteed, Breer tweets.
  • Panthers OL Cameron Erving: Two years, $10MM. This contract includes base salaries of $990K and $2.01MM, with Wilson tweeting a March 2022 roster bonus of $2.5MM is guaranteed.
  • 49ers CB Jason Verrett: One year, $5.5MM. $2MM signing bonus, $2.5MM base salary, $1MM in per-game roster bonuses. Another $1MM is available via incentives, Yates tweets.

Lions Cut QB Chase Daniel, DT Danny Shelton

March 16th, 2021 at 10:10am CST by Zachary Links

The Lions couldn’t find a taker for quarterback Chase Daniel. The backup has been released, along with defensive tackle Danny Shelton (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport).

The Lions kicked off their offseason by trading Matthew Stafford to the Rams for Jared Goff plus draft picks. Daniel, they thought, could have fetched them some later round capital, but no one wanted to take on the remainder of his three-year, $13.05MM deal.

Daniel has hardly played, but coaches still love him as a veteran backup. He has just five career starts under his belt, and just three since the 2014 season. The most recent of those came in a 2019 spot start with Chicago. The Missouri product has also spent time with the Saints, Chiefs, Eagles, and Bears. Now, a team looking to groom a young QB could add Daniel as a mentor.

Shelton — who entered the league as the No. 12 pick in the 2015 draft — never lived up to his draft status, but he’s built a solid career as a run-stuffer. The 345-pound lineman played a key role with the Pats in 2019 and found a home as the Lions starter this past season. Unfortunately, after eleven starts, his season was ended by a knee injury.

Together, the cuts will save the Lions over $4MM with $4.25MM in dead money.

Lions Re-Sign Jalen Reeves-Maybin

March 15th, 2021 at 6:01pm CST by Zachary Links

The Lions are bringing back Jalen Reeves-Maybin (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). Once finalized, it’ll be a one-year, $2.38MM fully–guaranteed deal. Much of that deal will be off of the books, however, due to the veteran salary benefit.

Reeves-Maybin, a 2017 fourth-round pick, has spent his entire career in Detroit. Despite the change in regime, he’ll get at least another year with the Lions. He’s appeared in 55 total games for the club, including three starts (all in 2019). But, he’s mostly shined on special teams. Over the last two years, he’s seen upwards of 70% of the Lions’ ST snaps.

The Lions have more work to do at linebacker, especially after Jarrad Davis left to sign a one-year contract with the Jets. Reeves-Maybin — who saw just 38 snaps on D — could see more time as a traditional LB this year to help fill the gap

Lions Release OL Joe Dahl

March 15th, 2021 at 3:15pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Lions are moving on from one of their offensive line regulars from recent years. They opted to release Joe Dahl on Monday, per a team announcement.

A backup over the first three years of his career, Dahl became a primary starter during the 2019 season. Detroit opened last season with Dahl as one of its starting guards, but Dahl only stuck with the first unit in four games.

Dahl signed an extension to stay with the Lions in 2019 but ended that season on IR due to a back injury. A groin malady halted Dahl early last season. While he returned from IR midway through, he did not stick as a starter.

With this release, the Lions will create just more than $3MM in cap space. The rebuilding team figures to make several retooling-type maneuvers ahead of the 2021 league year. With the legal tampering period having just begun, the now-Brad Holmes-run team is barely over the cap.

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