- Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com looked at the Lions‘ defensive tackle depth chart. With Haloti Ngata, A’Shawn Robinson, and Akeem Spence as locks for the roster, there is now a fourth spot in play since Khyri Thornton will be serving a six-game suspension to start the year. There are a few notable names in the mix including Ego Ferguson, Jordan Hill, and Bruce Gaston. Twentyman notes that the Lions carried five DTs last season, but we might not see a repeat since players like Cornelius Washington and Anthony Zettel are able to play both inside and outside.
- This week, PFR’s Dallas Robinson gave us an in-depth recap of the Lions‘ offseason.
Although the Lions finished 9-7 and claimed a NFC Wild Card slot, underlying metrics show Detroit wasn’t as good as its record. Pro Football Reference calculates expected wins and losses based on points scored and points allowed, and the Lions were closer to a seven- or eight-win club based on those numbers. Detroit finished 27th in the NFL in DVOA, worse than clubs such as the Jaguars, Bears, and Chargers, none of whom came close to a postseason appearance.
Still, the Lions presumably still believe they’ll contend with the Packers and Vikings for the NFC North in 2017, and had several obvious areas of focus to attend to this offseason. Let’s take a look at how they did:
Notable signings:
- T.J. Lang, G: Three years, $28.5MM. $19MM guaranteed.
- Ricky Wagner, T: Five years, $47.5MM. $17.5MM guaranteed.
- Akeem Spence, DT: Three years, $9MM. $3.5MM guaranteed.
- Paul Worrilow, LB: One year, $3MM. $2.75MM guaranteed.
- D.J. Hayden, CB: One year, $3.75MM. $2.25MM guaranteed. $1.5MM available via incentives.
- Cornelius Washington, DL: Two years, $5.825MM. $1.5MM guaranteed.
- Khyri Thornton, DT: Two years, $3.3MM. $325K guaranteed.
- Darren Fells, TE: One year, $1MM. $100K guaranteed.
- Jordan Hill, DT: One year, minimum salary benefit. $85K guaranteed.
- Nick Bellore, LB: One year, minimum salary benefit. $80K guaranteed.
- Matt Asiata, RB: One year, $840K. $60K guaranteed.
- Armonty Bryant, DE: One year, minimum salary benefit. $40K guaranteed.
- Don Muhlbach, LS: One year, minimum salary benefit. $40K guaranteed.
- Cyrus Kouandjio, T: One year, $800K. $35K guaranteed.
- Tony Hills, T: One year, minimum salary benefit. $10K guaranteed.
- Bruce Gaston, DT: Two years, $1.32MM.
- Ego Ferguson, DT: One year, $615K.
- Keshawn Martin, WR: One year, minimum salary benefit.
The Lions’ offensive line wasn’t a success in 2016, as the unit ranked 31st in adjusted line yards and 18th in adjusted sack rate, so general manager Bob Quinn made upgrades to Detroit’s front five the focal point of the 2017 offseason. The first step was swapping out right tackle Riley Reiff for free agent Ricky Wagner, whom the Lions made the highest-paid right tackle in the NFL (not counting Lane Johnson, who was paid like the Eagles’ left tackle of the future). With Reiff in tow, Detroit averaged only 2.93 yards on rushes to the right side, according to Football Outsiders. Baltimore, Wagner’s former employer, averaged 4.62 running to the right, meaning improvement should be on the way in the Motor City.
Wagner wasn’t the only addition to the right side of the Lions’ offensive line, however, as the team also signed T.J. Lang to replace Larry Warford at right guard. Not only did Detroit land one of the league’s best guards in Lang, but it stole him from a division rival, weakening the Packers’ line in the process. In order to ink Lang, who reportedly narrowed his free agent choices to Detroit, Green Bay, and Seattle, the Lions guaranteed two-thirds of his $29MM contract, an unprecedented total. Lang, 29, missed three games with injury last season and is now recovering from January hip surgery, but he should be available for training camp.
Darren Fells will be lining up next to Wagner and Lang on the Lions’ front five, and the veteran tight end will essentially act as a sixth offensive lineman on many plays. Fells, whom Detroit signed after he was non-tendered by the Cardinals, managed only 14 receptions a season ago, but uses his 6’7″, 280-pound size as one of the league’s best blocking tight ends, both in the run and pass game. His presence should allow the Lions to split Eric Ebron out wide in more creative formations.
Although Detroit has improved its blocking, that doesn’t mean free agent addition Matt Asiata will suddenly become more effective. Over the past three years, Asiata has been among the league’s most inefficient backs. Of the 49 running backs who have managed at least 250 carries since 2014, Matt Asiata ranks next-to-last with a 3.45 yards per carry average. Last season, Asiata placed in the bottom-10 among backs in both DVOA and DYAR, Football Outsiders’ efficiency metrics. Not guaranteed a roster spot, Asiata shouldn’t be part of Detroit’s Week 1 squad unless an injury strikes.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Lions surprisingly didn’t target any high-profile free agents after the team ranked dead last in defensive DVOA, instead opting to patch over the unit with low-cost additions. In that vein, Detroit signed defensive linemen Akeem Spence and Cornelius Washington, and it’s difficult to see either providing much of an impact next season. Spence, particularly, ranked 123rd of out of 125 qualified interior defenders, per Pro Football Focus, which gave Spence horrible marks against the run. Washington, on the other hand, earned good scores as a pass-rusher, meaning he’ll likely contribute in sub packages.
Both of Detroit’s linebacker signings — Paul Worrilow and Nick Bellore — have recent starting experience, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if the duo spends more time on special teams than as regular players on the Lions’ defense. Worrilow and Bellore each played more than 40% of their previous club’s special teams snaps, and Quinn has shown a willingness to pay for special teams aptitude, as evidenced by the signing of Johnson Bademosi last offseason and the extension of Don Carey in December. Detroit’s special teams unit finished sixth in DVOA in 2016 after ranking 13th and 31st in the two years prior.
After fielding the league’s worst pass defense last year, the Lions’ only free agent signing in the secondary was former first-round bust D.J. Hayden. Taking a chance on a former 12th overall selection is never the worst idea, but given Detroit’s immediate needs in the defensive backfield, the club should have gone after more known commodities. Jason McCourty, Davon House, and Morris Claiborne all signed for similar money as Hayden, and I’d take them all over the former Raider.
The NFL has suspended Lions defensive end Armonty Bryant four games for violating its substance abuse policy, reports Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link).
This is the third suspension in the past year for Bryant, notes Birkett, who suggests that it’s time for the Lions to cut bait on the soon-to-be 27-year-old. Detroit re-upped Bryant back in March, but as a minimum salary benefit deal with a meager $40K signing bonus, escaping the contract would be easy for the club.
Bryant, whom the Lions claimed off waivers from the Browns last October, appeared in just five games in 2016 (all with Detroit), but he did tally an impressive three sacks during his short campaign. In the best season of his four-year career, 2015, Bryant totaled 14 appearances and 5.5 sacks.
With Bryant at least temporarily out of the picture, the Lions look even thinner at defensive end behind starters Ezekiel Ansah and Kerry Hyder. They’re currently set to enter the season with Cornelius Washington, Anthony Zettel and late-round rookies Jeremiah Ledbetter and Pat O’Connor among their reserves at the position, as Roster Resource shows.
- Cornelius Washington ventured from the Bears to the Lions in part because of Detroit’s attacking 4-3 scheme as opposed to the 3-4 currently being deployed in Chicago, Tim Twentyman of Lions.com notes. Washington will be a part of the Lions’ rotation up front, with Twentyman predicting the former Bears backup will have a good chance to rush from the tackle spot on passing downs.
Joique Bell isn’t finished with football. At least, he hopes he’s not. The veteran running back says he’s still looking to find work for the 2017 season (Twitter links via SiriusXM). 
“There are ton of guys in the league that know what I can do, coaches and GMs, but I have no timetable to sign with a new team,” Bell said. “I’ve never been an injury prone player. I feel better than I have in a long time, physically. Just waiting on the call.”
It could be a while before Bell gets the call he’s waiting for. Bell will turn 31 in August and he didn’t get to show teams a whole lot on the field last season.
Bell spent the majority of his career with the Lions before hooking on with the Bears last fall. His stint in Chicago lasted just four games and he totaled only three carries. When a December workout with the Packers did not result in a deal, he circled back to Detroit to serve as the team’s No. 4 RB behind Theo Riddick, Dwayne Washington, and Zach Zenner. He did not attempt any carries in his second Lions stint and had just one catch for negative two yards.
Bell’s most productive season as a runner came in 2014 when he ran for 860 yards and seven touchdowns. He also thrived as a pass-catching specialist for Detroit in 2012 and 2013, recording upwards of 50 receptions in each season.
- Thurston Armbrister is among Lions linebackers with an on-the-bubble status entering training camp, writes Tim Twentyman of the team’s website. Armbrister wasn’t much of a factor on defense in 2016, his first season as a Lion, as the ex-Jaguar only played 63 snaps and made nine tackles in 14 appearances. However, he was one of Detroit’s key special teamers, racking up the fourth-most snaps (260) for a unit that Football Outsiders ranked as the sixth best in the NFL.
Former Lions receiver Calvin Johnson has hinted that Detroit’s long string of failure played a role in his retirement, and he reiterated that sentiment last week, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “I was stuck in my contract with Detroit, and they told me, they would not release my contract, so I would have to come back to them,” Johnson said. “I didn’t see the chance for them to win a Super Bowl at the time, and for the work I was putting in, it wasn’t worth my time to keep on beating my head against the wall … and not going anywhere.”
As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk details, the Lions and new general manager Bob Quinn may have misled Johnson into thinking he’d be forced to stick with Detroit in 2016. While Johnson says the Lions wouldn’t have released him from his contract, Detroit almost surely would have had to make some sort of adjustment to Johnson’s cap charge, which would have totaled $24MM. By convincing him to retire, the Lions saved more than $11MM on its 2016 salary cap.
- Matthew Stafford‘s 2018 franchise tag value will be around $26.4MM, according to Albert Breer of the MMQB.com. The reporter notes that this will give the veteran some leverage during contract negotiations with the Lions, as the “the expected slotted number” was around $22MM. Next season, Stafford will be earning a $16.5MM base salary in the final year of his contract.
[SOURCE LINK]
Here’s a look at the Lions:
- Matt Asiata’s chances of making the Lions may have improved a bit when the team released fullback Michael Burton, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press writes. With Burton out of the way, the Lions may keep five running backs instead of four, potentially allowing Asiata to slot in behind Ameer Abdullah, Theo Riddick, Zach Zenner, and Dwayne Washington. Recently, coach Jim Caldwell spoke highly of Washington’s potential and that could be a sign that his spot is safe. If there are only four running backs on the 53-man roster, Asiata seems likely to get squeezed out.
- The Lions did not add a safety this offseason, despite the fact that Glover Quin turned 31 in January. That is a sign that the team has faith in Quin continuing his solid play even at his advanced age, Nate Atkins of MLive.com writes. The Lions and Quin are working on a new contract as he enters his walk year and the deal ranks as Detroit’s No. 2 priority, after locking up quarterback Matthew Stafford. With that in mind, Atkins writes that a Quin extension is a matter of when, not if. The Lions would not be operating without a safety net if they did not see Quin as a starting safety for at least one additional year.
- The Lions arranged to meet with free agent linebacker Zach Orr, just moments after he announced that he will consider an NFL return.
- Speaking of Lions safeties, Tavon Wilson is being accused of punching his ex-girlfriend in the face. Historically, the Lions have had a zero-tolerance policy regarding domestic abuse.
Well, that didn’t take long. The Lions have scheduled a visit with linebacker Zach Orr, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (on Twitter), just hours announced that he is mulling a comeback. In addition to the Lions, seven other teams have already reached out to the 25-year-old.
[RELATED: Zach Orr Considering Comeback]
Orr was a restricted free agent with the Ravens, but they did not tender him a deal after he elected to retire in January. Months later, Orr has gotten new opinions regarding his congenital spinal condition and the doctors he has consulted with say he can play. The Ravens reportedly doubt their own doctors would clear him for action, so we’ll have to wait and see whether doctors for the Lions will give him a thumbs up.
Last year, Orr finished out with a team-leading 130 tackles and earned second-team All-Pro honors. From a football perspective, the Ravens would probably like to have him back on the field, but it doesn’t sound like they’ll be pursuing a new deal based on what GM Ozzie Newsome had to say Wednesday.
“I spoke with Zach yesterday and he informed me that he would like to continue to play football,” Newsome said in a statement. “He is a free agent.”