Detroit Lions Rumors & News - Pro Football Rumors

Levy Planning Grievance Against Lions?

April 6th, 2017 at 6:13pm CST by Sam Robinson

DeAndre Levy went from cornerstone Lions linebacker to unrestricted free agent in less than two years, with injuries largely paving his way out of Detroit.

But the linebacker appears to be at odds against his former team after undergoing a recent surgery, with an Instagram post that read, “‘Your knee is fine,’ they said,” (via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, on Twitter). This calls into question the Lions’ assessment of his injured knee and could lead to a grievance.

Levy underwent surgery a few days ago, Birkett reports. The outside linebacker underwent a previous procedure to clean up meniscus tears in his knee last season, causing him to miss 11 games in 2016. Levy characterized the latest operation as “a retouch up on the meniscus and some other damage,” per Birkett, who adds Levy is unhappy with how the Lions handled his injuries over the past two seasons.

“There was more going on than I was being told,” Levy said, via Birkett. “I can’t say what this means for free agency. My main focus is to actually heal and get healthy under trusted physicians.”

The Lions released Levy on March 9 and designated him as a post-June 1 cut. However, Levy had a $1.75MM injury guarantee in his contract. The Lions avoided paying that in the release by passing him on his physical, Birkett reports, assuming this will lead to a grievance against the team centering around that injury guarantee.

GM Bob Quinn said the team did not approach Levy about taking a paycut from the $5.75MM salary he was supposed to earn in 2017 because the Lions wanted to turn to younger linebackers. Levy turned 30 in March.

Detroit signed the outside linebacker to a four-year, $33.74MM extension in the summer of 2015 to make him the highest-paid 4-3 outside ‘backer at the time of the deal. However, he played just six games since after running into extensive injury trouble. Hip and knee problems sidetracked Levy, who had played 16 games in three of the previous four seasons. A grievance would mark the second straight complex offseason regarding the release of a linebacker for the Lions, who went through a lengthy ways-parting saga with Stephen Tulloch last year.

Lions Sign LB Nick Bellore

April 3rd, 2017 at 10:41am CST by Zachary Links

The Lions have signed linebacker Nick Bellore, according to a team announcement. Bellore was previously with the Niners and entered the league with the Jets.

Bellore is primarily known for his special teams work, but he did get reps on defense last year with San Francisco. In 2016, he had ten starts on defense and finished out with 83 tackles, one sack, one interception, and a forced fumble. For his work in 692 snaps, Pro Football Focus ranked him as the No. 61 linebacker in the NFL last season out of 87 qualified players. His run defense left much to be desired, per the advanced metrics, but his solid coverage score helped boost his overall grade.

It remains to be seen how Detroit will use him, but it seems like he’ll provide linebacker depth as well as special teams help. Bellore went to college at Central Michigan, so this is something of a homecoming for the 27-year-old.

Raiders Had Interest In Re-Signing Hayden

April 2nd, 2017 at 7:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

Despite joining many of his high-first-round peers from 2013 in not living up to their draft statuses, D.J. Hayden signed a one-year, $3.75MM deal from the Lions. He will be looking to bounce back after four inconsistent seasons with the Raiders. His former GM agrees that Hayden needed to go elsewhere.

McKenzie considered making a push to re-sign the former No. 12 overall pick, and per the Free Press’ Dave Birkett, that might have happened if Hayden came at more of a discount. But the sixth-year Raiders GM concluded that if Hayden was going to reach his potential as an NFL corner he would have to leave Oakland. The injuries that dogged Hayden “killed his confidence,” per McKenzie. Hayden played in 16 games just once in his four Raider years, in 2015, and missed the final five games last season. The Lions are expected to give Hayden a quality opportunity to win their slot corner job alongside Darius Slay and Nevin Lawson.

Lions Intent On Adding Linebackers

April 1st, 2017 at 9:34pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Having swapped out DeAndre Levy for Paul Worrilow this offseason, the Lions still feel linebacker is a need area, as Kyle Meinke of MLive.com writes. “We’re going to throw (Worrilow) in the mix, and see how it kind of works out with the guys that we have and any guys we might add,” Detroit general manager Bob Quinn said. “He’s not the total answer to everything we want, but we think he’s a really good signing that we kind of targeted early on.” Worrilow joins Tahir Whitehead, Antwione Williams, and Thurston Armbrister as the Lions’ current linebackers, while the club could use the No. 21 overall selection to bring in another second-level player.

Lions Are Happy That Ngata Is Sticking Around

April 1st, 2017 at 11:41am CST by Ben Levine

There were rumors that veteran defensive tackle Haloti Ngata could consider retirement, but the 33-year-old decided to return to the Lions for the 2017-18 campaign. Coach Jim Caldwell is certainly happy that the defensive lineman will be sticking around. “Obviously, when you get to (have) played as many years as he has, you never know,” Caldwell said (via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press). “And I think once a guy gets about eight, nine years (in), that’s certainly always a possibility. But certainly we’re glad that he’s coming back.”
Lions offensive lineman Laken Tomlinson may have lost his starting gig last season, but general manager Bob Quinn made it sound like the first-round pick will be returning. “Laken’s still here,” Quinn told Birkett. “Laken’s going to compete at the left guard spot, and we’ll head into training camp and OTAs with really good depth and really good competition across the board.”

[SOURCE LINK]

Lions Work Out T.J. Watt

March 31st, 2017 at 8:49pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Wisconsin’s T.J. Watt, brother of Texans superstar J.J. Watt, is drawing interest from a bevy of teams and getting looks at various front seven positions. The younger Watt has lined up at outside linebacker, inside linebacker and along the defensive line in recent workouts. Watt told Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com that he has worked out for the Cowboys, Lions and Patriots in the past week. He’s scheduled to work out for the Panthers, too, and will visit the Cowboys’ and Redskins’ facilities soon.

Gunther Cunningham Joins PFF

March 31st, 2017 at 3:33pm CST by Zachary Links

Gunther Cunningham is leaving the Lions, but not for another coaching gig. The former defensive coordinator is joining Pro Football Focus as their new Director of Football Oversight, according to a team press release.

“We are thrilled to add to our PFF family one of the true legends of defensive football,” Pro Football Focus Owner and NBC color analyst Cris Collinsworth said in a statement. “Gunther Cunningham is such a unique coach and person. He has always connected with his players in such a deep personal way, and his aggressive style of defense has always made him a player and fan favorite. The rare aspect of Gunther’s career is how this old school coach has embraced today’s data analytics. It is the blending of that traditional football acumen with modern technical expertise that makes Gunther such a perfect fit for PFF.”

Cunningham has 48 years of coaching experience under his belt between the NFL and college. That resume includes two seasons as the Chiefs’ head coach and 15 as a defensive coordinator. He has spent the past eight seasons with the Lions with different titles, including assistant head coach/defensive coordinator and senior coaching advisor.

Lions Notes: Levy, Boldin, Quinn, Becton

March 28th, 2017 at 1:16pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Lions released linebacker DeAndre Levy rather than asking him to accept a paycut because the club wants to get younger on defense, general manager Bob Quinn told reporters, including Justin Rogers of the Detroit News (Twitter link). Detroit’s current linebackers — Tahir Whitehead, Paul Worrilow, Thurston Armbrister, and Antwione Williams — are all 27 years old or younger, while Levy is now 30 and had only played in six games over the past two seasons.

Here’s more from the Motor City:

Detroit is still “open for business” during the free agent period, says Quinn (Twitter link via Kyle Meinke of MLive.com). The Lions have been involved in the open market, especially along the offensive line, where the team added T.J. Lang and Ricky Wanger to fortify the right side. Additionally, the Lions made several low-cost signings such as cornerback D.J. Hayden, tight end Darren Fells, and defensive lineman Cornelius Washington and Akeem Spence.
One free agent the Lions may sign is veteran wide receiver Anquan Boldin, as Quinn indicates the club still has interest in retaining the 36-year-old, tweets Rogers. Boldin has already indicated he’ll return for a 15th NFL season, but he may not sign with a club until later this summer. On 95 targets, Boldin managed 67 receptions for 584 yards and eight touchdowns in 2016. The Ravens, meanwhile, are also interested in a reunion with Boldin.
The Lions recently met with free agent offensive tackle Nick Becton, according to Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com. Becton, 27, was an undrafted free agent in 2013, and has since spent time with the Chargers, Giants, Saints, and Bears. He hasn’t appeared in a game since 2015, when he played in five contests for Chicago.

Lions Planning Extension For DE Ziggy Ansah

March 28th, 2017 at 11:52am CST by Dallas Robinson

While the Lions have defensive end Ziggy Ansah under contract in 2017 thanks to his fifth-year option, Detroit would like to lock up the fifth-year edge rusher for the foreseeable future. The Lions have interest in inking Ansah to a long-term extension, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, who cautions talks have not yet started.

After posting 30 sacks during his first three years with the Lions (including 14.5 in 2015), Ansah registered only two quarterback takedowns last year. Bothered by ankle and shoulder injuries, Ansah didn’t put up a sack until Week 11, and garnered his worst Pro Football Focus grade since his rookie campaign (PFF rated Ansah as the No. 51 edge defender among 109 qualifiers).

Ansah, 27, will earn $12.734MM in 2017 before becoming an unrestricted free agent next offseason. Detroit will have the option of assigning Ansah the franchise tag next spring, but that would come with a high price tag. The 2017 franchise tender for defensive ends is worth $16.394MM, so increases in the salary cap could push that figure near $18MM in 2018.

A franchise tag wouldn’t come cheap, but neither will an extension, as Ansah and his representatives will likely to point to recent comparable edge defender contracts when negotiations get underway. Those deals might include Von Miller ($19.083MM annually), Olivier Vernon ($17MM), Chandler Jones ($16.5MM), and Jason Pierre-Paul ($15.5MM).

Lions, Matthew Stafford Start Extension Negotiations

March 27th, 2017 at 10:54pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Lions are in the “very early stages” of contract extension negotiations with quarterback Matthew Stafford, general manager Bob Quinn told the team’s website (via Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com). Quinn indicated that it’s going to take “months, not weeks” for a deal to come together. Stafford, 29, is slated to enter a contract year.

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