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Detroit Lions News & Rumors

Anquan Boldin Contemplating Retirement

February 3rd, 2017 at 7:49pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Lions wide receiver Anquan Boldin indicated last month that he was planning to return in 2017, which would be his age-37 season, but he sounded much less certain of his status Friday. Boldin is now considering retirement, per Kyle Meinke of MLive.com.

Anquan Boldin

“We’ll see what’s best for us,” Boldin said, referring to himself and his family. “It’s no longer what’s best for Anquan. I’ve got three others that depend on me as well, so we’ll see.”

For the second straight offseason, Boldin is primed to become a free agent, though he’s “definitely interested” in re-signing with the Lions if he continues his career. Boldin didn’t sign with the Lions until last July, and he went on to lead the playoff-bound club in touchdown catches (eight). While he also racked up 67 receptions on 95 targets, the slot receiver averaged a career-low 8.7 yards per catch.

Boldin, who entered the NFL as the Cardinals’ second-round pick in 2003, has played for four teams and amassed 1,076 catches, 13,779 yards and 82 scores in 14 seasons. He ranks ninth, 14th and 23rd all-time, respectively, in those categories and could move up a few more places in each if he comes back in 2017.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Lions Had Interest In Chris Long Last Offseason

February 1st, 2017 at 5:12pm CST by Zachary Links
  • If the Patriots didn’t reach out to Chris Long, he could have wound up with the Lions instead, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press writes. “Coach [Jim] Caldwell was awesome throughout that whole free agency process,” Long said. “They showed me a lot of respect that I didn’t necessarily deserve, in my eyes, because the last few years were so tough for me. But Coach Caldwell thought I could get back to who I was, and I’ll always respect him for that.” This year, he had four sacks and 32 tackles while playing in all 16 games for the Pats.

Rothstein: Lions Can Fill Defensive Holes Via Free Agency

January 28th, 2017 at 10:48am CST by Ben Levine
  • The Lions need some talent on the defensive side of the ball, and ESPN.com’s Michael Rothstein believes the team can acquire those types of players via free agency. The writer lists a number of impending free agents who could be intriguing fits for the Lions, including Patriots cornerback Logan Ryan, Rams cornerback T.J. McDonald, Patriots defensive end Jabaal Sheard, Giants defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins, Jaguars defensive tackle Abry Jones, and Jaguars running back Denard Robinson.
  • Lions defensive tackle Tyrunn Walker missed out on a $150K playing time bonus by only seven snaps, writes Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. The five-year veteran was required to play 35-percent of his team’s defensive snaps in order to earn the incentive, but he ended the season having played 34.4-percent of the defense’s snaps. Walker was a healthy scratch during his team’s Week 11 win over the Jaguars, and that decision surely cost the defensive tackle his bonus.

    [SOURCE LINK]

Lions Likely To Target Defense In Draft

January 22nd, 2017 at 9:31pm CST by Dallas Robinson
  • After finishing dead last in defensive DVOA in 2016, the Lions could target help on the defensive side of the ball in rounds one, two, and three of the draft, writes Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com. Indeed, Detroit GM Bob Quinn said last week that although he values free agency as a way to acquire talent, the Lions will continue to focus on the draft as they build their roster. As Rothstein details, Detroit could use reinforcements at every level of its defense, but adding an elite talent along the defensive line seems like the primary focus.

Josh McDaniels Could Eventually End Up With Lions

January 19th, 2017 at 9:34am CST by Connor J. Byrne

Earlier this week, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels pulled himself out of the race to become San Francisco’s head coach. It turns out he might be content to remain an assistant in New England until head coach Bill Belichick retires, at which point he would potentially take over, says Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). There are no indications the 64-year-old Belichick is pondering retirement, however, and Cole adds that McDaniels could leave the Pats after next season if either Tennessee or Detroit fires its head coach. McDaniels’ goal is to work with a general manager with “strong personnel skills,” per Cole, and he’s familiar with both Titans GM Jon Robinson and the Lions’ Bob Quinn. Those two were longtime members of New England’s front office before departing for their current jobs last offseason.

NFLPA Announces Cap Carryover Amounts

January 18th, 2017 at 11:36am CST by Connor J. Byrne

The NFL Players Association has announced all 32 teams’ salary cap carryover amounts for the 2017 season (Twitter link). Next season’s cap figure isn’t yet known, but it’s likely to be in the $165MM range. When that becomes official, it can be added to each team’s carryover amount to determine that club’s official spending room for 2017.

Here are this year’s carryover totals:

  1. Cleveland Browns: $50,123,269
  2. Jacksonville Jaguars: $39,314,310
  3. San Francisco 49ers: $38,708,916
  4. Tennessee Titans: $24,046,522
  5. Washington Redskins: $15,055,131
  6. Carolina Panthers: $13,208,020
  7. Miami Dolphins: $8,363,708
  8. Chicago Bears: $8,103,197
  9. Oakland Raiders: $8,000,000
  10. Green Bay Packers: $7,984,687
  11. Philadelphia Eagles: $7,933,869
  12. Denver Broncos: $7,243,248
  13. Indianapolis Colts: $6,614,106
  14. Cincinnati Bengals: $6,578,866
  15. New Orleans Saints: $5,754,000
  16. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $5,330,779
  17. New England Patriots: $5,292,335
  18. Kansas City Chiefs: $5,002,168
  19. Houston Texans: $4,935,924
  20. Detroit Lions: $4,725,644
  21. Arizona Cardinals: $4,405,068
  22. Pittsburgh Steelers: $3,269,367
  23. Buffalo Bills: $2,837,222
  24. Baltimore Ravens: $2,553,126
  25. Dallas Cowboys: $2,401,553
  26. Seattle Seahawks: $2,065,865
  27. New York Giants: $1,800,000
  28. Atlanta Falcons: $926,541
  29. Minnesota Vikings: $400,184
  30. New York Jets: $371,487
  31. Los Angeles Rams: $304,311
  32. Los Angeles Chargers: $113,693

2017 Proven Performance Escalators

January 17th, 2017 at 6:00pm CST by Dallas Robinson

According to the NFL’s contractual bargaining agreement, players drafted in rounds three though seven are entitled to raises during the fourth year of their respective rookie contracts. The pay bumps are tied to playing time — a player must have played in 35% of his team’s offensive or defensive snaps in two of his first three seasons, or averaged 35% playing time cumulatively during that period.Donte Moncrief (Vertical)

If one of these thresholds is met, the player’s salary is elevated to the level of that year’s lowest restricted free agent tender — that figure should be around $1.8MM in 2017. Players selected in the first or second round, undrafted free agents, and kickers/punters are ineligible for the proven performance escalator.

Here are the players who will see their salary rise in 2017 courtesy of the proven performance escalator:

49ers: Aaron Lynch, LB; Marcus Martin, OL

Bears: Charles Leno, T; Will Sutton, DT

Bengals: Russell Bodine, C

Bills: Preston Brown, LB; Seantrel Henderson, T

Broncos: Michael Schofield, OL

Browns: Christian Kirksey, LB

Buccaneers: Kevin Pamphile, G

Cardinals: John Brown, WR

Chiefs: Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, G; Zach Fulton, G; Phillip Gaines, CB

Colts: Donte Moncrief, WR

Cowboys: Anthony Hitchens, LB

Falcons: Devonta Freeman, RB

Giants: Devon Kennard, LB

Jaguars: Aaron Colvin, CB; Brandon Linder, G; Telvin Smith, LB

Lions: Nevin Lawson, CB; Travis Swanson, C

Packers: Corey Linsley, C; Richard Rodgers, TE

Panthers: Tre Boston, S; Trai Turner, G

Raiders: T.J. Carrie, CB; Justin Ellis, DT; Gabe Jackson, G

Rams: Maurice Alexander, S; E.J. Gaines, CB

Redskins: Bashaud Breeland, CB; Spencer Long, G; Morgan Moses, T

Texans: C.J. Fiedorowicz, TE; Andre Hal, S

Titans: DaQuan Jones, DL; Avery Williamson, LB

Vikings: Shamar Stephen, DT

Lions Notes: Quinn, Warford, Reiff, Free Agency

January 15th, 2017 at 5:59pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Although the Lions were ousted in the first round of the playoffs, the club’s 9-7 season can largely be considered a success. Since the campaign ended, Detroit has announced that head coach Jim Caldwell will be retained, while the Lions will also bring back both coordinators — Jim Bob Cooter (offense) and Teryl Austin (defense) — despite each being linked to head coaching vacancies around the league.

Let’s take a quick look at the latest out of the Motor City:

  • The Lions will aim to find talent through the free agent process, says general manager Bob Quinn, but the draft is still the primary way that Detroit will seek to procure players, as Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press details in a pair of articles. “I’m not opposed to free agency,” Quinn said. “I think you have to pick and choose your spots.” Armed with with roughly $41MM in cap space, the Lions will need to bolster a defense that dead last in DVOA in 2016 while also answering several questions on the offensive side of the ball.
  • Offensive guard Larry Warford indicated that he’s likely to test free agency, and will likely be more valuable to other clubs than he is to the Lions, according to Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press. Detroit boasts Laken Tomlinson and Graham Glasgow as potential options on the interior offensive line, meaning the Lions will be reticent to offer Warford a deal commensurate with his market value. Warford will compete with fellow guards Kevin Zeitler and T.J. Lang in free agency this March.
  • The Lions are unlikely to retain both Warford and free agent offensive tackle Riley Reiff, as Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com writes. Reiff moved to the right side in 2016 following the first-round selection of fellow offensive tackle Taylor Decker, and graded as the league’s No. 48 tackle among 80 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus. According to Rothstein, Reiff has given no indication as to whether he’s comfortable remaining at right tackle for the foreseeable future.
  • In case you missed it, Detroit blocked quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan from taking at least one offensive coordinator interview this offseason.

Lions QBs Coach Brian Callahan Is A "Future Coordinator To Watch"

January 14th, 2017 at 12:30pm CST by Ben Levine
  • Lions quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan is a “future coordinator to watch,” tweets Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com. The reporter adds that the organization has blocked Callahan from taking at least one interview with another team. Prior to his tenure in Detroit, Callahan spent six years with the Broncos.

    [SOURCE LINK]

Caldwell: Lions Don't Need "Playmakers"

January 13th, 2017 at 2:11pm CST by Ben Levine
  • Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press believes the Lions need to add “playmakers” this offseason. However, coach Jim Caldwell said those flashy additions are not necessary. “I don’t think (we need one) because I just think that you find a lot of teams that have an abundance of what you call quote-unquote superstars and they function dysfunctionally as a team,” Caldwell said. “I think that we’re more interested in what kind of team that we build. That’s the thing that’s most important to me. It’s how we function as a team.”

    [SOURCE LINK]
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