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Lions DT D.J. Reader Likely To Miss Time During Training Camp

July 2nd, 2024 at 9:46am CST by Adam La Rose

The Lions made a considerable addition to their defensive interior during free agency with the signing of D.J. Reader. The veteran defensive tackle is continuing to recover from his second career quad tear, though, and it could very well lead to missed time once training camp opens.

Reader is expected to be sidelined when camp begins later this month, as noted by Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (subscription required). He adds, however, that the 30-year-old remains on track to recover in full by the start of the regular season. Having Reader available for Week 1 would be a key development for the Lions’ front seven.

The quad tear ended Reader’s fourth Bengals campaign, and it threatened his free agent stock ahead of this spring. The former fifth-rounder inked a two-year deal with Detroit worth up to $27.25MM. The pact only includes $7.4MM locked in at signing, though, and with a $4MM roster bonus due early in the 2025 league year Reader’s health and performance come the fall will be key deciding factors in his future.

During his time in Cincinnati, the Clemson product served as a full-time starter and exceled as a run defender. Reader also posted 20 quarterback hits and seven pass knockdowns, and he faces high expectations in Detroit. The Lions underwhelmed in a number of defensive categories last season, although they were second in the league against the run. The team’s defensive front will likely remain strong in that regard with Reader in the fold.

If he is not fully healthy once training camp opens, Reader will be a candidate for the active/PUP list. Player can be activated from that list at any time, and the progress he makes with respect to rehab will be worth watching closely during the summer.

NFC North Front Office Updates: Vikings, Lions, Packers

June 28th, 2024 at 9:40pm CST by Ely Allen

The Vikings announced a number of hires to their scouting staff in recent weeks. As general manager continues to find the path to draft success in the NFL, he is enlisting the help of these new additions to achieve the best possible results.

Before getting to the new hires, Minnesota promoted Sam DeLuca to director of pro personnel, according to Neil Stratton of SucceedinFootball.com. DeLuca joined the Vikings about a year ago as a senior assistant director of pro personnel before getting the full director title. His NFL start came as a scouting intern with the Eagles in 2012 before he spent ten years in the Browns scouting department.

The biggest new hire comes in DeLuca’s department as Shane Normandeau joins the team as a pro scout. Normandeau worked alongside DeLuca in Cleveland, joining the Browns two years ago as football operations coordinator after interning for three months with the Colts.

The team also hired on Brian Schnorr as a scouting associate. Schnorr is making his NFL staff debut after three and a half years working in college recruiting with UCF, Florida State, and Nebraska. Schorr also has three years of experience as a data analyst with Pro Football Focus. Lastly, Minnesota added Dabness Atkins as a scouting assistant. After playing college ball at Holy Cross, Dabness spent the 2023 season as a recruiting assistant at UMass.

Here are a few other front office updates out of the NFC North:

  • The Lions made a big move, adding Charlie Adkins to the staff as senior director of football administration, per ESPN’s Seth Walder. Adkins comes from Arizona, where he spent the last seven years in the Cardinals’ football analytics and research department, eventually working his way up to manager of football analytics and research. He reunites with chief operating officer Mike Disner, who joined the Lions in 2019 after six years with the Cardinals as director of football administration.
  • Stratton informs us of one more NFC North scouting hire, noting the addition of Sam Fleming as a scouting assistant for the Packers. Fleming first worked in the NFL as an intern with the Saints before serving two years at Samford, where he played wide receiver in college, in personnel and operations. He has spent the last three years working with National Football Scouting.

Lions One Of Few To View Sione Vaki As RB

June 22nd, 2024 at 5:19pm CST by Ely Allen

During the 2024 NFL Draft process, the Lions quite literally saw something in Sione Vaki that no other team did. In terms of both value and use, the Lions were one of the only teams to view Vaki the way they did, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. As a result, the rookie out of Utah will start his NFL career as a running back, as opposed to the safety role he played throughout his collegiate career.

Vaki was able to declare for the NFL draft after only two years of college football due to the fact that, as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Vaki participated in a three-year mission after high school. After graduating from Liberty HS (CA) in 2019, he signed with the Utes, officially becoming a member of the team’s 2021 signing class following his mission.

As a true freshman in 2022, Vaki started five of 14 game appearances as a safety on Utah’s defense, tallying 41 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and three passes defensed. In 2023, injuries in the Ute’s running backs room led the team to utilize Vaki on both sides of the ball.

While starting all 12 games at safety, Vaki also saw significant time at running back and running the wildcat formation on offense. In addition to improving on his defensive marks with 51 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, three passes defensed, and an interception, Vaki averaged 7.5 yards per rush on 42 attempts for 317 yards and two touchdowns. If that wasn’t enough, he displayed impressive receiving abilities, catching 11 passes for 203 yards and three more scores. With all of his offensive production, Vaki still led the team in defensive snaps played. He earned two first-team All-PAC-12 distinctions: one as a safety and one in the all-purpose position.

Because most of his experience came on the defensive side of the ball, Vaki was mainly viewed as a safety prospect in the draft process. He projected as a strong safety due to his aggressiveness and toughness, but a lack of fluidity and instincts in coverage posed a threat to his value on defense, marking him as a likely sixth-round pick or later.

Detroit disagreed with this assessment and appears to have been the only team to do so. Not only did the Lions draft Vaki with the intention that he would play running back in Detroit, but they even traded up for the versatile Ute, taking him near the end of the fourth round. With a safety and a running back taken in the two picks following Vaki, it’s hard to say whether the trade up was intending to prevent another team from drafting him, but Vaki was taken shortly after a fourth-round run that saw five running backs taken in the span of ten picks.

Regardless of his intended drafted position, Vaki was the tenth player taken at either position, getting selected after nine other running backs and nine other safeties. Vaki won’t likely be a candidate to push David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs for offensive snaps at running back as a rookie, but because of his defensive experience, he vastly increases his odds of making the roster as a crucial special teamer. With the safety position thinned out following the departures of C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Tracy Walker, Vaki may be available on that side of the ball in a pinch, as well. For now, though, Vaki resides on the Lions’ roster as a running back.

NFL Contract Details: Slayton, Fornadel, Bates, Hand

June 22nd, 2024 at 3:47pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are some details on recent contracts reached around the NFL:

  • Darius Slayton, WR (Giants): Two years, $12MM. We already covered the Giants’ new contract with Slayton containing added incentives and its impact on the team’s salary cap. Thanks to Dan Duggan of The Athletic, we finally have details on what those incentives will be. Like his incentives from the 2023 season, Slayton’s incentives will fall under the three main receiving categories: receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Each category is broken into three non-cumulative tiers; if Slayton reaches the second or third tier, he will only receive the money for those tiers, not adding them to the lower tiers. Slayton will receive $100K for reaching 51 receptions, $300K for 60 receptions, and $600K for 70; he will get $100K for reaching 771 receiving yards, $300K for 875 yards, and $600K for 1,000; finally, he can get $100K for reaching six touchdowns, $300K for eight scores, and $600K for 10. While these incentives were in place last year, the update increased each second tier by $50K and each third tier by $100K. The team also added a $350K incentive based on whether or not Slayton makes the Pro Bowl. Should Slayton hit every top incentive, he has the opportunity to earn an additional $2.15MM.
  • Liam Fornadel, G (Patriots): Three years, $2.83MM. Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 reports the above details for Fornadel’s contract. One of the XFL’s recent additions to the NFL, Fornadel’s deal is worth quite a bit more than some of his former XFL peers’.
  • Jake Bates, K (Lions): Two years, $1.98MM. According to Wilson, Bates NFL deal includes a total guaranteed amount of $150K with $100K of that amount consisting of his signing bonus and the other $50K being guaranteed in his first-year base salary of $795K. His second-year base salary will be worth $960K.
  • Harrison Hand, CB (Falcons): One year, $1.06MM. Hand will get the minimum, per Wilson, with no guarantees, bonuses, or incentives reported as of right now.

Lions S Brian Branch To Have Bigger Role On Defense

June 22nd, 2024 at 2:39pm CST by Ely Allen

Coming out of Alabama, Brian Branch was broadcasted as one of the top safeties available in the 2023 draft class, which became realized as he was the top safety off the board in the second round last year. During his rookie season in Detroit, though, Branch saw very little time at safety, something that is likely to change in 2024, according to Lions senior writer Tim Twentyman.

Though Branch wasn’t playing in his assumed role as a rookie, he was still a very significant factor on the defense in 2023. In nine starts over 15 games played, Branch racked up 74 tackles, 13 passes defensed, and three interceptions (one returned for a touchdown) working almost exclusively as a nickel cornerback. Those rookie efforts earned him a ranking as the 14th-best cornerback in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), and the second-best pure slot corner behind New York’s Michael Carter II; Kansas City’s Trent McDuffie and Seattle’s Devon Witherspoon also saw significant time in the slot but played a decent amount on the outside, as well.

The safety spots in Detroit last year were manned by Kerby Joseph on one side and Tracy Walker and Ifeatu Melifonwu, who split time on the other side in 2023 after an injury held C.J. Gardner-Johnson out of 14 contests. With Gardner-Johnson back in Philadelphia and Walker being released back in February, a door has opened for Branch to get more work at a thinner safety position. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn reportedly prefers his nickelbacks to have experience at safety due to the physical demands of the slot in today’s game anyway.

We haven’t seen evidence of this newly expanded role for Branch yet this offseason in minicamp or organized team activities. A minor surgical cleanup procedure on the young defensive back’s ankle has held him out of early activities this offseason, per Justin Rogers of The Detroit News.

Once he returns to the field in camp, though, it will be interesting to see just how much the Lions intend to cross-train Branch on the defense this offseason. Branch should likely get an opportunity to start alongside Joseph at safety. Should the Lions prefer to utilize him in last year’s nickelback role at all, Melifonwu should be able to rotate in as an additional defensive back to cover the back end. While Detroit is still a bit thin at safety, Branch’s versatility should provide some potential solutions in 2024.

Minor NFL Transactions: 6/18/24

June 18th, 2024 at 7:54pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Detroit Lions

Miami Dolphins

  • Waived: WR Mathew Sexton

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

  • Signed: G Liam Fornadel

New York Jets

  • Signed: OL Kohl Levao

Jones-Smith brings six games of experience to Atlanta, with the offensive lineman seeing time with the Raiders (2020) and Ravens (2021). The majority of his career snaps have come on special teams. He’ll provide the Falcons with some OT depth behind Jake Matthews and Kaleb McGary.

The Lions officially added former UFL kicker Jake Bates to their squad, so the team moved on from an undrafted kicker to make room. Turner spent four years at Louisville before joining Michigan for the 2023 campaign. He had a standout season for the Wolverines, converting 18 of his 21 field goal attempts and 65 of his 66 XP tries.

Lions Expected To Sign UFL Kicker Jake Bates

June 15th, 2024 at 9:05am CST by Ely Allen

TODAY, 9:05am: Bates will be inking a two-year deal with the Lions, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

FRIDAY, 10:00pm: The NFL interest in UFL kicker Jake Bates has been no secret over the past several weeks. Bates has been taking the football world by storm in his season with the Michigan Panthers out of Detroit. Now, it’s seeming like he’ll get a chance to play for the city’s NFL team as Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 reports that the Lions are expected to add the big leg to their roster.

Bates signed with the Texans last year after going undrafted but was waived just prior to the preseason. This wasn’t extremely surprising as Bates didn’t kick any field goals in college. During time at Texas State and Arkansas, Bates was utilized singularly on kickoffs, using leg strength gained in two seasons of college soccer at Central Arkansas. Finding his place in the UFL, though, Bates has taken the football world by storm.

Bates started off the season extremely hot, making 15 of 18 field goal attempts, before eventually cooling off to end the season going 21-for-28 on field goals. While the initial accuracy was admirable, what really made an impression was his leg strength. Of his seven misses, five were from over 50 yards, yet he still ended the season seven-for-12 from long distance. Of those seven makes from 50+, three of those were from 60 yards or further.

The young kicker doesn’t shy away from the spotlight either. Two of his makes have been game-winners, including a career-long 64-yarder to open the season. His 64-yard make is second to only Justin Tucker‘s 66-yarder in Detroit’s stadium. He did miss a 53-yard game-winning attempt in the team’s regular season finale, though.

Bates has received interest from a few NFL teams, but because of his contract with the UFL squad, he was unable to sign with anyone until the team’s season came to an end. With Bates’ Panthers losing to the Birmingham Stallions last weekend, the window will soon open for Bates to sign. Wilson reports that any official deal won’t be signed until Tuesday of next week. Aside from the Lions, Bates recently visited the Packers and Commanders, per Wilson. The Ravens were also listed as a team of interest, and Wilson notes two other teams showed interest, as well.

Whenever Bates does arrive in Detroit, he will be in competition with the Lions’ incumbent kicker Michael Badgley. Badgley took over late in the season for Riley Patterson, who served as the team’s kicker for 13 games last year. In replacement duty, Badgely went four-for-four on field goal attempts, though he did miss two extra points. During the team’s run to the NFC Championship Game, Badgley was a perfect three-for-three on field goals and 11-for-11 on extra points. Despite this consistency, Badgley was rarely tested in big moments. Throughout the playoffs, head coach Dan Campbell repeatedly opted to go for it in long field goal scenarios.

The only other option currently on the roster is James Turner, an undrafted rookie from Michigan. A grad transfer for the Wolverines after four years at Louisville, Turner showed inconsistent production at the collegiate level. Turner missed eight field goals and two extra points in his sophomore season with the Cardinals. He never made more than 20 field goals in a season and only had a career-long of 50 yards, so he may not be the answer to Campbell’s hesitation from long distance.

That answer could come, though, in the form of Bates. With his first opportunity to placekick last year, Bates caught everyone’s attention with early accuracy, a strong leg, and a clutch ability in big moments. If he can carry that early success into his first NFL season, he should stand a solid chance at beating out Badgley and Turner for the job in 2024.

Lions Sign Round 1 CB Terrion Arnold, Complete Draft Class

June 13th, 2024 at 12:37pm CST by Adam La Rose

Terrion Arnold signed his rookie deal with the Lions on Thursday, per a team announcement. As a result, each member of the team’s draft class is now on the books.

Detroit entered the offseason with cornerback seen as a pressing need, and the team addressed it with the trade acquisition of Carlton Davis and the signing of Amik Robertson. The Lions moved on from Cameron Sutton following his domestic violence arrest, though, leaving room for draft investments.

The 2024 draft’s hosts pulled off a trade with the Cowboys on Day 1, moving up five spots to No. 24. That allowed them to select Arnold and prevent a division rival the opportunity to do so. The Packers were reportedly high on the Alabama product, making them a threat to draft him at No. 25. Instead, Arnold will begin his career in the Motor City with high expectations.

The Freshman All-American took on a large role for the Crimson Tide in 2022. He posted one interception and eight pass breakups that season, but entering this past campaign it was teammate Kool-Aid McKinstry who was regarded as a better prospect. That changed over the course of 2023, with Arnold excelling with respect to coverage and ball production.

The latter led the SEC in interceptions (five) and finished second in the conference in pass deflections (12). Arnold – who was connected to a rumor about the Raiders deciding not to draft him via a coin flip – earned first-team All-SEC and All-American honors as a result and cemented his status as one of the top corners in this year’s class. He was the second prospect at the position to hear his name called, going two spots after the Eagles added Quinyon Mitchell.

Just like Philadelphia, Detroit doubled down on corners by adding Ennis Rakestraw Jr. in the second round. He and Arnold will compete for a starting role in a secondary which features Davis, Robertson and versatile 2023 second-rounder Brian Branch. Regardless of how the unit shakes out, Arnold’s addition should help Detroit take a notable step forward in pass defense this year.

Here is the final breakdown of the Lions’ draft class:

Minor NFL Transactions: 6/12/24

June 12th, 2024 at 6:33pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are Wednesday’s minor NFL moves:

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Released (with injury settlement): CB Luq Barcoo

Seattle Seahawks

Minor NFL Transactions: 6/11/24

June 11th, 2024 at 8:24pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor transactions:

Atlanta Falcons

Detroit Lions

New England Patriots

  • Claimed off waivers (from Lions): LB Steele Chambers
  • Waived: LB Jay Person

Harrison Hand brings 27 games of experience to Atlanta. The former fifth-round pick spent the first two seasons of his career with the Vikings before spending the 2023 campaign in Chicago, where he collected 12 tackles and one forced fumble in four games (one start). Meanwhile, fellow cornerback Craig James has seen time in 23 games since entering the NFL in 2018. After going without a regular-season appearance in 2021 and 2022, James got into a pair of games with the Jets last season.

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