Allen Park — The intensity of training camp is about to rise a couple levels with the New York Giants coming to town next week for a pair of joint practices with the Detroit Lions, leading into the preseason opener between the two squads on Friday, Aug. 11.
The Lions have just one practice and two walkthroughs remaining prior to the Giants’ arrival. With two weeks of camp in the books, and a little lull in media access, it struck us as a good time to take a closer look at where the roster stands and offer an initial assessment of how the impending cut to 53 players might shake out.
Quarterback (2)
▶ In: Jared Goff, Nate Sudfeld
▶ Out: Adrian Martinez
▶ Non-Football Injury: Hendon Hooker
▶ Thoughts: Hooker has been making steady progress as he works his way back from the torn ACL he suffered last season at Tennessee, but it remains highly unlikely he’s activated prior to the start of the regular season. This was always designed to be something of a medical redshirt year for the rookie, which allows the Lions to roll into the season with just two quarterbacks and use the extra roster spot on another position.
Obviously, the chatter of Teddy Bridgewater lingers. While he’d unquestionably be an upgrade for the backup spot, Sudfeld is a far more cost-efficient option who has looked more than capable of stepping in for Goff for a short stretch, if needed.
Running back (4)
▶ In: David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs, Justin Jackson, Jason Cabinda
▶ Out: Craig Reynolds, Jermar Jefferson, Mohamed Ibrahim
▶ Thoughts: The Lions carried five running backs into the season last year, but it’s safe to assume concerns with D’Andre Swift’s durability were a factor in that thought process. Could the team still justify rostering five? Absolutely, but we’re content to go lighter here in this first projection.
The third running back spot remains up for grabs. Reynolds entered camp in pole position and appears to be quicker than he was a season ago. And Jefferson deserves praise for the clear effort he has put into improving as a special teamer. Still, it’s been Jackson who has been running with the top groups for those units since re-signing late last month.
Special teams are also the easy justification to keep Cabinda, over his limited usage as a fullback.
Wide receiver (6)
▶ In: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Kalif Raymond, Marvin Jones, Josh Reynolds, Denzel Mims, Antoine Green
▶ Out: Trinity Benson, Maurice Alexander, Trey Quinn, Dylan Drummond, Chase Cota
▶ Suspended: Jameson Williams
▶ Thoughts: The top four of St. Brown, Raymond, Jones and Reynolds are borderline locks. And Mims has shown enough, both on offense and special teams, to justify coughing up the late-round, conditional draft pick the Lions will need to send the New York Jets if they keep him. The 6-foot-3, nearly 210-pounder brings elite size and physical gifts to the table, providing the size-speed combo on the outside general manager Brad Holmes has been trying to find since taking the job.
The Lions have enough talent in the mix to reasonably keep a sixth receiver. And although he hasn’t been the best of the bunch to date, Green, the team’s seventh-round draft pick, has downfield potential worthy of continued development. But he’s going to have to show up here in the joint practices and preseason games or risk losing the spot to one of this offseason’s best stories, Drummond, who earned a contract as a tryout player and has been a steady performer as he’s slowly worked his way up the depth chart.
Tight end (3)
▶ In: Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright, James Mitchell
▶ Out: Darrell Daniels, Daniel Helm
▶ Thoughts: Shane Zylstra’s unfortunate injury ended his bid for a roster spot, but the Lions are still in good shape with three young talents in the room. LaPorta is on a clear path to start and play the most reps, while Wright and Mitchell will be complementary pieces.
Daniels and Helm, who both entered the picture after Zylstra went down earlier this week, haven’t been around long enough to evaluate. Of the two, Daniels is more intriguing. He previously played for position coach Steve Heiden in Arizona and has a more blocking-focused resume, offering the Lions something different than they already have.
Offensive line (9)
▶ In: Taylor Decker, Penei Sewell, Jonah Jackson, Halapoulivaati Vaitai, Frank Ragnow, Graham Glasgow, Matt Nelson, Colby Sorsdal, Kayode Awosika
▶ Out: Logan Stenberg, Germain Ifedi, Obinna Eze, Darrin Paulo, Ryan Swoboda, Max Pircher, Brad Cecil, Ross Pierschbacher, Connor Galvin
▶ Thoughts: Whether it’s Vaitai or Glasgow who emerge as the starting right guard, the Lions have a stellar top-six linemen. Things get a bit shakier with the depth at offensive tackle. Nelson remains the top swing backup, with 12 career starts under his belt, but there’s a reasonable case to be made to retain Ifedi instead, given his extensive experience and solid track record in pass protection.
Then again, maybe Vaitai could simply move back out to right tackle if one of the starting bookends gets hurt.
With injury concerns for both Ragnow (toe) and Vaitai (back), it strikes us as smart to keep some extra interior depth. Awosika, whom the Lions poached off Philadelphia’s practice squad last season, has the benefit of a couple years of physical and mental development, making him the easy choice. He’s the type of player who might not clear waivers if the Lions were to cut him.
Defensive line (10)
▶ In: Aidan Hutchinson, Charles Harris, Romeo Okwara, Josh Paschal, Alim McNeill, Isaiah Buggs, John Cominsky, Benito Jones, Brodric Martin, Levi Onwuzurike
▶ Out: Zach Morton, Christian Covington, Cory Durden, Chris Smith
▶ Thoughts: Most of the roster decisions up front are obvious. It’s easy to see those first nine names getting meaningful playing time during the 2023 season, and finding the right mix-and-match balance will be a weekly challenge for defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn.
Onwuzurike is a trickier conversation. He missed all of last season with a back injury, and now that he’s medically cleared, there’s an understandable desire to see whether he’s capable of delivering on the talent that made him a second-round draft pick in 2021.
But there’s also something to be said about guaranteeing salary with that kind of injury risk. Several years back, the Lions cut running back Theo Riddick in training camp because they didn’t want to chance paying the salary of a player who was likely to get hurt during the season. The same thought process could apply here.
For now, we’re leaning toward keeping Onwuzurike because Holmes is invested and the potential sunk cost is relatively small against the overall salary cap.
Linebacker (7)
▶ In: Alex Anzalone, Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes, Malcolm Rodriguez, Anthony Pittman, James Houston, Jalen Reeves-Maybin
▶ Out: Julian Okwara, Trevor Nowaske
▶ Thoughts: We understand the situation at the top of the depth chart. Anzalone is a starter while Campbell, Barnes and Rodriguez are fighting for snaps at the other starting spot, with all three currently in line for some level of playing time through different defensive packages.
As for Pittman and Reeves-Maybin, they’re top special teams contributors. But if the numbers game dictates going with one over the other, Reeves-Maybin was given a good chunk of guaranteed salary for a reason this offseason.
As for Houston, he’s been in something of a no man’s land this offseason as the Lions have tried to get him more comfortable playing off the ball. He’s obviously a supremely talented pass rusher, but I could see a situation where he’s a healthy scratch early in the season. And if the team is unwilling to lean into his best skill, maybe it’s worth exploring the trade market for a team who would, with the idea of selling high on a player who might not be the fit we all thought at the end of last season.
Also of note, we have the younger Okwara brother on the outside looking in. In part due to injuries, he’s never been able to settle into a groove during his three-plus years in Detroit. Where he has been taking reps in practice is indicative of the ground he has to make up to get back on the right side of the bubble.
Defensive back (9)
▶ In: Cam Sutton, Jerry Jacobs, Will Harris, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Kerby Joseph, Tracy Walker, Brian Branch, Starling Thomas V, Chase Lucas
▶ Out: Ifeatu Melifonwu, Saivion Smith, Khalil Dorsey, Brady Breeze, Jarren Williams, Steven Gilmore, Brandon Joseph
▶ Injured: Emmanuel Moseley
▶ Thoughts: Until he takes the field, we’re working under the assumption that Moseley will start the season on the PUP list and miss the first six games. If anything changes there, he’d bump Lucas off our list.
For now, the back end starters are Sutton, Jacobs, Joseph, Walker, with Gardner-Johnson manning the slot. And the team has been toying with the idea of subbing in the rookie Branch for Walker in clearer passing situations.
As for depth, Harris’ ability to play all five spots in the secondary while offering significant special teams contributions makes him an easy fit for the roster. And we’re comfortable putting Thomas on, as well, given that he’s been working with the second-team defense and top special teams groups all camp.
The Lucas choice is tenuous, at best. We’ve really liked his camp performance and he looks like he has some special teams ability, including the potential to play gunner on punt coverage. Our choice here pushes the oft-injured but talented Melifonwu off the roster.
Smith, Breeze and Gilmore remain in the mix, as well. Smith has been performing well in his return from last year’s terrifying neck injury and Breeze is a solid special teamer. Gilmore has flashed in coverage, but the 174-pounder likely needs some additional physical development before he’s ready for a roster spot.
Specialists (3)
▶ In: Jack Fox, Riley Patterson, Scott Daly
▶ Out: Parker Romo, Jake McQuaide
▶ Thoughts: Fox is a lock, obviously, while the kicking and long snapping jobs remain up for grabs. We don’t have enough information without the benefit of preseason games, so we’ll go with the two guys who have been taking the top reps in practice.
For the kickers, Patterson and Romo have had nearly identical camps. Patterson’s leg strength does look improved, but Romo continues to have a clear edge in that department. If the latter can prove to be a little more consistent through the preseason, he could unseat the favorite.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers