Kalif Raymond has been an important part of the Detroit Lions offense the past two seasons, and the Lions are betting he stays that for at least two more.
The Lions signed Raymond, their second-best receiver and a second-team All-Pro punt returner last season, to a two-year contract extension Friday. The deal ties Raymond to Detroit through the 2025 season.
Raymond, 29, was second on the Lions with 616 yards receiving last season and ranked second in the NFL with a 13.2-yard punt return average. He has 95 catches in two seasons with Detroit after catching 19 passes the previous five seasons, and scored his first career return touchdown (47 yards) to spark a Week 15 win over the New York Jets last December.
The Lions return Amon-Ra St. Brown and Raymond from a passing game that ranked eighth in the NFL last season, but they’re looking for another reliable target to emerge in the receiving corps. Josh Reynolds has joined St. Brown and Raymond with the first-team offense for most of the summer. Jameson Williams, last year’s No. 12 overall pick, has a six-game suspension to serve to start the season, and Marvin Jones, Denzel Mims and undrafted rookie Dylan Drummond are among others vying for time at receiver.
Raymond entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Denver Broncos in 2016 and spent his first five seasons bouncing between four different teams while playing primarily on special teams.
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He has been one of the Lions’ most consistent players in his two seasons in Detroit, and is known as one of the team’s hardest workers.
Consistently one of the last players out of the building every day, Raymond and St. Brown have been regulars working the JUGS machine after practice since 2021.
St. Brown, who leads the Lions with 196 catches over the past two seasons, will be eligible for a contract extension after this year.
Despite being undersized at 5 feet 8 and 180 pounds, Raymond has averaged 12.5 yards per catch in Detroit while playing both outside and in the slot.
“He’s our iron man,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said last season. “He does everything for us and he doesn’t bat an eye. He doesn’t whine. He doesn’t complain. It’s never too hard. It’s never ‘this job is too much.’ He just goes. ‘What do you need me to do?’ and he goes. You can’t have enough of those guys.”
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.