The Detroit Lions will spend the next three days paring down their roster from 91 players to 53. Tough decisions are ahead, and for general manager Brad Holmes and coach Dan Campbell, there will likely be intense and difficult conversations ahead.
I did my best to create an initial 53-man roster prediction for the 2025 Lions. Erik Schlitt did the same, and you can see his projections here.
Note: An asterisk (*) denotes the player is a rookie
Quarterbacks (2)
Jared Goff
Kyle AllenHendon Hooker
Kyle Allen handily won the backup quarterback job, and coach Dan Campbell even admitted as much after the final preseason game. As for keeping Hooker as a potential third, here was Campbell’s answer on the things they are considering when it comes to Hooker’s roster spot:
How much development do you believe there still is? Sometimes does the player need a change of scenery? What about our own depth in other areas? I mentioned this the other day, relative to that – all right, maybe there is room to grow. Is that worth it for the depth we need at O-Line, D-Line, receiver, DB?
If a change in scenery is being brought up, that doesn’t just tell you that QB3 is out of the question, but it may also mean Hooker won’t be back on the practice squad if he clears waivers.
Running back (4)
Jahmyr Gibbs
David Montgomery
Craig Reynolds
Sione VakiJacob Saylors Deon Jackson
No drama here. The only question was whether Vaki’s injury was serious, and Campbell confirmed Saturday that it wasn’t. Saylors has had a nice preseason and has likely earned himself a spot on the practice squad.
Wide receiver (7)
Amon-Ra St. Brown
Jameson Williams
Tim Patrick
Kalif Raymond
Isaac TeSlaa*
Jackson Meeks*
Dominic Lovett*Tom KennedyRonnie BellJakobie Keeney-James*Malik Taylor
Seven wide receivers is admittedly hard to justify, but there are two things said this offseason that I cannot get out of my mind. The first was Campbell, back during the owners meetings:
“We would love to bring in more competition, particularly some youth. That would help, and let them all mix it up. Get in there and see where it all falls.”
With Raymond at 31 years old and in the final year of his career, and Patrick about to turn 32, the Lions seriously invested in youth this offseason with not only third-round pick Isaac TeSlaa, but seventh-round pick Dominic Lovett and high-priority UDFA Jackson Meeks. TeSlaa will get a role early, while Lovett and Meeks are pretty close to one-to-one replacements for Raymond and Patrick in a year or two.
In the meantime, they can contribute right away, if you need them to. Which brings me to the second quote, via special teams coordinator Dave Fipp:
“Lovett has shown some things for us on the outside, Meeks has shown some things from the wide receiver position. So, we’ve got some wide receivers contributing on special teams, which is beneficial because the last time in four years we haven’t gotten a lot out of that group other than Kalif as a punt returner. For those guys to be able to help out in a core role, potentially it can help take some off of some other players.”
The Lions haven’t kept seven receivers very often in the past, but they’ve never had special teams contributors like Lovett and Meeks.
And when it comes down to these last roster spots, who is more likely to get claimed: a DB10, LB7, a DL10, or a WR7? Given how receiver-hungry the league is right now, I think the Lions may want to protect those the most.
If I had to pick between one or the other, it would be Meeks because he has more good preseason tape out there that could result in poaching, but why not keep both?
Tight end (3)
Sam LaPorta
Brock Wright
Shane ZylstraZach Horton* Steven Stilianos Gunnar Oakes
Horton has a shot if Detroit wants someone who can play fullback full-time, but that doesn’t figure to be a big enough role to warrant a roster spot, in my opinion. Zylstra was taken out of Saturday’s game early, suggesting they value him as TE3.
Offensive tackle (4)
Penei Sewell
Taylor Decker
Dan Skipper
Giovanni ManuJamarco JonesMason Miller* Gunner Britton
Manu has shown enough growth to warrant at least one more year of development, and I thought he finished the preseason strong. I don’t think there’s much question about Skipper being the primary backup tackle, even though I thought Jones was closing in before injuries sidelined him.
Interior offensive line (5)
Graham Glasgow
Christian Mahogany
Tate Ratledge*
Kayode Awosika
Kingsley EguakunNetane MutiMichael Niese Zack Johnson
Reserve/PUP: Miles Frazier*
Return/Injured Reserve: Trystan Colon
Eguakun appears to have taken over the backup center role after Colon’s unfortunate injury. We’ve already seen some progress in Colon’s recovery, so don’t be surprised if he challenges for that job once he’s back. That’s why I believe he’ll take up one of Detroit’s two IR-to-return spots allowed at cutdowns.
Elsewhere, Awosika and Muti have been neck-and-neck, and I considered keeping both, but Muti isn’t subject to waivers, and hopefully, he’d agree to return on the practice squad.
Defensive end (4)
Aidan Hutchinson
Marcus Davenport
Al-Quadin Muhammad
Nate LynnIsaac UkwuMitchell Agude
Reserve/NFI: Josh Paschal
Return/Injured Reserve: Ahmed Hassanein*
After Saturday’s subpar efforts in the pass rush, I considered keeping just three defensive ends and basically holding a spot for Za’Darius Smith. The depth here is pretty darn thin, with Josh Paschal now expected to miss the first four games (and potentially more) and Ahmed Hassanein out for the foreseeable future. Some versatility on the interior will help, but for now, I’m just giving a spot to Nate Lynn—he’s flashed more than everyone else in this group. I have concerns about his ability to defend the run, and admittedly, Isaac Ukwu had three quarterback hits in the finale, but I didn’t come away particularly impressed with the reserves here. If there’s some work to do on the roster, it’s here, and it seems like there’s a pretty obvious solution just sitting there.
Defensive tackle (5)
DJ Reader
Tyleik Williams*
Roy Lopez
Pat O’Connor
Mekhi WingoKeith Cooper*Chris SmithMyles AdamsBrodric Martin
Reserve/PUP: Alim McNeill
Keith Cooper’s exclusion was one of the tougher decisions I made, but a few things to point out about him. While yes, he did flash in camp and even get some first-team reps at times, his performance in the preseason was wholly forgettable. In four games, he had a total of five tackles, one quarterback hit, and didn’t earn a PFF grade above 62.1 this preseason (final game grade still pending). Additionally, remember that Cooper didn’t even sign a UDFA contract until he won a spot via rookie minicamp tryouts. That tells me he’s got a good chance to slip through waivers.
And with the return of Mekhi Wingo—who told reporters he expects to be ready by Week 1—Detroit can go a little thin here. Even if Wingo is not ready by Week 1, the Lions could elevate Cooper from the practice squad for a week or two.
I’m also not sleeping on a complete surprise from this group. I thought Chris Smith had an excellent preseason, but there’s just little need for a third nose tackle with limited upside at a three-tech. Myles Adams has also drawn the praise of Campbell several times, so don’t be shocked if he sticks around.
Linebacker (6)
Jack Campbell
Alex Anzalone
Derrick Barnes
Grant Stuard
Trevor Nowaske
Zach CunninghamAnthony Pittman DaRon Gilbert
Reserve/PUP: Malcolm Rodriguez
Full-season IR: Ezekiel Turner
Not much drama here. Nowaske cemented his spot on the roster a while back as a starter on special teams and the primary backup at SAM. Now that he’s flashing at MIKE. He’s a guy that could be around for years to come. The only question I have here is whether the Lions would consider a seventh linebacker in Anthony Pittman simply for his special teams skills. That could help loosen the load off a guy like Derrick Barnes, who has been repping with special teams starters.
Defensive backs (10)
Terrion Arnold
D.J. Reed
Amik Robertson
Avonte Maddox
Khalil Dorsey
Brian Branch
Kerby Joseph
Rock Ya-Sin
Ian Kennelly*
Erick HallettMorice NorrisLoren StricklandNick WhitesideTyson Russell D.J. Miller Luq BarcooAllan George
I’m putting all the defensive backs together because several players (Avonte Maddox, Brian Branch, Rock Ya-Sin, Erick Hallett) blur the lines between cornerback and safety. I have eight guys (Arnold, Reed, Robertson, Maddox, Dorsey, Branch, Joseph, Ya-Sin) as locks. The rest is just a conversation on how many the Lions need to keep. Hallett earns a spot due to his versatility and physical playstyle. Kennelly earns a spot as someone who has been repping with the starting special teams units for the past few weeks in camp. Strickland made a strong push in the final preseason game, but he’s been behind Kennelly for a while.
I do wonder what the Lions will do with Morice Norris now that we’ve seen him working with a helmet and pads on with trainers. He was always on the roster bubble anyway, but I think he’s a candidate to make the practice squad rather than someone to place on an injury list.
Specialists (3)
Jack Fox (P)
Jake Bates (K)
Hogan Hatten (LS)
Running unopposed is the best.
At a glance, here’s a look at Jeremy’s current 53-man roster projection:
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