Pride of Detroit
The Detroit Lions have two preseason games in the books, after previously facing off against the Los Angeles Chargers and Atlanta Falcons, and that means it’s time for another installment of our 53-man roster projection.
As has become tradition, Jeremy Reisman and I collaborate on this projection in an attempt to give you a balanced look at where the roster sits coming out of the summer break. We come together to debate the roster, fight for our favorites, and compromise when possible. We will publish updated collaborative editions of the 53-man projection throughout training camp. Then, at cutdowns, we will each publish our own projections.
Let’s get started.
Note: An asterisk (*) denotes the player is a rookie
Jared Goff
Kyle Allen
Hendon Hooker
Erik: Kyle Allen’s perfect QB rating in the Lions’ win over the Falcons helped vault him ahead of Hooker in the QB2 battle, but with two preseason games remaining, there’s still plenty of time for this competition to flip again. Hooker’s arguably the more talented of the two quarterbacks, but he’s struggling to settle down his nerves, and will need to stop turning the ball over if he hopes to have a chance to win the job.
Jahmyr Gibbs
David Montgomery
Craig Reynolds
Sione Vaki
Jacob Saylors
Deon Jackson
Jeremy: Based on how I saw Vaki moving with trainers at Monday’s practice, there should be no long-term concern here. There is always a shot Detroit saves a roster spot by dropping to three players here by trying to slide Reynolds onto the practice squad, but I think he’s too valuable on special teams to risk it.
Amon-Ra St. Brown
Jameson Williams
Tim Patrick
Kalif Raymond
Isaac TeSlaa*
Dominic Lovett*
Jackson Meeks*
Tom Kennedy
Jakobie Keeney-James*
Ronnie Bell
Malik Taylor
Erik: At this stage of the process, we haven’t quite given up on Lovett’s upside on offense and special teams. However, with every day that Lovett is unable to practice due to injury, he leaves the door open for Meeks to seize control of the WR6 battle. Against the Falcons, Meeks not only caught three passes for 78 yards and a touchdown, but he also had a 91.3 run blocking grade from PFF. Everyone else is just chasing the rookies, for now.
Sam LaPorta
Brock Wright
Shane Zylstra
Zach Horton*
Steven Stilianos
Gunnar Oakes
Jeremy: This is another position the Lions could shortchange and slip Zylstra on the practice squad, but keeping two tight ends on the roster seems like poor management. Unfortunately, with Zach Horton being placed on IR this week, it has become a two-man race for the TE3 job between Zylstra and Horton. While I really like what I’ve seen from Horton as a blocker, Zylstra is the most well-rounded player and is also great on special teams.
Penei Sewell
Taylor Decker
Dan Skipper
Giovanni Manu
Jamarco Jones
Mason Miller*
Gunner Britton
Erik: Nothing has...
