The Lions are coming off a loss in the NFC championship game. They were one game away from the Super Bowl. The good news is the Lions only have two major free agents that need to be re-signed and those two players are Graham Glasgow OG/C and Jonah Jackson OG. The good news is odds are we are only re-signing Glasgow due to Jackson's injury history and Graham Glasgow's contract will be much cheaper than Jackson's. So it begs the question what should the Lions do? The answer is unsure, so I will do all the scenarios and players I think we could go for in free agency.
The Lions needs in the off-season will be EDGE, DT, CB, WR, OG. So Who are the top players at each position in free agency that the Lions could target for each position?
EDGE:
-Josh Allen Jaguars
-Danielle Hunter Vikings
-Brian Burns Panthers
-John Greenard Texans
-Denico Autry Titans
-Jadeveon Clowney Ravens
-Bryce Huff Jets
-Chase Young 49ers
If Brad Holmes wants to target EDGE rushers these are the top names. The Panthers are expected to tag Brian Burns and it is also likely the Jags will do the same with Josh Allen who is coming off a 17.5 sack season. That leaves the top EDGE options being Danielle Hunter, John Greenard, Denico Autry, Jadeveon Clowney, and Bryce Huff. Hunter will likely be the most targeted EDGE in the entire NFL as a reminder the Lions have the 7th most cap space with $65 million so they could invest and possibly grab Hunter who is going to be in the 20 million a year range. Even if they signed Hunter, they would be left at around $45 million. Denico Autry would be the 2nd target due to the Lions connection with the new D-Line coach. Autry is coming off a career year with 50 tackles and 11.5 sacks and is projected at 10 million a year but the catch is he is 33 years old and has only reached double-digit sacks once. The next name would be Clowney of course who had a solid season had 45 tackles and 9.5 sacks and is projected at the 8-10 million a year range but like Autry he is on the older side being 31 years old. Now we go to the younger option which is John Greenard who is coming off of a career year with 52 tackles and 12.5 sacks in 15 games the issue with Greenard is he has an injury history he has never played a full season but he hasn't had a major one that has caused him to miss less than 8 games and this is his first time he has had double digits sacks and there is concern he only got double digits sacks because he had Will Anderson on the other side. Luckily Greenard would have Aidan Hutchinson with him so that concern isn't too large. According to PFF, he is projected to sign a three-year contract worth around $47 million. The next player would be Bryce Huff who also had a career year where he had 29 tackles and 10 sacks ESPN has stated Huff will want 20 million a year but that isn't reported. Then of course you have Chase Young is by far the biggest gamble on the list for the Lions to sign he has disappointed since being drafted no 2 overall struggling with injuries and never getting past 7 sacks. He disappointed everyone further when he was traded to the 49ers and only had 2.5 sacks in 9 games and multiple lack-of-effort plays on tape. He would likely be on a one-year deal and he may not even leave SF.
So who should the Lions grab? Should they throw the bag at Hunter? Should they go for Autry and see if Paschal can also grow some more? Should they go for a younger player like Greenard? In my opinion, the Lions should throw the bag at Hunter but if they choose not to I would suggest the Lions grab either Greenard or Autry. I will leave the choice to Holmes but I will make a mock draft later based on the Lions grabbing a good EDGE.
DT:
Chris Jones Chiefs
Justin Mandubuike Ravens
Christian Wilkins Dolphins
Leonard Williams Seahawks
The Lions have some nice defensive tackles in free agency that they could grab if they choose to target a DT in free agency rather than targeting an EDGE rusher. The top name is Chris Jones it is currently unknown if Jones will be tagged or if the Chiefs will extend Jones. Odds are Jones will walk but he is projected to demand $27 million a year. Again the Lions could afford him but he is expensive and could be paid even more than 27 million a year. The Lions could choose to grab the 2nd best defensive tackle in football and I wouldn't be mad at all. Mandubuike is coming off of a breakout season where he had 56 tackles and 13 sacks for the Ravens and he is coming off a rookie contract. Mandubuike is projected to demand $23 million a year. He is 6'3 and 300 pounds and he could be a successful young add that you could argue would be more of a long-term player than Jones. Christian Wilkins is the next player coming off a career year with 65 tackles and 9 sacks. Wilkins has been a consistent player for Miami often taking double teams and being an elite run defender. He is projected to demand around $23 million a year. Wilkins is a safe add but we have no idea if he going to be tagged it is a shared issue with the top players. Leonard Williams is the next one. Williams has been a consistently good player since being drafted 6th overall in 2015 and at the age of 29, he had 41 tackles and 4 sacks in 10 games. Williams hasn't played a full season since 2021 combine that with his lack of playing a full season in 3 years there is a concern for teams to invest in him. Williams is projected to demand around 15-17 million a year. There are a couple of lower-tier defensive tackles that the Lions could target which are Greg Gaines DT/NT Buccaneers Sebastian Joseph Day 49ers and Jordan Elliott Browns. If I was Brad Holmes I would see that I would be likely to lose the bidding war for Chris Jones and I would target Justin Madubuike. Justin is not only cheaper than Chris but he is also younger and he still provides a good pass at DT. I only see the Lions taking Gaines or Elliott if they target EDGE or CB rather than DT.
CB:
L'Jarius Sneed Chiefs
Jaylon Johnson Bears
Chidobe Awuzie Bengals
Stephone Gilmore Cowboys
Kendall Fuller Commanders
The cornerback market is not as impressive compared to the defensive tackle class and the EDGE class but it does have two CB1s and some serviceable cornerbacks. Leading the pack is Sneed who is the top cornerback for the Chiefs and arguably the top corner on the market he allowed 0 touchdowns last season a 51% completion % and less than 500 yards allowed he had 2 ints and 14 PDs to boot. Sneed is also coming off a rookie contract so he has youth on his side. Jaylon Johnson would be the next target though the Bears could tag Johnson he is still worth mentioning he only allowed 2 touchdowns had 4 interceptions and only allowed 279 yards. This is impressive as the Bears defense was bad last year. Johnson is also coming off a rookie contract. Chidobe has been a solid corner for the Bengals in 2022 he allowed 0 touchdowns a 38% completion % and 236 yards in 8 games and in 2021 he had a 58% completion % 494 yards and 3 touchdowns allowed. Sadly in 2023, he had a down year allowing a 63% completion % and 4 touchdowns allowed for a rating over 100 but he did only allow 484 yards this season. Awuize is 28 years old and due to his regression year the Lions could get him cheaper than if he went into FA in another year but it also could be a gamble. Gilmore would be next the 33-year-old corner is coming a year with a 55% completion % 4 touchdowns allowed 659 yards allowed and an 82.7 rating and 2 interceptions and 13 PDs. Gilmore would likely be a cheap contract on a short-term deal but would be an upgrade for the Lions CB room from Jerry Jacobs, and Kindle Vildor. Kendall Fuller, I just don't see as a fit for the team. Fuller is much better at the slot than he is at the outside this last season with the Commanders he allowed NINE touchdowns and a 68% completion % he is fine as a slot CB and is good at run defense and gets about 2 ints in a season generally but with Brian Branch on this team I wouldn't want Fuller on the roster.
WR:
Mike Evans Buccaneers
Tee Higgins Bengals
Michael Pittman Colts
Calvin Ridley Jaguars
Gabe Davis Bills
The WR market is quite good even outside of the top 5 WRs there are other good options like Hollywood Brown, OBJ, Noah Brown, and DJ Chark. Mike Evans is the best on the list he has had 1k yards every year of his career with no sign of slowing down despite being 30 years old. Evans is projected to ask for $25 million a year. Tee Higgins is number two on the list. Higgins has been arguably the 2nd best WR 2 in the league since 2021 with multiple 1k seasons. Tee could be the WR 1 for a handful of teams. Higgins is projected at $20 million a year. Pittman is the next name and is coming off a 1k season despite having a backup QB passing to him most of the season. Pittman has been good his entire career despite a lack of good QB play like Higgins he is projected at $20 million a year. Pittman would give the Lions a player capable of being an outside WR1 and a guy who can make contested catches that the Lions sorely need. Calvin Ridley is coming off a 1,000-yard season and 8 touchdowns what makes this even more impressive is Ridley did so despite not playing football for a whole year. Ridley could get even better with another off-season. Ridley is projected to make $17 million a year and could be a nice WR for the Lions he is more of a separator and deep threat than he is a contested guy. Ridley and St Brown would be a force at WR and if JAMO becomes something more the Lions could have a complete core. Gabe Davis is next on the list and the cheapest. Davis will demand around $15 million a year. Davis is one of the best deep threats in the game. These stats in the picture could show why he is a steal. The only real concern about Davis is he has never had 1k yards in a season or 900 yards and has had 3 drops a season and even had 9 drops in 2022. He did lower that to 3 in 2023 and you could argue that not having 1k yards is because he was behind Stefon Diggs.
Overall the Lions have a lot of good options in free agency that they could target at WR even some lower-tier players that could do well like Rashid Shaheed and Cedric Wilson. If I was Holmes I am targeting either Evans, Ridley, or Davis.
So it begs the question who should the Lions sign out of all these position groups? The answer is it is hard to tell. There isn't a wrong answer when it comes to DT vs EDGE and you could argue for CB and WR. The Lions could easily address two groups. So I will leave it up to you. Who should the Lions sign in free agency?
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