During a town hall meeting with Detroit Lions season-ticket holders on Monday night, general manager Martin Mayhew was unsurprisingly asked about where things stand with linebacker Stephen Tulloch. Although we have heard that the Lions are reportedly "working hard" to get a deal done and are "making a strong push" to re-sign him, there hasn't been much beyond those vague updates.
On Monday, Mayhew said that the Lions and Tulloch have had "very productive conversations" about a new deal. Mayhew also said that the Lions hope to get a deal done and will continue to try to get something done here soon. Here's more:
"We’re very hopeful we can reach an agreement with him sometime soon and we’re going to continue to pursue Stephen and try and get Stephen signed," Mayhew said. "He knows our defense. Coach (Jim) Schwartz is very familiar with him. He’s a leader on our football team. He means a lot to our defense and he’s a really key part of what we have going defensively.
"I plan on talking with his agent tonight or tomorrow and we’ll keep trying to get that done."
(Tulloch's agent, by the way, is Drew Rosenhaus.)
Mayhew said that the linebacker market has been "very, very interesting" so far. He referenced the contract D'Qwell Jackson signed as being a "really big deal" and mentioned that "a lot of guys are looking at that and wanting to try to get the same deal." If you're wondering why Tulloch hasn't been re-signed yet, I think you can just read between the lines on that comment.