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- The Detroit Lions are 16th in strength of schedule for the 2014 season. It's worth noting that this is simply based on last year's records, and the Lions went into last season with one of the toughest schedules in all of the NFL. By the end of the year, however, the schedule was much easier than originally thought, so their strength of schedule for this season is pretty meaningless right now.
- The Lions have put together a video featuring Calvin Johnson's top 15 plays from 2013.
- Based on pending free agents, cap space, number of draft picks and front office track record, Sports Illustrated ranked each NFL team's offseason outlook. The Lions came in way down the list in a tie for 28th, mainly because of their limited amount of cap space.
- Ty Schalter put together a good piece on how NFL teams navigate the salary cap. This is particularly interesting:
This isn't actually a good thing. Part of the reason the Lions are lacking cap space right now is because they have created room in recent years by turning base salaries into bonuses ("kicking the can down the road"). They have definitely shown a willingness to spend money by creating extra cap room, but this is not a great long-term strategy, as the Lions are now finding out.#Lions are NFL's cleverest team when it comes to cap and contracts. They spent 48.2% more than their charged cap number. Via @tyschalter
— Justin Simon (@justincsimon) February 12, 2014
- Speaking of the salary cap, ESPN projects that the Lions will carry over $1.47 million in space from last season.
- Rotoworld's latest metrics breakdown for the 2014 NFL Draft features more cornerbacks.
