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The 2016 NFL Draft is done and the last free agency roster tweaks are finishing up. Soon, we will have a pretty firm idea on who the 90 players will be headed to the Detroit Lions training camp.
With that in mind, here's our first prediction at what the final 53-man roster may look like heading into the regular season. Again, I did not include any 2016 undrafted free agents, because the team has yet to confirm any of those signings.
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QB Matthew Stafford QB Dan Orlovsky QB Jake Rudock RB Stevan Ridley RB Ameer Abdullah RB Theo Riddick RB Zach Zenner RB George Winn RB Dwayne Washington FB Michael Burton WR Golden Tate WR Marvin Jones WR Jeremy Kerley WR TJ Jones WR Andre Caldwell WR Corey Fuller WR Corey Washington WR Austin Willis WR Ryan Spadola |
TE Brandon Pettigrew TE Eric Ebron TE Tim Wright TE Matthew Mulligan OT Riley Reiff OT Taylor Decker OT Michael Ola OT Corey Robinson OT Cornelius Lucas OT Lamar Holmes OT Tyrus Thompson OG Laken Tomlinson OG Larry Warford OG Joe Dahl OG Geoff Schwartz OG Darren Keyton C Travis Swanson C Graham Glasgow C Gabe Ikard |
DE Ziggy Ansah DE Devin Taylor DE Anthony Zettel DE Wallace Gilberry DT Haloti Ngata DT Tyrunn Walker DT A'Shawn Robinson DT Caraun Reid DT Stefan Charles DT Gabe Wright DT Khyri Thornton DT Kerry Hyder LB DeAndre Levy LB Tahir Whitehead LB Josh Bynes LB Brandon Copeland LB Antwione Williams LB Kyle Van Noy LB Stephen Tulloch LB Khaseem Greene LB Jerry Franklin |
CB Darius Slay CB Nevin Lawson CB Alex Carter CB Quandre Diggs CB Darrin Walls CB Johnson Bademosi CB Crezdon Butler S Glover Quin S Rafael Bush S Miles Killebrew S Tavon Wilson S Isaiah Johnson S Don Carey K Matt Prater P Sam Martin P Kyle Christy LS Jimmy Landes LS Don Muhlbach |
Offense:
There are going to be serious camp battles at almost every position on offense. At quarterback, the Lions may only choose to go with two quarterbacks, but I think the Lions will go with three, because while Rudock is not NFL-ready yet, they don't want to risk losing him by trying to stash him on the practice squad.
At running back, the fight for the fourth (and potentially fifth) roster spots is going to be heated. Zach Zenner has to be the presumed leader, since he had some meaningful contributions last year before suffering an injury. Dwayne Washington: enjoy the practice squad.
Wide receiver will be another interesting position to watch. The first three spots are pretty much set in stone, but beyond that, who knows? New addition Andre Caldwell has the early leg up, but between him, TJ Jones and Corey Fuller, it's going to be a ruthless camp competition.
Along the offensive line, I have the Lions keeping a lot of interior depth. Geoff Schwartz sticks around due to his experience and versatility, having played both guard and tackle. Travis Swanson barely keeps his job, along with Corey Robinson, whose youth keep him around for one more season.
Defense:
The biggest notable cuts here are Gabe Wright and Kyle Van Noy, both of whom didn't show enough in the previous years, and were pushed out by draft picks A'Shawn Robinson and Antwione Williams, respectively.
In the secondary, Tavon Wilson takes over for the long-tenured Don Carey simply because he can provide actual depth at safety while still filling a special teams role.
Special teams:
I'm sorry, Don Muhlbach, but your time is up. While I don't think this move is as set in stone as some make it out to be, right now Jimmy Landes has to be considered the favorite to land the long snapping job. Enjoy retirement, Muhldozer. You earned it.