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The Detroit Lions will need to cut their roster down to 75 players by 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday. With three preseason games in the books, not only are those cuts becoming clearer by the day, but the final 53-man roster is coming into shape. With just one more week to impress coaches and managers, players on the bubble must make a move now. Here's our latest prediction on who's in and who's out for the Lions 2016 regular season roster.
| Players currently on roster: 53 | |||
| QB Matthew Stafford | TE Eric Ebron | DE Ziggy Ansah | CB Darius Slay |
| QB Dan Orlovsky | TE Matthew Mulligan | DE Devin Taylor | CB Nevin Lawson |
| QB Jake Rudock | TE Cole Wick | DE Wallace Gilberry | CB Quandre Diggs |
| TE Andrew Quarless (Susp.) | DE Brandon Copeland | CB Johnson Bademosi | |
| RB Ameer Abdullah | TE Adam Fuehne | DE Anthony Zettel | CB Darrin Walls |
| RB Theo Riddick | TE Orson Charles | DE Deonte Gibson | CB Alex Carter |
| RB Zach Zenner | TE Brandon Pettigrew (PUP) | DE Quanterus Smith | CB Crezdon Butler |
| RB Dwayne Washington | CB Brandon McGee | ||
| RB George Winn | OT Riley Reiff | DT Haloti Ngata | CB Adairius Barnes |
| OT Taylor Decker | DT Tyrunn Walker | CB Rashaad Reynolds | |
| OT Michael Ola | DT Caraun Reid | CB Charles Washington | |
| FB Michael Burton | OT Cornelius Lucas | DT A'Shawn Robinson | |
| OT Corey Robinson | DT Khyri Thornton | S Glover Quin | |
| WR Marvin Jones | OT Luke Marquardt | DT Stefan Charles | S Rafael Bush |
| WR Golden Tate | OT Chase Farris | DT Gabe Wright | S Tavon Wilson |
| WR TJ Jones | DT Kerry Hyder | S Miles Killebrew | |
| WR Anquan Boldin | OG Laken Tomlinson | DT Louis Palmer | S Don Carey |
| WR Andre Roberts | OG Larry Warford | S Isaiah Johnson | |
| WR Jay Lee | OG Geoff Schwartz | LB DeAndre Levy | |
| WR Quinshad Davis | OG Joe Dahl | LB Tahir Whitehead | K Matt Prater |
| WR Jace Billingsley | OG Brandon Thomas | LB Josh Bynes | K Devon Bell |
| WR Corey Fuller (PUP) | LB Kyle Van Noy | ||
| C Travis Swanson | LB Antwione Williams | P Sam Martin | |
| C Graham Glasgow | LB Jon Bostic | ||
| C Gabe Ikard | LB Khaseem Greene | LS Don Muhlbach | |
| C Lemuel Jeanpierre | LB Chi Chi Ariguzo | LS Jimmy Landes | |
| LB Zaviar Gooden | |||
| LB Dominique Tovell | |||
Offense
Changes:
IN: RB Dwayne Washington
OUT: RB George Winn
While I still think Washington has a lot to prove to get meaningful snaps in 2016, it's pretty clear the Lions value him above George Winn. Washington was the first player back taking kick returns in the preseason game against the Ravens, and it's certainly possible that could be his role for the team this season. He needs to prove more to be active on game days, but he almost has a 53-man roster spot locked up at this point.
IN: TE Cole Wick
OUT: TE Andrew Quarless - Suspended list
Detroit has been using Cole Wick a heck of a lot throughout the entire preseason. At this point, Wick looks like the best receiving tight end on the roster while Eric Ebron continues to recover from his ankle injury. Andrew Quarless can be stashed away on the suspended list (as pointed out by sgriggl) for the first two weeks, so he serves as some insurance if Ebron's return is delayed.
Defense
Changes:
IN: DE Anthony Zettel
OUT: DT Gabe Wright
Wright had the fewest snaps (11) of all defensive tackles on Saturday. For a player you'd think the Lions would want to get as many reps to help improve, that cannot be a good sign. Zettel, on the other hand, managed to make a few plays in his 24 snaps against the Ravens, including a big forced fumble. I still think it may be wise for the Lions to keep six defensive tackles and four defensive ends, but Zettel is making it hard for me to stick to that plan.
IN: CB Alex Carter
OUT: CB Crezdon Butler
I have gone back and forth on this camp battle all offseason, and neither Carter nor Butler have done much to move the needle in either direction. Several reports from training camp have been down on Carter, but during the preseason, he just hasn't done much -- good or bad. The same can be said about Butler. Although he had a bad sequence of events against the Steelers -- first a pass interference penalty and then giving up a 29-yard touchdown pass to Darrius Heyward-Bey while in coverage -- he has, more or less, been quiet in the Lions secondary. The two received the exact same amount of snaps in the third preseason game, so this battle appears to still be undecided.
Special teams
No changes:
Though Don Muhlbach didn't take a single snap on Saturday, he may have solidified his spot on the roster. Jimmy Landes played in 10 special teams snaps against the Ravens and had a handful of shaky-looking snaps. Muhlbach, on the other hand, was recently praised by the Lions special teams coach, saying that Don has been "flawless" this offseason.