Sunday open thread: Who is a dark-horse candidate to make the Lions’ 53-man roster?

Training camp is still about a month away, but the time is drawing nearer,and soon we’ll be making roster predictions on a nearly daily basis.

So why not get a head start on things, and begin taking a look at what the Detroit Lions’ 53-man roster will look like?

Every year, there’s around a 30 percent shift in personnel, but this year it could be even more. With a change in head coach—and therefore a big change in defensive scheme—the Lions’ roster could end up looking a lot different than it did last year.

And just about every year, a player who has all the odds stacked against him manages to work his way onto the 53-man squad. So today’s Question of the Day is:

Which Lions player is your dark-horse candidate to make the 53-man roster?

My answer: Undrafted rookie linebacker Chad Meredith.

I think Meredith has a really good shot at making the 53-man roster for a few reasons. First, the Lions’ linebacker depth is not very sturdy right now. Aside from Devon Kennard, Jarrad Davis and Jalen Reeves-Maybin, I don’t see a name on the linebacker squad that should feel comfortable about their roster chances.

Meredith also made a pretty solid impression during minicamp earlier this month.

“On defense, linebacker Chad Meredith stood out to me for a few reasons,” the Detroit Free Press’ Dave Birkett wrote following minicamp. “Meredith is just bigger than most linebackers at 6 feet 4 and 250-plus pounds, and he used his size to swat down a couple passes during minicamp and OTAs.”

Meredith has also already drawn comparisons to successful UDFAs:

Combine all that with the fact that Meredith received a healthy $25,000 guaranteed from the Lions (fourth-most among Detroit UDFAs), and I think you have a player that will absolutely be in the mix for a roster spot come August.

Your turn.