Lions notes: Trey Flowers’ contract named Lions riskiest offseason move

It is impossible to build a winning football team without taking a few risks. The Philadelphia Eagles maxed out their cap and traded up to draft Carson Wentz second overall in the build up to the 2018 Super Bowl. The New England Patriots are known for trading away players at their prime to replace them with more cap-efficient options, and they have had success for the better part of the past 20 years. The Los Angeles Rams, Kansas City Chiefs, Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints all also made incredibly risky moves in the build up to successful 2018 campaigns.

The Detroit Lions are hoping that a few of the risky moves they made this offseason will lead to similar success.

Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox listed what he believes to be the most risky move made by every team this offseason, and for the Detroit he named the mega-deal the gave former Patriots edge defender Trey Flowers.

Knox said:

On one hand, the move appears solid. Flowers was one of the best and most versatile ends in the game last season, and he’ll enter a familiar scheme under Patricia. On the other hand, there’s no guarantee that his success over the last couple of years wasn’t largely a product of the talent around him.

The choice makes sense. While Flowers could prove to be a star, if he does not live up to expectations then his cap number will handicap Bob Quinn and the Lions going forward.

• SB Nation’s Adam Stites listed a few potential holdouts we could expect to hold out this upcoming season, and Lions corner Darius Slay made the list. Lions defensive lineman Damon Harrison was an interesting exclusion.

• PFF Detroit Lions highlighted some of the younger talent on Detroit’s roster that could have fans excited for years on Tuesday.

• Sports Illustrated’s Conor Orr took note of a few teams that may be entering their Super Bowl window in 2019 on Tuesday. While Detroit did not make the list, their NFC North rival Chicago Bears did.

• Lions punter Sam Martin has been working with punting coach Dan Orner this offseason, per Pride of Detroit contributor and resident punting expert Hamza Baccouche on Twitter.

• Lions teams writer Tim Twentyman listed five Lions that he believes could have break out seasons in 2019 on the team’s official site on Tuesday.