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With Detroit Lions training camp just a few days away, it’s time for the return of our offseason series “Bubble Watch.”
In this series, we will identify the players on the roster bubble and our staff will make predictions on whether they will make the initial 53-man roster or not. We will do this every week, so we can track the trajectory of some of these players throughout training camp and keep tabs on each position battle.
Today, we’ll start with the offense, where there aren’t a ton of starting jobs up for grabs, but the depth battles will be key.
Here is a look at our staff’s current Bubble Watch predictions, with a breakdown of each position battle below:
Bubble Watch, Week 0: Offense
| Player | Jeremy Reisman | Ryan Mathews | Hamza | Alex Reno | Erik Schlitt | John Whiticar | Morgan Cannon | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Jeremy Reisman | Ryan Mathews | Hamza | Alex Reno | Erik Schlitt | John Whiticar | Morgan Cannon | TOTAL |
| QB Nate Sudfeld | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | 7 |
| QB Hendon Hooker | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 1 |
| RB Jermar Jefferson | IN | IN | OUT | OUT | IN | IN | IN | 5 |
| RB Craig Reynolds | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | 7 |
| RB Mohamed Ibrahim | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 1 |
| RB Greg Bell | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 |
| FB Jason Cabinda | IN | OUT | IN | IN | IN | IN | OUT | 5 |
| TE Shane Zylstra | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 |
| WR Antoine Green | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | OUT | IN | 6 |
| WR Tom Kennedy | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 |
| WR Trinity Benson | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 |
| WR Maurice Alexander | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 |
| WR Denzel Mims | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | IN | IN | OUT | 3 |
| OT Matt Nelson | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | 7 |
| OT Obinna Eze | OUT | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | OUT | OUT | 1 |
| OT Germain Ifedi | OUT | IN | IN | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | 3 |
| G Colby Sorsdal | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | 7 |
| G/C Ross Pierschbacher | IN | IN | IN | IN | OUT | OUT | IN | 5 |
| G Kayode Awosika | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 |
Quarterback
- Nate Sudfeld: 7/7 IN votes
- Hendon Hooker: 1/7 IN votes
With the new quarterback roster rules, some teams may be tempted to carry three passers on their roster. However, the Lions may not have that choice right away. Hendon Hooker will enter camp on the Non-Football Injury list, and it’s unclear how close to a full recovery he is. At this point, most of us believe he’ll start the season on the NFI list—hence not making the 53-man roster.
Running back
- Craig Reynolds: 7/7
- Jermar Jefferson: 5/7
- Mohamed Ibrahim: 1/7
- Greg Bell: 0/7
Reynolds, the incumbent, is entering camp as the clear favorite to win the RB3 job, but that could change in a hurry in camp. Interestingly enough, six out of seven staffers have the Lions keeping an RB4, as well. The most common choice for that player is Jermar Jefferson, who the coaching staff talked up last year but never saw the field. The lone other vote went to undrafted rookie Mohamed Ibrahim, who had a record-breaking year at Minnesota last season despite coming off a torn Achilles.
Fullback
- Jason Cabinda: 5/7
Is the death of the fullback upon us? Cabinda has “Dan Campbell guy” written all over him as a player who is relentless on the field. However, he’s had a hard time staying on the field, and outside of special teams, he hasn’t had as big of an impact on Sundays as you’d hope from your fullback. Still, the majority of the staff believes he’ll stick around another year.
Tight end
- Shane Zylstra: 0/7
The Lions’ top three tight ends seem pretty set with Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright, and James Mitchell. As of now, our staff doesn’t believe there’s room for a TE4.
Wide receiver:
- Antoine Green: 6/7
- Denzel Mims: 3/7
- Tom Kennedy: 0/7
- Trinity Benson: 0/7
- Maurice Alexander: 0/7
With no Jameson Williams to start the year, that opens up at least one roster spot beyond Detroit’s clear top four (Josh Reynolds, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Marvin Jones Jr., Kalif Raymond). Seventh-round rookie Antoine Green is the favorite to take WR5, but the recent trade for Denzel Mims has thrown a bit of a wrench into the outlook of this position battle.
Still, only about half of our staff believes Mims—who struggled in all three of his years with the Jets—is destined for the 53-man roster. The good news is that if he doesn’t make the cut, it will cost the Lions nothing.
The rest of the Lions’ receiver depth clearly has some work to do over the next month to convince our staff.
Offensive tackle
- Matt Nelson: 7/7
- Germain Ifedi: 3/7
- Obinna Eze: 1/7
Matt Nelson enters camp as the heavy favorite to maintain his job as the team’s swing tackle, but the addition of veteran and former first-round pick Germain Ifedi has some convinced the Lions will keep an OT4.
Obinna Eze was a fan favorite as an undrafted rookie on “Hard Knocks” last year, but he had a pretty steep developmental curve. At this point, it’s hard to know where he is in his NFL journey, but if he can take a big Year 2 jump, a spot on the roster is certainly not out of the question.
Guard/Center
- Colby Sorsdal: 7/7
- Ross Pierschbacher: 5/7
- Kayode Awosika: 0/7
With Graham Glasgow currently considered to be a lock, the Lions likely only have room for one or two more interior offensive linemen. As the fifth-round pick for Detroit this year, it’s no surprise to see Sorsdal as the heavy favorite to win one of those jobs. Currently, Pierschbacher—the team’s primary choice to backup Frank Ragnow in the spring—is the most likely player to take the next reserve spot, if available.
At this point, players like Brad Cecil and Logan Stenberg have some work to do to even get on the roster bubble.
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