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The Detroit Lions front office got a key piece of data on Friday night when the team took on the New York Giants in the preseason opener. With most of the starters out for the game, each team got a good, long look at their depth and how they perform in game situations.
There are still plenty of Lions roster battles up in the air, but Friday undoubtedly shifted some of the depth chart. So let’s take a look at the roster bubble on the offensive side of the ball, as our staff makes their 53-man roster predictions for each player in the mix for a spot.
You can see our predictions from last week here.
Detroit Lions Roster Bubble Watch, Week 3: Offense
| Player | Jeremy Reisman | Erik Schlitt | Ryan Mathews | Hamza | Alex Reno | John Whiticar | Morgan Cannon | TOTAL | CHANGE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Jeremy Reisman | Erik Schlitt | Ryan Mathews | Hamza | Alex Reno | John Whiticar | Morgan Cannon | TOTAL | CHANGE |
| QB Nate Sudfeld | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | OUT | 1 | -6 |
| QB Adrian Martinez | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 | N/A |
| RB Benny Snell | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 | N/A |
| RB Jermar Jefferson | IN | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | OUT | IN | 3 | +3 |
| RB Craig Reynolds | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | 7 | 0 |
| RB Mohamed Ibrahim | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 | 0 |
| FB Jason Cabinda | IN | IN | OUT | IN | IN | IN | OUT | 5 | -1 |
| WR Antoine Green | IN | IN | IN | OUT | IN | IN | IN | 6 | 0 |
| WR Trinity Benson | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 | 0 |
| WR Maurice Alexander | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | OUT | OUT | IN | 2 | +1 |
| WR Denzel Mims | OUT | OUT | OUT | IN | IN | OUT | OUT | 2 | -3 |
| WR Dylan Drummond | IN | IN | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | IN | 3 | 0 |
| WR Chase Cota | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 | N/A |
| OT Matt Nelson | OUT | IN | OUT | IN | OUT | IN | OUT | 3 | 0 |
| OT Obinna Eze | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | OUT | 1 | -2 |
| OT Germain Ifedi | IN | IN | IN | IN | OUT | IN | IN | 6 | +4 |
| G Colby Sorsdal | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | IN | 7 | 0 |
| G Kayode Awosika | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | IN | OUT | OUT | 1 | -2 |
| G Darrin Paulo | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | OUT | 0 | N/A |
Quarterback
- Nate Sudfeld: 1 “IN” vote (down 6)
- New to Bubble Watch: Adrian Martinez (0 votes)
With the addition of Teddy Bridgewater, the staff is assuming the veteran quarterback will take over the backup role. As a result, Sudfeld is now firmly on the roster bubble with the only question being whether he can make a case for keeping a third quarterback. Considering the Lions proposed the emergency quarterback rule that requires a team to keep three quarterbacks if they want to use the rule, there’s a chance. However, just a single member of the staff is buying it right now.
Running back
- Craig Reynolds: 7 votes (no change)
- Jermar Jefferson: 3 votes (up 3)
- Mohamed Ibrahim: 0 votes (no change)
- New to Bubble Watch: Benny Snell (0 votes)
- Off Bubble Watch: Justin Jackson (retired)
The retirement of Justin Jackson threw a humongous wrench into this battle. We all thought Jackson was nearly a lock to make the roster, but now those honors have shifted down to Craig Reynolds. Right now, less than half of the staff even believes the Lions will keep a fourth running back. As of now, Jefferson appears to be the leader for that role, but not playing in a preseason game isn’t going to help his case.
Tight end/fullback
- Jason Cabinda: 5 votes (down 1)
- Off Bubble Watch: James Mitchell
After the injury to Shane Zylstra, there doesn’t appear to be an active tight end battle. Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright, and James Mitchell seem pretty safe at the moment.
Have the Lions outgrown the need for a fullback? It’s hard to say, but there aren’t any other players actively repping in a fullback role. Still, Cabinda has grown a reputation for drops and he had another on Friday on one of the easier plays of the night.
Wide receiver
- Antoine Green: 6 votes (no change)
- Dylan Drummond: 3 votes (no change)
- Maurice Alexander: 2 votes (up 1)
- Denzel Mims: 2 votes (down 3)
- Trinity Benson: 0 votes
- New to Bubble Watch: Chase Cota (0 votes)
Mims continues to fall down Bubble Watch as he dealt with an injury most of last week that kept him out of the preseason game and most of the joint practices. Everyone else is making the most of their opportunities. Maurice Alexander had an amazing punt return touchdown. Antoine Green had 36 yards receiving and a key block on the punt return. And undrafted rookies Dylan Drummond and Chase Cota continue to keep their names in the conversation. Cota makes his debut on the Bubble Watch this week after leading the Lions in receiving yards against the Giants, but no one is on board yet.
Offensive tackle
- Germain Ifedi: 6 votes (up 4)
- Matt Nelson: 3 votes (no change)
- Obinna Eze: 1 vote (down 2)
After a tough performance from Matt Nelson in the preseason opener, Germain Ifedi has jumped to the top of the OT3 battle. Ifedi, who started as the team’s right tackle on Friday night, had a steady game while Nelson was responsible for several pressures, including one that led to an interception.
Guard/Center
- Colby Sorsdal: 7 votes (no change)
- Kayode Awosika: 1 vote (down 2)
- New to Bubble Watch: Darrin Paulo (0 votes)
- Off Bubble Watch: Ross Pierschbacher (released/injury settlement)
Last week, Pierschbacher garnered two votes. After getting injured in Friday’s game and promptly released, those votes have gone... nowhere. Awosika saw a big dip in votes this week after he played mainly in the second half of the preseason game. Darrin Paulo has all of a sudden taken second-team reps at left guard, so he gets put on the bubble. However, he also struggled against the Giants, so our staff is currently just scratching their heads looking for someone to make a case for a sixth interior offensive lineman job.
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