Several new additions have helped restock the Detroit Lions roster, but the team still has some real needs pockmarking the depth chart.
Here’s how I rank the remaining needs on the Lions roster. These can be filled via draft or free agency, and understand that the biggest need might not require the best or most expensive (draft or dollars) solution.
Wide receiver
Kenny Golladay is the top dog in his third season. He’s proven capable being more than worthy of a No. 1 wideout but also too many games (Chicago, Seattle, Minnesota) where good defenses effectively erased him.
Marvin Jones is a very good No. 2 and works well with Golladay, but he’s coming off a knee injury and struggles to get separation even when at 100 percent.
Danny Amendola is a 33-year-old band-aid, one often in need of bandages, in the slot. Tommylee Lewis is in Detroit for his return skills; the 5-6 wideout has 20 catches in three NFL seasons. That’s the list of viable NFL wide receivers currently on the Lions roster.
Even if you love Golladay and believe he can emerge even better in his third season (and I’m a believer), this WR corps as a whole rank in the bottom three of the NFL. And both Amendola and Jones are potentially in their last seasons in Detroit.
Tight end
Adding Jesse James helps a lot. His spike in yards per reception and yards per target in 2018 indicate the former Steeler is capable of doing more than he did as the No. 4 or No. 5 targets on Roethlisberger’s pecking order in Pittsburgh.
After James…welp! Michael Roberts needs a strong offseason to prove he’s worthy of making an NFL roster. He’s the No. 2 right now by default. Logan Thomas has some potential to usurp him but the converted QB is a No. 3 or gameday inactive on most teams.
Even if the Lions scale back the TE usage in the passing game — and they’re already at the lowest end of the target meter — the lack of depth here is alarming. And because the WR group is so weak, the team cannot compensate by using more 3- and 4-WR sets.
Outside linebacker/EDGE
Trey Flowers will start and primarily play as the rush EDGE, but his versatility allows for coach Patricia to get creative. An athletic OLB-type with pass rush proclivity would complete the defensive front and lend itself to the Lions having one of the premier front 6s (remember, nickel D is base D) in the league.
This should be the focus of the first-round pick. The top of the draft features guys like Josh Allen, Montez Sweat, Brian Burns and even Ed Oliver as premium draft prospects at this position. There is a radical dropoff from what the team can get in the top 10 to what will be available in the second round, and they’ve already signed the best free agent on the market in Flowers.
Backup QB
This is where having a big hole isn’t necessarily a top priority. Connor Cook is currently the only QB on the roster behind Matthew Stafford. The one-time Raiders fourth-round pick has scant experience (though he did start a playoff game) and washed out quickly in Oakland. He merits a chance to prove himself but expectations need to be realistically scaled here.
The veteran free agent market offers one-year stopgaps, a la Matt Cassel last year, but nobody who would ever push Stafford or be considered worthy of being groomed as a potential successor. This draft class isn’t promising either, but getting someone into the system and seeing what they can do is not a bad idea.
Running back
Kerryon Johnson was mighty impressive as a rookie before an injury cut his debut campaign short. Johnson should be fine for 2019 and his ability to do all things asked of an NFL RB make him a valuable starter.
Theo Riddick remains as a slot receiver masquerading as a RB. He does have some ability as a runner but is far more comfortable catching the ball in space than running to it ball in hand. Zach Zenner is back as a capable No. 3 runner who can occasionally light up an unsuspecting defense.
The missing role is the one LeGarrette Blount played — terribly — in 2018. Given how new offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell liberally substitutes and mixes/matches his running backs, there is a definite need for a heavier, inside-out runner who isn’t a liability in pass protection. The Lions have kicked some tires in free agency here and that could be the solution.
Move this up the “need” chart if you are not confident in Johnson’s durability.
Right guard
T.J. Lang’s release and subsequent retirement leave a void, and Kenny Wiggins proved beyond a reasonable doubt in relief last year that he cannot fill said void.
There are some other new options that mitigate the need here. Oday Aboushi was the second-best starting lineman on a Texans team (2016 season) that won a playoff game and scared the Patriots for a half in the Division Round. Tyrell Crosby will also get a chance to audition in his second season, if we are to take Patricia at his word. Andrew Donnal is back, too.
Adding a stud right guard is definitely appealing, but the rest of the Lions offensive line is one of the better ones in the NFL. Bevell took a Seattle team to a Super Bowl with four OL starters who wouldn’t even make this Lions 2-deep roster. It’s the best place on the entire 53-man depth chart to have a hole.
Cornerback
After signing Justin Coleman and Rashaan Melvin in free agency, the Lions now have a viable top 3 CBs built around Pro Bowler Darius Slay. Melvin is a durability risk but an upgrade over Nevin Lawson as the No. 2 outside CB, and Coleman is one of the NFL’s most reliable slot corners.
Jamal Agnew and Teez Tabor return for their third seasons, too. Agnew has speed and enthusiasm that can at least play functionally as the No. 2 slot CB. Tabor…probably not. The same is true of Mike Ford, an athletic holdover. Marcus Cooper can be the No. 4 outside CB, though he was signed more for his special teams ability.
The short-term need here is gone. The long-term need persists, however. Melvin, Agnew et al behind Slay and Coleman should not dissuade Bob Quinn from pulling the trigger on a better No. 2 CB early in the draft.
