Detroit Lions Final 53-Man Roster Predictions

The Detroit Lions have until the 30th of this month to cut their roster down from 90 to 75 players. However, I’d like to give you our prediction here at the Majors Detroit for the final 53-man roster for when the regular season when the Detroit Lions open on the road against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, September 11th.

The Offensive Backfield:

The QB’s – This is Bob Quinn’s first crack at making a roster in his own image. If he’s using the “Patriot Way” as a model, he will only keep two quarterbacks with a third on the practice squad. Because Dan Orlovsky and Jake Rudock are neck and neck, he’ll likely stick with the veteran and stash away the youngster on the practice squad for the season.

The RB’s – At this point, I’d say that the Detroit Lions plan on keeping Stevan Ridley but are guarding him like a locked in veteran from injury during the pre-season. Unless they have developed a distain for him, his roster spot is safe. Abdullah and Riddick are locks and it seems Zach Zenner is as well due to the amount of burn he’s getting with the first team. If the Detroit Lions don’t keep Ridley, I’d see Dwayne Washington slotting in there. George Winn is a dead man walking to me no matter what. He just doesn’t have the speed to help this team out. The bruising, in-between the tackles back is a role that is already occupied by Zenner. If the Lions elect to keep Ridley, Washington goes to the practice squad, but might get a shot elsewhere because of the burst he showed in the return game.

The FB – Notice how Micheal Burton has no competition. He’s a lock and has been from day one. He was ranked third among fullbacks by Pro Football Focus at the end of last year. Not bad for a rookie that no one liked…

Out Wide:

The TE’s – The Detroit Lions wouldn’t have taken on the public relations nightmare of Andrew Quarless unless they planned on keeping him. He’ll get one of the three Tight End jobs out of camp and will likely hold the spot for the entire season. Eric Ebron is a lock for sure, and Matthew Mulligan will likely occupy the purely blocking Tight End role for now, until Brandon Pettigrew is ready to come off of the P.U.P. list.

The WR’s – The Detroit Lions have a plethora of talent in training camp to chose from. Unlike in the past where they had three to four quality NFL pieces and a bunch of scrubs, it seems like they actually have eight guys in camp that can ball. At this point, the top four are locked in with Marvin Jones, Golden Tate, Anquan Boldin, and T.J. Jones holding those spots. Andre Roberts has a slight grip on the fifth and final spot because of his return skills. The only totally dead man seems to be Jace Billingsley, who just doesn’t have the burst to make up for his small stature. Jeremy Kerley could conceivably make the final roster as a return specialist, but the Detroit Lions haven’t shown the want to even give him a shot there. Jay Lee and Quinshad Davis are both doing very well for their UDFA status, but only one will likely be kept on the practice squad. At this point, I’d give the edge to Davis, but it could go either way.

Offensive Line:

The OL – Like most NFL teams, the Detroit Lions will only carry eight Offensive Lineman during the season. With the starting five already being settled, the three backups and two positions on the practice squad are the only battles continuing to go on. The Lions three Tackles will be Taylor Decker, Riley Reiff, and Michael Ola, with Joe Dahl acting as an emergency backup. In the event of a Taylor Decker injury, the Lions would slide Reiff over from Right Tackle to Left Tackle and then would insert Ola into the lineup on the right side. Ola will likely be the first off the bench everywhere but Center, and Graham Glasgow will act in a reserve role at Both Guards and Center. I predict Joe Dahl will make the team but likely will be a scratch on gameday unless someone is hurt. His versatility will help him keep a job, but won’t push him into the lineup just yet.

Cornelius Lucas has been a not-so-valuable member of the Detroit Lions reserve corps over the last two seasons, but just doesn’t have what it takes to be an replacement level reserve. The Lions finally have added enough depth that they can let this bum go. Lumuel Jeanpierre was brought in late in camp as nothing more than a camp body, and perennial camp body Gabe Ikard will be let go sooner or later as well.

Geoff Schwartz may have a shot of occupying Joe Dahl’s role if Bob Quinn and the Detroit Lions staff elect to stash Dahl on the practice squad, but it’s not because he earned it, but rather the staff is expecting him to return to his high level play once the games start counting.

Chase Farris, Corey Robinson, and Luke Marquart are just too young to hold down regular jobs, but all are worthy of a practice squad gig. They all have the physical potential to be an NFL Offensive Lineman, but haven’t shown it yet. You can only keep two on the practice squad. I predict that the Lions will keep Robinson and Marquart (Robinson because he’s a former pick and Marquart because of his massive size) and will let Farris go in the end.

Defensive Line:

The DE’s – This is the position that the Detroit Lions have the most concerning lack of depth. Ziggy Ansah is obviously a starting DE in this league, but Devin Taylor and Wallace Gilberry are more third or fourth defensive ends on an NFL roster. Anthony Zettel has an inside track in my opinion for the fourth and final defensive end spot because of his ability to play inside in a pinch. Brandon Copeland could occupy that spot if the Detroit Lions don’t care about him getting blown up in the run game, but Quanterus Smith, Kerry Hyder, and Deonte Gibson don’t have a real chance of making the team. The Detroit Lions likely won’t keep a Defensive End on the practice squad because of a numbers crunch.

The DT’s – You could argue that Defensive Tackle is the deepest position group on the roster after being a liability down the stretch last season. Haloti Ngata will start and will play a lot on first and second down. Tyrunn Walker might rotate out, but will be on the field in passing downs because of his ability to get to the passer. Stefan Charles is listed on every other site’s cut lists, but I don’t see the Detroit Lions making that decision. He has an impressive body of NFL work and will be an asset to Detroit. A’Shawn Robinson has looked very good defending the run so far, but hasn’t been allowed many pass rushing situations to see how he will do. He’s still a lock in making the squad. Caraun Reid will make the team because of his play down the stretch last year. Khyri Thornton has had a good camp too, however, his body of work during real games isn’t impressive. That’s why Charles gets the edge over him as well.

Gabe Wright could push Charles out of a job and is having a good training camp. I just think Charles offers more right away, whereas Wright is all about potential. The NFL doesn’t have time or roster spots for “potential” except on practice squads. At this point, that’s where he belongs.

Linebackers:

The LB’s – With Kyle Van Noy’s resurgence the Detroit Lions might actually have some Linebacker depth. Whitehead, Levy, and Bynes are locks for the opening day roster. Rookie Antwione Williams will likely make the team as well because of his special teams ability, but if not, he’ll make the practice squad as the one Linebacker they keep there. Jon Bostic and Khaseem Greene will make the team as well because of their versatility and special teams ability, but they are far from safe. Both come with injury concerns, but should make the team.

Defensive Backs:

The CB’s – Darius Slay, Nevin Lawson, and Quandre Diggs are the three locks for jobs, but other than that it’s open season. Darrin Walls brings plenty of experience, including 12 starts for the Jets in 2014. Johnson Bademosi is a special teams ace, but will struggle to play actual defense. Crezdon Butler has a slight edge on the final spot, but it’s anything but tight.

The Lions may try and sneak second year and former third round pick Alex Carter on the practice squad. However, he might not make it through waivers. He might get the sixth Cornerback spot out of camp to avoid exposing him to that. Keith Lewis, Adairius Barnes, and Rashaad Williams don’t have much of a spot, but one of them could make the practice squad if the Detroit Lions don’t use that slot on Alex Carter.

The Safety’s – The Lions signed two Strong Safeties in free agency and drafted another one in the fourth round. It was obviously a position of need. Rafael Bush has the starting spot, but will not be an every down player. Don Carey might be the best cover man out of the bunch besides Glover Quin, but his struggle to help in the run game will keep him from playing a lot. Miles Killebrew will be a special teams assassin, but will be helpless on defense if he’s asked to play much there.

Isaiah Johnson has done okay this training camp, but with the amount of guaranteed money ahead of him, he’ll be a free agent at camps end or back on the practice squad. Charles Washington is just a camp body that no one will weep about letting go.

Special Teams

The Specialists – The Detroit Lions brought in camp body Devon Bell and he’s done well. It’s a good audition for another team. Matt Prater and Sam Martin were never in danger of losing their jobs.

Don Muhlbach is likely out of a job with the drafting of Jimmy Landes from Baylor. You don’t spend a draft pick, let alone a sixth rounder on a long snapper unless you plan on keeping them. Muhlbach has put in many great years of service, but it’s time to upgrade to the younger, cheaper model.

Walking Wounded

Out of the walking wounded, only two were likely to make the team. Brandon Pettigrew will be back on the roster as the Blocking Tight End as soon as he is able. Corey Fuller was likely to get cut at the end of camp anyway. Tim Wright would have probably made the team as well. Neither were major pieces, but nice role players.

UPDATE: Andre Caldwell was released with an injury settlement. Wasn’t going to make the team anyway.

There you have it. If the Detroit Lions are going scrapheap hunting on cut down day, they might look to add some depth at Defensive End. Other than that, they are likely going to roll with what they have.