ALLEN PARK — With his hat, jeans, and boots at his introductory presser in Allen Park on Thursday, Roy Lopez looked ready to wrangle cattle. Instead, he’s here to wrangle offensive linemen — and he’s every bit a Dan Campbell guy.
The 27-year-old nose tackle agreed to a one-year, $4.65 million deal with the Detroit Lions on Tuesday, officially signing after the league’s new year began Wednesday evening.
Accompanied by his family, Lopez spoke with local reporters Thursday for the first time since joining the franchise, sharing what made Detroit a destination for him.
“The biggest thing is really just what they built already. The whole league, the whole country knows what the Detroit Lions stand for, and to be a part of it is a humbling experience,” Lopez said. “It’s a blessing. It’s something that I truly, truly look forward to. First and foremost, I’d like to say thank you to (Lions principal owner) Sheila (Hamp), (head coach) Dan (Campbell), and (general manager) Brad (Holmes) for taking a chance on believing in me.
“This opportunity is close to my heart, simply a blessing. I’ve got a big family. They’re coming in full head of steam, man. So expect to see us coming in, proud, loud. So, it’s going to be an environment that my family can’t wait to be a part of.”
When asked to expand on what he meant by the country knowing what the franchise stands for, Lopez said it’s evident the Lions wear their hearts on their sleeves and play with energy on both sides of the ball for all four quarters.
And above all, the Lions always believe they’re going to win, with players like center Frank Ragnow — whom Lopez is eager to meet — embodying that spirit.
Selected by the Houston Texans in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft, Lopez has primarily been a starter throughout his career, with the exception of his first year with the Arizona Cardinals in 2023.
Over the past two seasons with the Cardinals, Lopez was a key piece of their defense. He started 21 of 30 games, recording 70 combined tackles — six for loss — along with one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, three quarterback hits, and one sack.
Last season, he started 16 games for Arizona.
“I’m not going to lie, it was tough,” Lopez said about leaving Arizona. “It was something that, when I said I’ve got a big, loving family, I mean it when I say they’re fully 100% supportive and understand that this is my career.
“This is the game of football, and to join the Detroit Lions is something that helps my career, that’s going to help me learn the game of football from Coach Campbell, from Alim (McNeill), from D.J. (Reader), and from (Aidan Hutchinson) — all these guys that have proven themselves in the league. Basically, I’m trying to join a room that has already accomplished so much and bring my work ethic.”
Fortunately for Lopez, the Lions already had a pair of familiar faces on the roster — both of whom re-signed this week — to be part of his “welcoming committee” in Detroit.
Linebackers Trevor Nowaske and Ezekiel Turner were both teammates with Lopez during their time in Arizona.
Lopez said he had been in communication with both players before his presser, even seeing Nowaske in the building Thursday.
Hearing that the Lions' locker room is full of players who approach the game with the same mindset as him, Lopez was enthusiastic about what he hopes to bring this season.
“(I) show up every day, ready to work, excited to be here. It’s a blessing. No bad days, man,” Lopez said. “And so, I think that’s the biggest thing — I’m gonna grind it out to the very end, till the clock hits zero and maybe one more second after that.
“So, it’s a blessing to be a part of this room because you look on tape and that’s the way they play. You can’t fake it. It’s down to the core.”
Joining the Lions marks an important chapter in Lopez’s career. He said he’s looking to develop in all phases of his game, and with new defensive line coach Kacy Rodgers in town, he believes that’s possible.
But the biggest factor in his growth, Lopez said, will be the defensive line room he’s entering — one that includes Reader, McNeill, Hutchinson, and the recently re-signed Levi Onwuzurike, all of whom he named.
He spoke highly of Reader, who left Houston just before Lopez arrived.
“I’ve been watching D.J. for four years now. He left Houston when I got to Houston, so when I got there, I was watching a bunch of their old tape, and there’s D.J. — and here we are on the same roster,” Lopez said. “That’s what I hope to continue to do in my career: continue to learn.
“I’ve learned so much already, I’ve improved so much already since I got to the NFL—just my knowledge of ball—and to learn from pros and continue to be a pro’s pro.”
**Here are some additional highlights from the Roy Lopez introductory presser:**
**Impressions of Dan Campbell from afar:** “From afar, he loves his players, he loves his city, he loves this organization. I’ll tell you, from up close, I didn’t know he was that big, to be honest with you. I told them — I made a joke — I was like, I knew he played; I didn’t know he could still play. Like, that’s crazy. I shook his hand, I was like, man, bro. But it was awesome.
“You see it from afar — that’s what I mean by the whole country, the whole NFL knows about the Detroit Lions, and that’s because of the city, that’s because of Coach Campbell, that’s because of the culture they’ve built here. They believe in each other, they believe in what they’re building, and on the outside looking in, and as a competitor and as someone that loves ball, it’s intriguing, and it’s a huge part of why I chose Detroit."
**On where his aggressiveness comes from:** “In fact, I’m a wrestler. He just believed in me. He believed that his hands are a little too fast and his feet are a little too fast to be playing center (or) kick-stepping. He said that at a young age. We definitely always like to give him credit. He saw it before everybody else. But at the end of the day, we started wrestling when I was 2 or 3 years old. From that moment forward, everybody believed in me.”
**On his best wrestling move and how that helped him with football:** “A lot of people say when they watch my tape (that) it looks like wrestling. In high school, I was a two-time state champion. I finished with a 113-3 record. My favorite move was a snap down. You watch my film, (and) my favorite move is a bull-shuck. It’s the same movement as wrestling, so it’s kind of full circle. I laugh at it, I think it’s funny.
“My pad level is just purely off of leverage and (having) inside hands, just like wrestling. I owe a lot of credit to it. I didn’t enjoy it all the time, cutting weight, running, eating ice chips, spitting. I didn’t enjoy it, man. Sometimes (as) a young kid I was cutting weight, trying to make weight, traveling the world, traveling the country. It’s come full circle. I always said I wasn’t going to make my son wrestle, but now it’s like — I owe everything to the sport of wrestling. Wrestling changed my life.”