With a number of big-money extensions coming over the next couple of years, the Detroit Lions opted against splurging in free agency.
Instead, general manager Brad Holmes made it a point to bring back much of last season’s team — 17 of Detroit’s 31 total free agents entering the offseason have re-signed — ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft. The thinking is sound. The Lions won a franchise-record 15 games in 2024, and the injury-riddled roster that took the field in the divisional round was not indicative of just how good the Lions were at their peak.
But there was one lucrative deal handed out, and six other moves came along the margins. Here’s how we see each of Detroit’s seven external signees fitting in.
#### DJ Reed, CB
This is the easiest one to envision. The Lions lost cornerback Carlton Davis III to the New England Patriots, and they quickly pivoted to Reed as their replacement on the outside, opposite of Terrion Arnold. Reed doesn’t have the length of Davis — Reed is 5-foot-9 with 31⅝-inch arms, and Davis is 6-foot-1 with 32¾-inch arms — but the former New York Jets cornerback hasn’t let that stop him: “It’s three contracts later, and people still want to talk about if I could play on the outside,” Reed said March 13, as he was introduced as a member of the Lions.
Reed is a scrappy player. He’s physical, which sometimes leads to penalties. But it also evens the playing field between him and bigger receivers. He’ll likely be tasked with playing a bit more man coverage with the Lions than he has with previous teams , though his numbers there are encouraging. Among the 39 cornerbacks who played at least 150 man-coverage snaps last season, Reed’s man-coverage grade from Pro Football Focus (66.1) ranked 11th. His passer rating against (99.4) ranked 26th.
#### Roy Lopez, DL
Lopez figures to be the backup nose tackle behind DJ Reader. He’ll have to earn his role in training camp, but the guarantees in his contract — $3.5 million for one year, per Spotrac — clearly show how much the Lions value him. For reference, Kyle Peko, who was Reader’s backup last season, had approximately $1.2 million guaranteed in his deal, about one-third the money in Lopez’s pact. That type of increased investment signals the Lions wanted to upgrade behind Reader, as the nine-year veteran will turn 31 years old in July.
Reader averaged 39.2 defensive snaps over his last five games in 2024, a steep amount for a player entering Year 10. Anywhere between 30 to 35 snaps is likely the best manner to deploy Reader, and Lopez’s presence should help make that a reality. Lopez had 12 run-stops last season, which was tied for 16th among the 76 defensive linemen who played between 100 and 225 snaps in a run-defense role.
Indianapolis Colts linebacker Grant Stuard (41) runs onto the field before an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. The Colts defeated the Titans 38-30. (AP Photo/Zach Bolinger)
#### Grant Stuard, LB
If there’s any defensive position in which the Lions don’t have to worry about addressing any further, it’s linebacker. From starting-level talent such as Alex Anzalone, Derrick Barnes and Jack Campbell to special-teams standouts like Anthony Pittman and Ezekiel Turner, the Lions aren’t lacking. That was true before they signed Stuard, and it’s even more accurate now that he’s on the roster. Stuard was almost exclusively a special-teamer through the first three seasons of his career, but he took on a larger defensive role (229 snaps) in 2024.
Anzalone and Campbell have the WILL and MIKE starting spots locked up, respectively, but Stuard will have the chance to compete with Malcolm Rodriguez for reps behind them. He also should maintain his role as a core special-teamer; Stuard, who chose the Lions because he believes he fits into their culture, had 11 tackles on special teams in 2021, which was tied for the third-most in the NFL that season. He had eight tackles on special teams in 2022 and four in 2023.
#### Kyle Allen, QB
Prior to signing Teddy Bridgewater down the stretch, the Lions didn’t have much experience behind starting quarterback Jared Goff last season. Hendon Hooker was Goff’s main backup — the third-round pick in 2023 has thrown just nine passes in the NFL — and Jake Fromm, who has appeared in three games over four seasons, took QB3 responsibilities from Nate Sudfeld toward the end of training camp. Neither played a meaningful snap for the Lions in 2024, as all of Hooker’s opportunities came in blowouts.
In comes Allen, who makes it four quarterbacks on Detroit’s 90-man roster (Bridgewater remains unsigned, and he said his intentions were to return to coaching his alma mater, Miami Northwestern High School, in Florida). Years have passed since Allen last received any sort of extended run — he started four consecutive games for Washington in 2020 — but he brings seven seasons of NFL experience (31 games, 19 starts) to a group that needed some added veteran presence. If he makes the 53-man roster or practice squad, it’ll be because he proved he can be an asset throughout the week, preparing Goff in the lead-up to games.
#### Kenny Yeboah, TE
The Lions don’t have to worry about production from starting tight end Sam LaPorta, and Brock Wright is entering the second season of a three-year deal as his backup. But there does seem to be some competition for TE3. Parker Hesse held that role in 2024 before Shane Zylstra, a collegiate receiver who transitioned to tight end in 2021, supplanted him in October. Zylstra is back on a new deal after entering the offseason as a restricted free agent. Barring the Lions signing or drafting someone else, which could still happen, it’ll be Zylstra, who’ll have the advantage of familiarity, and Yeboah battling it out for a spot on the 53-man unit.
Yeboah has spent the last four seasons on the Jets. He’s known more as a special-teamer, catching just nine passes since 2021. He did, however, show some pass-catching chops at Ole Miss in 2020, when he notched 524 yards on 27 catches in eight games. Yeboah’s 19.4 yards per reception that season was the third-most in the country among qualified tight ends, behind only Coastal Carolina’s Isaiah Likely (now playing for the Baltimore Ravens) and UCLA’s Greg Dulcich (New York Giants).
#### Rock Ya-Sin, CB
Just as Reed is a direct replacement for Davis, the same can be said for Ya-Sin and Kindle Vildor; the latter signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier this month following 1½ seasons with the Lions. Ya-Sin, a former (and now current) teammate of fellow cornerback Amik Robertson, is on his fourth team in as many years. The second-round pick in 2019 shouldn’t be called on as a starter, but he can still provide veteran depth while also chipping on on special teams.
The 28-year-old Ya-Sin (6-foot, 195 pounds) is a true outside cornerback. He’ll likely play behind Arnold, Reed, Robertson and second-year pro Ennis Rakestraw Jr. His main competition on the outside will be Khalil Dorsey and Stantley Thomas-Oliver III.
#### Avonte Maddox, CB
A Detroit King product who is joining the Lions after helping the Philadelphia Eagles win Super Bowl LIX, Maddox could simply be coming in as a one-to-one replacement for Emmanuel Moseley as depth at nickel cornerback. That adds up, as 78.2% of Maddox’s defensive snaps over the last four seasons have come in the slot.
What makes this signing potentially interesting, however, is that nearly a quarter of Maddox’s defensive reps last season came either in the box or at safety. Could he be useful in three-safety packages? Ifeatu Melifonwu inked a one-year deal with the Miami Dolphins, and the Lions have yet to replace him by signing a third safety to play behind Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph. Maybe they’re confident in the depth already rostered (Erick Hallett II, Morice Norris and Loren Strickland), or maybe Maddox plays a role.