Detroit Lions: Reviewing the tentative 53-man roster
The Detroit Lions released and waived several players on Saturday in order to trim their bloated 90-man roster to just 53 players per NFL rules.
On Saturday, the NFL required all of it’s teams to trim down their rosters from 90 players to just 53. That means nearly 1,200 players were left without a job over the weekend. Although some will land on practice squads or on other teams, for the majority, the NFL dream is over.
For the Detroit Lions, the final cut down day means making some very difficult decisions and parting with some talented individuals. For a list of the players either released or waived on Saturday, click here.
As a result of these moves, we now have a tentative 53-man roster to review in the Motor City. But also take into account that the Lions could have put in waiver claims and/or can sign free agents that can improve this roster in the coming days.
For now, let’s just see who made the “final” cut.
Quarterbacks
Matthew Stafford, Jake Rudock
Running Backs
Ameer Abdullah, Theo Riddick, Zach Zenner, Dwayne Washington, Tion Green
Wide Receivers
Marvin Jones Jr., Golden Tate, Kenny Golladay, TJ Jones, Jared Abbrederis
Tight Ends
Eric Ebron, Darren Fells, Michael Roberts
Offensive Line
Ricky Wagner, Greg Robinson, Cornelius Lucas, Corey Robinson, Travis Swanson, T.J. Lang, Brandon Thomas, Graham Glasgow, Joe Dahl.
Related Story: Detroit Lions 53-man roster cuts tracker updated
Defensive Line
Ziggy Ansah, Cornelius Washington, Anthony Zettel, Alex Barrett, Jeremiah Valoaga, Haloti Ngata, A’Shawn Robinson, Akeem Spence, Jeremiah Ledbetter
Linebackers
Jarrad Davis, Tahir Whitehead, Paul Worrilow, Jalen Reeves-Maybin, Steve Longa, Nick Bellore
Secondary
Darius Slay, Nevin Lawson, Quandre Diggs, DJ Hayden, Teez Tabor, Jamal Agnew, Glover Quin, Tavon Wilson, Miles Killebrew, Don Carey, Charles Washington
Special Teams
Kasey Redfern, Sam Martin, Don Muhlbach
Just a couple surprises above. The Lions decide to carry five running backs with rookie Tion Green making a late push in that final preseason game. Detroit also brings five receivers to the active roster, with Jared Abbrederis beating out Jace Billingsley for that final spot.
The Lions decided to go a bit heavy at offensive line carrying nine lineman, which is understandable due to their recent injury issues in that area. Finally. I think the release of linebacker Antwione Williams was a bit of a shocker, with players like Steve Longa and Nick Bellore making the final 53 instead.
Next: Detroit Lions tie up loose ends before regular season
What are your thoughts on the Detroit Lions’ final-53 man roster so far? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.