Will the Detroit Lions linebackers leap forward in 2018?

Position-by-position breakdown

The Detroit Lions roster only has one designation for linebackers, “LB.”

The list of men headed to camp at the end of the month is (starters in bold): Trevor Bates, Al-Rasheed Benton, Chad Meredith, Jonathan Freeny, Jarrad Davis, Steve Longa, Jalen Reeves-Maybin, Christian Jones, Devon Kennard.

Head coach, Matt Patricia, and defensive coordinator, Paul Pasqualoni, use multiple formations which require personnel to play more than one spot. So, I will just place linebackers into one of two categories: inside or outside. Inside players tend to be more stout and aren’t usually as good of athletes, in general. Also, in some alignments outside linebackers are really more like defensive ends.

Inside Linebackers

The inside players are again led by second year man, Jarrad Davis. Nick Bellore is possibly the only healthy fullback (after Nick Bawden’s injury), so the backup situation is unsettled.  The likely scenario is that the team will keep five or six linebackers, total. The backups that offer the most versatility will have a better chance of making the roster. The caveat is that someone has to be able to play Davis’ role, in the event of an injury.

The players who most resemble the traditional 4-3, inside “Mike” linebacker are: Al-Rasheed Benton, Steve Longa, and Jonathan Freeny. They will vie for the backup job and to be a special teams player. Nick Bellore (currently a fullback) is on the team still, as well, so he could always be moved back to defense in an emergency.

Both Longa and Freeny have been primarily used on special teams, with neither making a start after going undrafted.