The Detroit Lions have handed out quite a number of one-year "prove it" deals in recent years, and this season has been no different.
Players like D.J. Wonnum, Larry Borom, Christian Izien, and Roger McCreary were handed fairly team-friendly deals which give them all the opportunity to compete for long-term contracts after 2026, with or separate from the Lions. We saw this happen with Al-Quadin Muhammad in free agency, and it'll likely happen again if any one of these free agent signings plays much better than what their deals reflect.
There are three specific Lions players whose contracts say a lot about Detroit's view of them headed into this season, though: Sam LaPorta (for now), Khalil Dorsey, and Christian Izien.
3 Lions players whose contract says it all for 2026
Sam LaPorta
LaPorta is coming off a back injury which sidelined him for most of 2025. Back injuries are typically difficult to recover from, especially at a physical position such as tight end. However, he is slated to be Detroit's starting TE once again, as their depth isn't exactly inspiring at the moment at that position.
LaPorta is due for an extension, as well as Jahmyr Gibbs and Brian Branch. Jack Campbell already received his this offseason, while the Lions exercised their fifth-year option on Gibbs. LaPorta's contract expires after this season, and he's slated to be a free agent in 2027.
Detroit seems to adore LaPorta, but they might be waiting to see how he fares one season removed from that back injury before giving out big money to their starting TE. After looking at what that market is shaping up to look like with deals for Kyle Pitts and Brenton Strange, they're probably feeling even more cautious.
Khalil Dorsey
Dorsey, much like the rest of the Lions secondary following the arrest of Terrion Arnold, is likely to now see a path open up for starters snaps. Assuming Arnold is away during training camp or potentially for the entire season (of course, we've gotten no further updates on his case beyond his arrest), Dorsey is now in a competition for the CB2 role alongside Rock Ya-Sin, Keith Abney II, Nick Whiteside, De'Shawn Rucker, and Ennis Rakestraw Jr.
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So, crowded room for Dorsey to navigate, and it's hard to imagine him dominating that competition barring some stellar performances in training camp and the preseason from him. As he's back with the Lions on a one-year deal, he might have to be dominant in order to earn another contract from Detroit for 2027 and beyond.
Christian Izien
Izien has been reportedly getting starters snaps at safety this offseason amid injuries to both Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph. The defensive back is coming off a 14 game season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he was not a starter in that stacked defense. The four-year veteran is looking to see a stock boost as a starter with Detroit, assuming he wins that job in training camp.
Izien, like McCreary, were brought in on one-year deals to add depth to an oft-injured group, but Izien has found himself thrust into a far more important position than anticipated. If he can, at minimum, generate some turnovers and not be a complete turnstile as a tackler or gap-stop against the run, he could see himself being courted heavily by Detroit as they will presumably need safety help beyond just this season.
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