The Detroit Lions have gotten through one week of free agency, and it's been going about as expected for a team that believes heavily in its offense, and has long-term hopes for its defense.
While there were some notable additions on the offensive side of the ball, like with the Lions' addition of Cade Mays to their center room and their signing of Isiah Pacheco in hopes that he can be the perfect RB2 behind Jahmyr Gibbs, it was their defensive signings that were a bit more under the radar.
Roger McCreary. Christian Izien. Rock Ya-Sin. These are all defenders who will be tasked with starting in spurts, or at least with providing some unique looks in Kelvin Sheppard's playbook, in 2026. They're not huge names, but they're going to be solid for Detroit if all goes to plan. Of course, the biggest non-addition for Detroit so far has been their nothing-burger at the EDGE2.
There were some clear winners from this first wave, and some obvious losers that don't necessarily have pressure on them to perform until the end of April.
4 winners (and 3 losers) from Lions' first wave of free agency
Winner: Kelvin Sheppard
With the addition of McCreary to this roster, in addition to the Lions' depth signings of Izien and Ya-Sin, Sheppard will have the ability to experiment more with his defense, and more with the nickel. This will help to open the Lions' potential up a lot more than they did in 2025, when their packages often felt too predictable to ever work. And, of course, they didn't towards the end of the season.
Sheppard might be at risk of feeling the hot seat if the team doesn't hit on their draft picks on defense, but between returners and new faces, he has a decent depth chart to work with - outside of his defensive line, of course.
Loser: Aidan Hutchinson*
Hutchinson has yet to see the Lions sign a co-star on the edge in free agency, and it has slowly begun to feel like the Lions are just going to try and find one in the draft. It's not a terrible plan, but that likely shifts their focus to a DE in the first round rather than the second. That's why we have an asterisk.
If they can't hit there, they could be in some trouble if Alim McNeill can't provide pocket pressure akin to what he provided in 2023. Hutchinson probably isn't feeling all that impatient - after all, he did get an extension done with the team that has him locked down through 2030. But, it'd be nice to see Detroit finally invest in the position outside of Hutchinson. They can really pack a punch with an additional, explosive weapon on the outside.
Winner: The state of Michigan
A few new Lions coming over in the offseason are, so far, from Michigan. Larry Borom is a Detroit product. Tyler Conklin is from Chesterfield. That adds a little something to their game, presumably, and it's especially likely to be the case for Borom. He's a swing tackle that has starting experience. You can't say the same of Giovanni Manu at the moment.
Perhaps he gets some coaching up this offseason from Hank Fraley and can actually be the perfect utility lineman for the Lions if they take a rookie they don't fully trust at tackle yet. That's all you can hope for a Michigan native.
READ MORE: New Lions mock draft addresses elephant in the room amid quiet free agency
Winner: Tom Kennedy
He can't seem to get away from the Lions.
Kennedy, who has been with the squad since 2021, might finally find a consistent role with the team in 2026. That's thanks to Kalif Raymond's departure, leaving a hole on Detroit's special teams at returner. Kennedy has shown real promise at that position, which would help Detroit to figure out the pecking order at WR3.
Assuming Isaac TeSlaa is their favorite to land that job, Kennedy could feasibly win the competition to be the Lions' returner, along with backups in Jackon Meeks and Dominic Lovett, in 2026.
Loser: Brad Holmes
Holmes is stuck between a rock and a hard place within the Lions fanbase. It's impossible to imagine Detroit spending big when they're in a cap pickle, and with so many key extensions coming up on their docket. At the same time, it's beginning to get...tiring, almost, how non-active Detroit can be on the free agent market.
It makes it worse when you have teams making those small moves you'd think Holmes would've made, like taking on Rasheed Walker with a small, one-year deal or even snagging Evan Brown again to fortify the interior offensive line. Instead, Holmes has made two moves for the O-line after a really bad year on that front, and continues to be mum on their hole at the edge.
It just doesn't feel like Holmes can do much at this point until the NFL Draft to prove he's still got "it."