The Detroit Lions signed two UFL stars on Tuesday, bringing in wide receivers Lucky Jackson and Tarik Black. Both players were previously with the Louisville Kings, who are coming off a United Bowl championship this past Spring. Both Jackson and Black were in the top-3 of receiving yards for the Kings in 2026, with Black having three receiving touchdowns and Jackson recording two.
Detroit recently lost rookie Kendrick Law to a torn ACL in OTAs, so they do have a need for additional receiving depth on their roster as we wrap up mandatory minicamp and experience a brief lull ahead of training camp.
With these signings, the Lions continue their habit of poaching from Spring football leagues to try and add meaningful depth to their roster.
Last season, we saw how Jacob Saylors and Nick Whiteside were key depth pieces for Detroit last season, with Saylors becoming an important part to the special teams unit, and with Whiteside a member of the "Legion of Whom" that Detroit relied upon the second-half of 2025.
Detroit seeking to strike lightning twice with latest UFL signings
Jackson was most recently with NFC North rival Minnesota Vikings in the 2023 season, but didn't standout with them in that stint. In 10 games with the Kings, Jackson had 32 receptions for 392 yards, with an average of 12.3 yards per catch. He was also a special teams cog for Louisville, with nine punt returns for 107 yards, and an average of 11.9 yards per return attempt.
As for Black, he had very similar numbers to Jackson, with both being a bit of a two-headed monster for the championship-winning UFL team. He had 388 receiving yards on 27 receptions in nine games, and averaged 14.4 yards per reception.
He also had three touchdowns. In the postseason, he averaged 17.8 yards per catch, and had 71 yards total on four receptions through two postseason games.
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The Lions feel pretty stacked on special teams as of now, but these two could also help out with backing up their receiver room.
Obviously, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams are the top receivers in that room, but Isaac TeSlaa is in a bit of an open competition for the WR3 role following the loss of Kalif Raymond to the Chicago Bears. Black and Jackson could very well compete for snaps there.
Given how successful the Lions were with Saylors and Whiteside in 2025, it feels safe to bet that they've found two potential gems here in Black and Jackson.
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