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3 free agents Detroit Lions can't afford to lose this offseason

If the Lions want to return to the NFC Championship Game, here's who they need to bring back.

By Cameron Ellis

NFC Divisional Playoffs - Tampa Bay Buccaneers v Detroit Lions
NFC Divisional Playoffs - Tampa Bay Buccaneers v Detroit Lions / Gregory Shamus/GettyImages
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2. S CJ Gardner-Johnson

It feels like Gardner-Johnson has been around forever, but next season will only be his sixth in the NFL. The Lions' pass defense wasn't a strength for them this season, and there's plenty of evidence to suggest a lot of that was because of how much they missed Gardner-Johnson. The safety missed most of the season with a pec injury, but returned for their playoff run and put together one of the better games of anyone on the field in the Lions' Divisional Round matchup against the Buccaneers. His contract voids at the start of the NFL's new year, but a return to Detroit seems reasonable for both sides.