The Detroit Lions made six picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, and they added 14 undrafted rookies in the days that followed along with tryout invitations to rookie minicamp. That Rookie minicamp is coming soon (May 10-12), followed by the next phase of offseason work.
Even post-draft with a long way to go before the season starts, a good chunk of the Lions' 53-man roster can be written in ink. But it's also true that their 90-man offseason roster is not quite full, and there are spots where an addition seems likely, if only to bring some extra competition.
So let's do a post-draft 53-man roster projection for the Lions coming out of the draft.
Detroit Lions' post-draft 53-man roster projection
Offense
Quarterbacks (3)
Jared Goff
Hendon Hooker
Nate Sudfeld
It comes down to if the Lions will keep two or three quarterbacks on the final 53, and in some way a veteran addition make sense. An emergency third quarterback can now come from the practice squad, which may be where Sudfeld lands if the Lions only carry two quarterbacks into the season. But for now, I've got him on the active roster.
Running Backs (4)
David Montgomery
Jahmyr Gibbs
Sione Vaki
Zonovan Knight
Montgomery and Gibbs are of course locks here. The versatility Vaki brings (along with trading up to get him at pick 132) makes him a lock too. The battle will then be for the No. 4 spot, if the Lions carry four running backs into the season of course, and I've got Knight beating out Craig Reynolds.