The NFL free agency frenzy will start on Monday, with the "legal tampering period" set to bring reports of deals fast and furious. So call this the calm before that storm, as he take a look at some Detroit Lions news and rumors.
ESPN's Dan Graziano sort of linked the Lions to Christian Wilkins, who is now the top free agent defensive tackle after the Chiefs signed Chris Jones and the Ravens have signed Justin Madubuike.
"After Chris Jones landed a big deal on Saturday night, Miami’s Christian Wilkins is likely to be a hot name, with contending teams such as the Texans and Lions looking to upgrade at that position,”
In a broad sense, Wilkins makes sense for the Lions. But his price is very high (four years, $100 million is Pro Football Focus' projected contract), and there could be a bidding war for him. Don't expect the Lions to get involved in a bidding war for him.
Detroit Lions' pre-free agency news
On Sunday morning ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported the Lions have applied the exclusive rights free agent tender to running back Craig Reynolds. It was either play for the Lions or not play in the NFL this year for Reynolds, as an ERFA, and it'll likely be a one-year deal for the league minimum ($985,000).
Reynolds has held on the No. 3 running back role for the Lions the last two-plus seasons, serving mostly as a special teamer and occassional kickoff returner. The coaching staff clearly likes him, and with the re-signing of Zonovan Knight it doesn't look like the Lions will be doing anything notable to add a running back this offseason.
This past week brought news the Lions re-signed cornerback Emmanuel Moseley. He of course only played two snaps last season, before tearing his other ACL. So he's getting another shot, and the details of his one year deal are out.
Looks like Emmanuel Moseley's basic contract structure has been filed:
— Justin Rogers (@Justin_Rogers) March 10, 2024
- Base: $1.125M vet minimum
-Signing Bonus: $1M
- Per game bonus: Up to $750,000
- Cap hit: $2.17 M (only $44,118 projected per game because of 2023 playing time).
- Only signing bonus guaranteed
Moseley got the kind of deal you'd expect coming off back-to-back seasons having suffered a torn ACL (once to each knee). It's low-risk, medium-to-high reward if he can be healthy.
Bo Scarborough, who had a memorable run for the Lions late in the second half of 2019 season (301 yards over a four-game stretch) and stuck with the Birmingham Stallions in the USFL over the last two seasons, has announced his retirement from football.
In announcing his retirement, UFL RB Bo Scarbrough spoke this very basic truth: "You can love this game all you want. But at the end of the day, the game can’t love you back because it’s not a person; it’s a ball."
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) March 9, 2024
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