Final Detroit Lions 2023 53-man roster projection before Week 1

The Detroit Lions finished the preseason with a 26-17 win over the Carolina Panthers on Friday night. So now it's on to roster cut down day, with Tuesday's 4 p.m. ET deadline to be down to 53 players.

After the game, head coach Dan Campbell pointed to the hard decisions that are coming after so many players rose up during the preseason.

"In some regards it makes it clearer, and in other regards it makes it very cloudy. And that’s a good problem to have. But it was good to see, ”We’re going to have to let go of some really good players,” Campbell said. “And that’s tough. That’s tough to do. But it also means there’s growth and your talent level has gone up. And that’s a good thing for your football team."

- Dan Campbell

The Lions will certainly be hoping to bring some players they cut back on the practice squad. But it's fair to assume a chunk of those they cut will not pass through unclaimed by other teams, and become options there. Which speaks to how quickly the talent level has been raised.

Without further ado, here's our final preseason 53-man roster projection for the Lions

Final Detroit Lions 53-man roster projection

Quarterbacks (2)
Jared Goff
Teddy Bridgewater
Hendon Hooker (PUP or NFI)

Any discussion about the Lions keeping a third quarterback on the 53-man roster ended when Nate Sudfeld went out with a knee injury on Friday night.