The Detroit Lions' starting lineup is likely to be in flux throughout this season.
With injured players returning on both sides of the ball, and with ongoing competitions at positions like left guard, center, right tackle, cornerback, and safety, there's likely to be some experimentation ongoing throughout the year. Ideally, not for too long.
Ahead of the Lions' Week 1 contest against the New Orleans Saints, we'll predict what their starting lineup on offense and defense will be, and which players we're likely to see a ton of kick and punt return reps from, as that's another wide-open job on the Lions' roster.
Predicting Lions' starting lineups headed into Week 1 against Saints
Offense:
QB: Jared Goff
RB: Jahmyr Gibbs
WR: Amon-Ra St. Brown
WR: Jameson Williams
WR: Isaac TeSlaa
TE: Sam LaPorta
LT: Penei Sewell
LG: Christian Mahogany
C: Juice Scruggs
RG: Tate Ratledge
RT: Blake Miller
The positions up for movement here are at WR3, center, and left guard. Christian Mahogany might be starting for Detroit to begin the year, but there was never an emphatic victory from him to secure that job in the preseason or in training camp. The fact that the Lions kept Ben Bartch and Miles Frazier on the 53-man roster speaks volumes to their trust in Mahogany's ability to start long-term.
At WR3, Isaac TeSlaa seems to have locked up that starting job over Greg Dortch (who was released), and Tay Martin (who is one of very few receivers Detroit is carrying into the year, but likely for special teams purposes). TeSlaa's athleticism and catch radius is unreal, as evidenced by his work in limited snaps in 2025. Hopefully, his issues with drops in camp and the preseason don't carry into the year.
Of course, at center, the Lions expect Cade Mays to return at some point. That puts Juice Scruggs on the outs, and perhaps a great solution at left guard by the time Mays is back if the Mahogany experiment continues to not go well.
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Defense:
DE Aidan Hutchinson
DT Alim McNeill
DT Tyleik Williams
DE DJ Wonnum
WILL Derrick Barnes
MIKE Jack Campbell
SAM Malcolm Rodriguez
CB D.J. Reed
CB Rock Ya-Sin
S Chuck Clark
S Avonte Maddox
NB Keith Abney II
The Lions' depth at defensive tackle will make their defensive line quite interchangeable, although this feels like their likeliest starting rotation to begin the year. Wonnum and rookie Derrick Moore will probably be sharing reps next to Aidan Hutchinson or next to one another once Moore is healthy.
At linebacker, the only change that could take place is Devin White getting more looks in exchange for Derrick Barnes. He's a really solid tackler still, and could be useful as an additional tool in coverage in Kelvin Sheppard's defense that's lacking depth in the secondary.
Speaking of, don't expect the Lions to maintain a lot of continuity at cornerback this season. The Lions have already spoken about utilizing Keith Abney II and Roger McCreary at the slot this season, and not either or. It's an ongoing competition that felt evenly won by both cornerbacks.
Special teams:
P Jack Fox
K Jake Bates
LS Hogan Hatten
PR: Tay Martin
KR: Sione Vaki
Sione Vaki surviving this year's roster cuts despite having an injury-riddled training camp means that he's likely being tapped to be the teams' main returner. That's even more evident with the teams' Dortch decision. Jacob Saylors could still sneak in here, but with Isiah Pacheco injured to begin the season, he's going to be getting work behind Gibbs at RB2.
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