The Detroit Lions' linebacker room took a major blow this offseason, losing Alex Anzalone in free agency to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The writing had been on the wall for a while, though, with the team clearly content with building around Jack Campbell on defense rather than around, and with, Anzalone.
As a result, though, the team clearly had a hole to fill at linebacker, even just to backup Campbell, Derrick Barnes, and Malcolm Rodriguez. Jimmy Rolder fell into the Lions' lap in the draft, and it was a no-brainer selection to make. The Michigan product is a hard-working tackler who could immediately boost Detroit's run defense and increase their chances at generating turnovers.
He looked great in minicamp and OTAs, so it's no surprise that FanSided's Chris Landers has pegged him as the one Lions player who could see his stock rise during training camp.
"The vibes are generally not great around Detroit's banged-up defense right now, but Rolder stands out as a bright spot thanks to a minicamp in which he grabbed everyone's attention with his athleticism and instincts. Malcolm Rodriguez has a hold on the starting spot for now, but that could change quickly."
Rolder named player set to see stock rise the most in Lions training camp
We've written about the possibility of Rolder unseating Rodriguez, as early as when he was drafted by the team. Rodriguez is bouncing back after a shortened year in 2025, so it'd be unfair to completely write him off as that third linebacker to start the year alongside Campbell and Barnes.
But, Rolder seems like a perfect backup to Rodriguez at the moment who could even threaten to leap him in the depth chart if he isn't making an impact to start the season. That's a win-win for the Lions, especially if they want to keep Rodriguez on a specific snap count while he ramps back up to consistent NFL action.
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As team reporter Tim Twentyman noted in his piece highlighting Rolder's minicamp performance, he also did a great job against the pass, which wasn't necessarily a strength of his in college. But, that adds even more of a dimension to his case for starting. If he doesn't jump over Rodriguez to start the year, he still has a ton of value as a gunner on special teams.
Detroit might have another great draft class on their hands, which could somewhat distract from the disappointment that their 2024 class is turning out to be.
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