The Detroit Lions are coming off their most successful season in franchise history. The team finished 12-5 and won the NFC North for the first time since 1993. They also won their first playoff game since 1991 and advanced to their first NFC championship in franchise history.
Head coach Dan Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes have put together a team and culture that has been built to succeed for years. After losing in the NFC championship to the San Francisco 49ers last season, Holmes ensured that he would filled every hole on the roster. The team has gotten better, but like every other team in the league, there are still some potential pitfalls that could prove to be impactful.
Where’s the wide receiver depth?
Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the best receivers in the NFL. He finished 2023 with 119 catches, 1515 receiving yards, and 10 receiving touchdowns in 16 games, earning First-Team All-Pro honors on the way. He’s Jared Goff’s favorite target and a reliable option on every play.
However, after St. Brown, the wide receiver room gets extremely thin. For this group to be successful, the Lions will need a breakout season for third-year receiver Jameson Williams.
Drafted by Detroit in 2021 as the No. 12 overall pick, Williams has battled injuries and suspensions, unable to provide the impact the Lions anticipated. In bursts, fans can see the type of impact his speed and explosiveness can have on a game. However, he has yet to display it consistently.
The Lions desperately hope for the Williams breakout season to fill out the depth in this lineup. Mainly because it would add a critical weapon for an already extremely explosive offense. If Williams can provide the impact that was anticipated when he was drafted, the Lions could have the best offense in the league.
After Williams, the Lions hope for purely supplemental production from Kalif Raymond, Antoine Green, and Donovan-Peoples Jones. If those three can fill into the offense as needed and give Detroit productive snaps, this could be one of the most dangerous offenses in the league.
The New Look Secondary
The Lions’ secondary was easily the worst unit on the team last year. Headlined by Cam Sutton and Jerry Jacobs, the unit struggled immensely at the cornerback position. The Lions were able to make the NFC championship with their top two corners currently fighting to make an NFL roster this season. Brad Holmes identified this weakness and completely changed the personnel of the cornerback room.
Holmes traded a third-round pick for proven cornerback Carlton Davis from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He then signed Amik Robertson from the Las Vegas Raiders. Finally, the Lions spent their first two draft picks on Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold and Missouri cornerback Ennis Rakestraw.
The overhauled cornerback room looks to be a significant improvement for the team. Young safeties Kerby Joseph, Ifeatu Melifonwu, and Brian Branch will also provide a strong safety rotation for the defense. Overall, the unit has improved significantly and could be a strength for Detroit. However, there are always significant concerns when completely overhauling a unit of the team.
If one of the additions to the team struggles mightily, Detroit could struggle to find consistent production outside of the new members of the team. The Lions also lost Emmanuel Moseley to a torn pec for a significant portion of the year, a massive hit to the secondary depth for Detroit. While the unit looks improved, Lions fans will have to wait and see how the new unit meshes together.
Kicker
Coach Campbell is known for his aggressive play calling, particularly on fourth down. However, this aggression was his downfall after two unsuccessful fourth-down conversions. This was evident in the NFC Championship game, in which those decisions gave the ball back to the 49ers with no points put on the board.
While some Lions blame Campbell’s decision-making, the lack of consistent kicking production for Detroit was a major factor in his decision to get for it late in the game. The Lions haven’t had a kicker they could rely on since Matt Prater left to sign with the Arizona Cardinals. And to be honest, the Lions have struggled to supplement this production since he left.
Michael Badgley ended the year as the team’s starting kicker but has been unreliable throughout his career. The Lions signed Jake Bates, a star kicker who made a name for himself last season in the USFL with his booming 60-yard makes. The point of this signing was to add another competitive leg to the training camp roster and create a kicking battle.
However, Badgley tore his hamstring during the offseason and is now out for the season. Because of this, the Lions will rely solely on the production of Bates to be a consistent kicker that the team can rely on down the stretch. If Bates cannot replicate his USFL success, the Lions may be in another critical situation late in the season with no kicker to turn to to save the day.
