The Detroit Lions are making moves to get their roster in tip-top shape for the coming season, because the team obviously wants to have another chance to get to the big game and make history. It’s wild to think that the Lions are the only team to have never made it to a Super Bowl, but they’re hoping that changes in the coming seasons.
Now, the Lions are being advised to jump on the perfect guy to help fill a roster gap.
Just-Released Player Could Help Bolster the Lions
On Friday, February 14, the Miami Dolphins announced that they were releasing a handful of players, and one of them was cornerback Kendall Fuller. He signed with the Dolphins during the last offseason on a two-year, $15 million contract. Prior to joining the Dolphins, Fuller had a banner year with the Washington Commanders in 2023, but was injured in 2024. Due to his rough last season, his Pro Football Coverage grade went from 82.8 in 2023 to 62.4 in his first season with the Dolphins.
In a February 16 feature for Detroit Jock City, NFL analyst and expert Devon Platana makes the case for the Lions to bring Fuller on.
“While his Dolphins run didn’t go as intended, Fuller is still a name the Lions should keep an eye on in free agency,” Platana states. “Carlton Davis, Emmanuel Moseley, and three other CBs will become free agents next month, meaning it’d be wise for Detroit to already start thinking about replacement options.”
Platana also says that even though Fuller didn’t have the best season in 2024, the player “could turn his career around by joining a Super Bowl contender like the Lions.” He adds that head coach Dan Campbell and company “know how to get the most out of their players, and it wouldn’t be shocking if he could help the 30-year-old cornerback return to form.”
Another Player to Get on the Lions’ Radar
In a February 13 feature for Bleacher Report, Kristopher Knox looks to another cornerback for the Lions: Greg Newsome II of the Cleveland Browns. In the piece, Knox notes that the Browns have a “projected $34.2 million cap deficit” and are in “one of the league’s worst financial situations entering the offseason.”
“With no way out of Deshaun Watson’s albatross of a contract,” he adds, “Cleveland will likely need to offload salary and reload with rookie contracts.”
So, the Browns could trade one of their best cornerbacks. ESPN’s Ben Solak discussed this idea in a separate feature, stating, “With no contending future in sight, I expect the Browns to trade players for picks.” Solak added that he believes both of the team’s “cornerbacks Denzel Ward (who had an excellent season) and Greg Newsome II (who had an uncharacteristically shaky season) should be made available, and one will be dealt.”
Knox notes that while Ward and Newsome would both bring “value on the trade market,” trading Ward prior to June 1 “would cost Cleveland another $5.8 million in cap space. Trading Newsome would erase his entire $13.4 million salary from the books.”
He thinks the Lions could benefit from a “young cornerback of Newsome’s caliber.”
The NFL’s free agent tampering period kick offs on Monday, March 10.
