Roster Gymnastics: Should the Lions Add Another Cornerback?

Terrion Arnold’s release is far from ideal, but should the Lions stick with their guys or add another cornerback?

Information sourced from: Pro Football Reference, Detroit Lions Morning Rounds, Spotrac

With the recent loss of Terrion Arnold, one of the two outside corner spots on the Lions roster is now open. In filling this open spot, that likely creates a hole of some sort elsewhere on the roster. I found myself talking with S&B contributor MCBC about this exact topic, and realized there are a lot more options than one might consider. Let’s dig in and answer the question, should the Lions add another Cornerback?

First and Foremost: All is Not Lost at Cornerback

As I outlined in a previous article, the drop off from Terrion Arnold to Rock Ya-Sin at outside cornerback isn’t as steep as a lot of us would like to think. Now, don’t get me wrong, Arnold’s ceiling was leaps and bounds above Ya-Sin’s. However, right out of the box we can promote a reserve corner to a starting spot without a massive drop off. What I have read a lot of though (and what MCBC expressed to be) is a lot of Lions fans are not ok with this being the only answer at cornerback.

In-House Options at Outside Cornerback

Let’s start here. What true in-house options do we have at cornerback? Have they started before? I am going to exclude Khalil Dorsey, Nick Whiteside, De’Shawn Rucker, and Amaris Brown as I personally don’t see their path to the outside spot unless they take a considerable step forward.

Rock Ya-Sin
Age: 30
Games Started: 45 games over 7 years

Ya-Sin is the most no nonsense answer. He fits this defense very well. He has played well in this defense. He is a calming veteran presence. While he may not be your prototypical playmaker, you would have a more prototypical playmaker in DJ Reed on the other side of the field. He also has been generally healthy, and comes into this season health and ready to go. The biggest downside that I see when I look over his stat sheet is that he seems to have next to no ball hawking skills as he has only intercepted two balls in his 7 year career.

Roger McCreary
Age: 26
Games Started: 38 games over 4 years

McCreary projected to be the starting nickel corner (pending competition) and is a newcomer to the Lions defense. He is once again a veteran presence on the field, which is a good thing. The key is though, he has played outside before and done so relatively successfully. He did have a brief stint on IR last year, but that has not been his norm. The biggest downside I see here is system inexperience and potentially leaving the nickel corner spot open.

Ennis Rakestraw
Age: 24
Games Started: 0 over 2 years

On paper, before the pads come on, Rakestraw probably has the most appeal for the other outside position. He is young, and stylistically matches what Terrion Arnold provided to the Lions. He could be a great option if he could stay on the field. It is well publicized that he has worked on building muscle and changing his body type to prevent injury, but that unfortunately means nothing until we see him stay healthy. I do hope that he can be the answer, but as I have said before, hope is not a strategy.

Keith Abney II
Age: 21 years old
Games Started: 0 (rookie)

Trusting a rookie is always a flip of a coin. You never know how quickly they are going to acclimate to the NFL. That said, while many look at Keith Abney as a slot only corner, he played the majority of his time on the outside in college. Furthermore, his height is often pointed to as a concern. Once upon a time I would have echoed this concern. However, Amik Robertson changed my mind as to what a short corner can do on the outside. Abney is the most high risk, high reward player to put at the other outside position but I kind of like the idea … a lot.

Who Would I Start In House?

This is a tough one, but common sense has to win out. I would start Rock Ya-Sin given his experience starting and in the Lions defense. The Lions offense (which looks looks like it may be coming back to form) has dragged the corpse of a defense into the playoffs before, so having a lesser corner on the outside isn’t as big of an issue as some may think (though not ideal). One side note though, I would make sure to have Rakestraw or Abney backup Ya-Sin. Start training one of the younger guys to be able to potentially step in and break out should Ya-Sin go down. My money would be on Abney here.

Free Agent Options at Outside Cornerback

Well… the cupboard is a bit bare here. I was a fan of kicking the tires on Rasul Douglas but he has since signed with the Commanders. Let’s do some quick hits on who is available.

Marshawn Lattimore - 30 years old

Good experience, but concerns on character, and has had a considerable drop off in play with age. Expensive contract likely (8.4 million a year projected by Spotrac).

Trevon Diggs - 28 years old

Good experience, but play has dropped off considerably after a very short 2023 season. Injury issues. Expensive contract likely (7.5 million a year projected by Spotrac).

Kenny Moore - 30 years old

Slot corner. While play has dropped off, it has not done so quite as hard as other players in this group. Middle of the road player. Per Spotrac he should command around 5.6 million a year.

Tre’Davious White - 31 years old

Primarily man corner. Injury issues. Has fallen off some even when healthy.

Who Would I Start From Available Free Agents?

To put it bluntly, no one. I mean if you want to risk another character problem and overpay, maybe Lattimore? The most appealing to me is Tre’Davious White, but that would be for depth. Oh, and oft injured players are something that the Lions are very apparently avoiding, so that is very unlikely.

In Conclusion: Should the Lions Add Another Cornerback?

At the end of the day, I am comfortable with who we have in the building. However, I think the Lions do need to be keeping an eye on players on other teams. Perhaps players who may have non “red flag” issues such as scheme mismatches and culture misfits. Players who may be cost prohibitive to other teams. I don’t see this happening in a trade, but rather towards roster cutdown days. There’s always a diamond out there, Brad just has to go out and find it.