Information sourced from: NFL.com
The preseason is nearly over. Shortly Brad Holmes, Dan Campbell, and many others will lock themselves in a room and decide who will make up the final 53 man roster. In typical Lions content fashion, let’s try to predict what the Lions are going to fill out their 53 man roster with. The one disclaimer I would like to make is this will be the FINAL 53 man roster, not the initial 53 man roster. Every year someone makes the initial roster, but then is ultimately cut as another player is re-added or exchanged.
Quarterback (2):
Jared Goff
Luke Altmyer
Out:
Josh Dobbs
Dobbs, even after a week of practice, looked really bad to me in preseason game two. After watching the game again, I am even more in this boat. Dobbs isn’t it, he lacks the ability to make the quick timed, accurate throws that Goff makes. Altmyer isn’t there but he has shown ability, and his improvement from preseason week one to preseason week two shows me what months of taking reps at QB2 in practice could potentially result in. The Lions will run with 2 QBs, they will need the roster spots elsewhere, and let’s be honest: If Goff goes down, we’ve got bigger problems.
Running Back (4):
Jahmyr Gibbs
Isiah Pacheco
Jacob Saylors
Jabari Small
Out:
Sione Vaki
Trayveon Williams
Roydell Williams
The Lions carry one more back than normal with the questions around Pacheco’s back. Saylors overtakes Vaki for RB3 and knocks him out of the competition. Jabari Small is retained given his similar (albeit lesser) skillset to Gibbs. Pretty straightforward and to the point.
Wide Receiver (6):
Amon-Ra St. Brown
Jameson Williams
Isaac TeSlaa
Greg Dortch
Tom Kennedy
Malik Cunningham
Out:
Tarik Black
Lucky Jackson
Dominic Lovett
Tay Martin
The Lions opt to keep Kennedy, given his familiarity with Goff. Cunningham is not the hottest name in the Lions receiver room, but his history at QB, and the Lions decision to keep 2 QBs influence this change. He can be the emergency QB should both QBs go down. A savvy move, and one that allows Cunningham’s athleticism to be used in trick packages. Dortch gives the new name to the room that has quietly been very productive in camp with his shiftiness.
Tight End (4):
Sam LaPorta
Tyler Conklin
Brock Wright
Jackson Meeks
Out:
Thomas Gordon
Zach Horton
The top three have been etched in stone for some time. However Meeks has been coming on as of late, and I really am starting to like him. He is undersized, but he can be a target Goff can trust at Tight End, and that is what we need if LaPorta can’t suit up. Hopes for Conklin are that he can improve, and show some of what he showed with the Jets.
Center (2):
Juice Scruggs
Seth McLaughlin
Reserve/PUP (Available Week 5):
Cade Mays
Out:
Gus Hartwig
Michael Niese
Juice has been the more consistently good player at center. McLaughlin has looked good at times, and I see the Lions keeping him on the roster as Scruggs backup. This all gets shaken up after four weeks when Cade Mays returns, McLaughlin likely gets waived (and subsequently claimed by another team) and Scruggs steps into the backup center position. It’s worth noting Scruggs can play guard too.
Offensive Guard (4):
Tate Ratledge
Christian Mahogany
Miles Frazier
Ben Bartch
Out:
Colby Sorsdahl (listed as guard, seen playing more tackle this offseason)
Tate and Mahogany lock down the starting guard spots. Frazier is a reserve guard AND tackle, which allows for another open roster spot. Bartch, who has looked the most capable at reserve guard to my knowledge, rounds out this room.
Offensive Tackle (3):
Penei Sewell
Blake Miller
Larry Borom
Out:
Devin Cochran
Mason Miller
Giovanni Manu
Melvin Priestly (OL, but listed with tackles)
Sewell and Miller start. Borom is your swing and backup tackle. Frazier doubles as a backup in this room as well. No surprises here!
Cornerback (6):
D.J. Reed
Rock Ya-Sin
Roger McCreary
Keith Abney II
Nick Whiteside
Khalil Dorsey
Out:
Ryan Cooper Jr
Ekow Boye-Doe
Aamaris Brown
Ryan Cooper Jr.
I low-key like this group. If Reed can return to form he can certainly be a number one corner. Rock is solid at number two. Roger McCreary can play inside and out, but probably pulls the starting nickel spot. Abney can play both inside and out, and so can Whiteside, giving solid depth. Dorsey has special teams upside, and has been improving in other facets of his game. They may not be star-studded, but with a seemingly upgraded defensive line, they could look better than last year’s group.
Safety (4):
Avante Maddox
Christian Izien
Chuck Clark
Thomas Harper
Reserve/PUP (Available Week 5):
Brian Branch
Kirby Joseph
Out:
Dan Jackson
Jason Taylor II
Safety begins a little thin. I could see the Lions adding a veteran safety to the practice squad from another team’s castoffs, and being elevated for gameday if need be. However, Maddox, Izien, Clark, and Harper are not a bad group. They simply aren’t as star studded as our normal crew. Here is hoping by week 4 we have Branch back, and things will look up for the group a bit.
Defensive Tackle (5):
Alim McNeil
Tyleik Williams
Skyler Gill-Howard
Levi Onwuzurike
Mekhi Wingo
Out:
Tyre West
Chris Smith
Myles Adams
Ben Stille
This group doesn’t change a ton, but the addition of Skyler Gill-Howard helps a lot. The lack of nose tackle is a bit outside the norm. This is another spot where I could see a nose from another team landing on the practice squad and being elevated as needed for game day.
Defensive End / EDGE (5):
Aiden Hutchinson
DJ Wonnum
Derrick Moore
Ahmed Hassanein
Tyler Lacy
Out:
Eric O’Neill
This group has impressed, and make up for taking only four defensive tackles. I get the feeling this group will be much more attacking this year, and this group allows for that. Hassanein, Lacy, and Hutch can all swing inside when need be. This group is very exciting. Eric O’Neill is a hard cut too, his speed rush style is so fun, but he is an undersized pass rush specialist when we have more complete players higher on the depth chart. He will land somewhere else.
Linebacker (5):
Jack Campbell
Derrick Barnes
Devin White
Malcolm Rodriguez
Erick Hunter
Reserve/PUP (Available Week 5):
Jimmy Rolder
Out:
Amen Ogbongbemiga
Damone Clark
Trevor Nowaske
Joe Bachie
This room is so hard to predict. There are so many good players here. Nowaske is hard to part with. He is a solid backup, but Erick Hunter is improving so rapidly, with an elite athletic profile, and special teams ability, he’s just too good to pass up. We have seen the top end of Nowaske, we have not seen the top end of Hunter.
Specialists (3):
Hogan Hatten (LS)
Jake Bates (K)
Jack Fox (P)
No surprises here.
And that’s it folks, the Lions final 53 roster as I see it. I am most certainly wrong in a number of spots, but that is the fun of this time of year. I think this is a pretty good approximation though, and hope to see a lot more of a pass rush given the considerable upgrades in that room. It’s a fun time to be a Lions fan, let’s enjoy the beginning of this year and the fact that football is nearly back!
I'd feel better with Altmyer as QB2. And I want as much depth on defense as possible
So they actually said Dobbs as the number 2. I actually like altmeyer