Lions defensive tackle Nick Fairley hopes to re-sign with Detroit
Free agent defensive tackle Nick Fairley said he hopes to re-sign with the Detroit Lions, Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press reports.
Fairley, 26, has played all four years of his career with the Lions since being the No. 13 pick in the 2011 draft. In 46 career games with the team, he has 13.5 sacks, five forced fumbles and 98 combined tackles.
He will be an unrestricted free agent, but the former first-round pick cited his relationship with the city as why he wants to stay.
"I want it to be," the defensive tackle said Monday. "I love Detroit, to be honest. I feel the city, the people in it. I love the atmosphere of basically the hard work that they bring. I'm just all work and that's definitely the vibe I get from the city and I like it."
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Fairley injured a pair of ligaments in his knee in Week 8 and missed the rest of the season, including Sunday's season-ending Wild Card game against the Dallas Cowboys. He returned to practice last week and said he would have played this coming week had they advanced. In eight games this season, Fairley had just one sack.
Fellow defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh will also be a free agent, and Lions head coach Jim Caldwell said re-signing Suh will be one of the team's top priorities this offseason.
The Lions finished the regular season 11-5 before losing to the Cowboys in the playoffs.
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