NFL Analyst Expects Detroit Lions to Sign 'Role Players' in Free Agency
The Detroit Lions just may not be in a position to add a big-name free agent this offseason.
In the second year of a multi-year rebuild, general manager Brad Holmes and the front office may just employ a similar strategy they utilized last offseason.
Holmes was asked at his season-ending media session if his approach to this offseason will be different due to having increased resources.
"We’re going to still find guys that fit. Regardless of however much resources that we have, we’re still going to find guys that are aligned, that truly fit what we’re about," Holmes said. "You bring up the guys that had chips on their shoulders and things to prove, well a lot of times experiences shape people often. Like I said, we’re a gritty group, so I’m not saying that we’re looking for one-year deal guys, but we’re still looking at guys that fit who we are. We’ll just probably be able to get a little bit more.”
Safety Marcus Williams is among the free agents that have been linked to Detroit, due to his familiarity with Lions head coach Dan Campbell and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn.
Williams is expected to come with a hefty price tag, according to Spotrac.
The 25-year-old's market value is projected to be $15 million per year, and it's expected he’ll be offered at least a five-year deal worth $75 million.
PFF NFL analyst Ari Meirov appeared on the "Locked on Lions" podcast hosted by Matt Dery on Wednesday, and disclosed his opinion on how the Lions will allocate resources in free agency.
"When I look at this team, they're bringing in a bunch of younger guys. You remember last year where it was like a bunch of one-year deals or not big-time contracts. I think they really want to, as I said before, really just build this from the ground up and do it the right way -- where we're just throwing around money on people when we're not ready to win yet," Meirov said.
Meirov continued, "I don't know if they're ready to go out and just spend a ton of money on a big-time player. I think it's more about let's just keep on adding more role players onto this team, more depth pieces onto this team. I don't really envision them going crazy when it comes to anybody big. When it comes to cap space, they are in a solid position. Not the best, not the worst. They're in the middle, I would say right now. They could make some moves to add more cap space. But, I don't really know if they're ready yet to go in that direction."
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