3 Toughest Roster Decisions Lions Are Facing Ahead of Cut Day

The Detroit Lions will have a quick turnaround between their final preseason game and roster cuts.

Detroit kicks off against the Indianapolis Colts at 1 p.m. Saturday, and general manager Brad Holmes and company will have to have their roster down to 53 players by 6 p.m. on Sunday. With the depth they've brought in for training camp, the Lions face a multitude of difficult choices regarding the roster.

Here are the three toughest roster decisions the Lions are facing ahead of cut day.

Wide receiver/Tight end

The Lions have an established group of seven players between wide receiver and tight end that figure to be locks for the roster. That group includes wideouts Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Isaac TeSlaa and Greg Dortch, as well as tight ends Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright and Tyler Conklin.

After that, there is a cluster of players competing for the back-end roster spots. The Lions could pick an additional receiver for the fifth spot to help on special teams and provide depth, but then it could come down to a choice between a sixth wide receiver or a fourth tight end.

Amidst that group are players like tight end Jackson Meeks and wide receivers such as Tom Kennedy, Tay Martin. Those three players all have stood out at different points in camp, and those three specifically could all provide some special teams value.

In particular, Meeks is a player who stood out in the preseason last year and has embraced a position change. He has some upside, and could be a player other teams covet should he hit the waiver wire. The Lions' brass will need to decide whether the risk of losing him is higher than stashing him for depth and special teams purposes on the active roster.

Additional analysis: Lions 2026 roster cuts tracker

Linebacker

The Lions have multiple roster locks at this position, and one injury could have a significant impact on how deep they go here to start the year. Rookie Jimmy Rolder, who is expected to be a rotational contributor with starter potential late in the year, has been out since early in training camp and could be placed on injured reserve after final cuts which would put him out four games.

However, if the Lions deem Rolder healthy enough to play earlier than that and don't place him on IR, he'll join the likes of Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes, Malcolm Rodriguez and Devin White as a lock. Additionally, the team values Trevor Nowaske highly and will likely have a role for him on special teams.

That leaves multiple intriguing options on the bubble. Veterans Joe Bachie, Troy Reeder and Amen Ogbongbemiga all have plenty of experience and could be reliable depth players, while undrafted free agent Erick Hunter has impressed the coaching staff on special teams and made a strong case of his own.

Hunter, given his special teams background, is the type of player who other teams could pick up off of waivers and utilize right away. All of these options are deserving, and because of that the Lions will have a very difficult decision to make.

Defensive line

The Lions have compiled solid depth both on the interior defensive line and on the edge. Aidan Hutchinson and Alim McNeill are expected to anchor the effort, while Tyleik Williams, D.J. Wonnum and Derrick Moore are all expected to be big contributors as well.

Detroit has also gotten good performances in camp from Ahmed Hassanein, Tyler Lacy and Skyler Gill-Howard throughout camp and the preseason. Still, there are several players battling for the final spots on the roster in this position group.

The Lions will have to weight the pros and cons of keeping veterans like Ben Stille, Chris Smith and Myles Adams against young players like Mekhi Wingo and Tyre West and undrafted free agents Anthony Lucas and Eric O'Neill.

Ultimately, there is a lot of upside in this group, and the Lions may be able to get some of these players through to the practice squad regardless of the decisions that they make on Sunday.

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