Lions Sign Delaware UDFA Receiver: Can He Make Roster?

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell got the bad news out of the way Thursday.

During his opening statement, Campbell informed members of the media that 2026 fifth-round pick Kendrick Law is out for the season with a torn ACL. The wide receiver had been having a strong start to OTAs, but will unfortunately miss the duration of his rookie campaign.

Quickly after the announcement, the Lions announced that they had added depth at the position by signing Kyre Duplessis. An undrafted wideout, Duplessis comes to Detroit by way of newly minted FBS school Delaware.

Duplessis was rated no. 161 among 380 wide receivers in his draft class by The Athletic’s Dane Brugler in “The Beast.” He was a one-year Blue Hen, spending the first three seasons of his collegiate career with Coastal Carolina, putting up 23 catches for 348 yards with a single touchdown as a Chanticleer.

During his lone season with Delaware, Duplessis doubled those numbers, with 60 catches for 824 yards and five touchdowns. This includes a massive 161-yard performance against UConn to give the Blue Hens their first official win as a member of the FBS after moving up a level during the offseason. The season culminated in Duplessis being a First-Team C-USA selection at receiver.

Overall, one area that he did shine was as a run blocker, rating among the top 50 in the FBS among receivers with over 200 snaps blocking for the running back, along with being ranked no. 14 among Group of Six receivers.

His calling card, when watching film, is short routes where he was the designated target, via slants, drags, and screens. That fits well for being a slot receiver in the NFL, along with having solid hands. He only had four drops in 2025, and recorded 7 contested catches in 18 attempts, per PFF.

Lions' Week 2 OTAs Attendance Report

Path to the Roster

The way to the roster, or even the practice squad, for Kyre Duplessis is through special teams. The receiver played over 100 snaps on special teams last year, along with having two kickoff returns and three punt returns last season.

Among those punt returns, he returned a punt 68 yards for a touchdown against FIU. He also recorded 18 fair catches between both kickoff and punt return without a muffed catch on the season.

That said, he is not the same athlete that Kendrick Law would have been for Detroit this season.

Duplessis’s size, at 5-foot-10, is not the most imposing, nor is his straight line speed at a timed 4.64. His size currently projects him as a slot receiver, which is in stark contrast to how he was utilized with Delaware, with a vast majority of his snaps (651 to be exact) being out wide, compared to only 77 in the slot, per PFF.

Most of his metrics rate outside the top 50 percentile for the 380 receivers in his draft class. That said, his special teams ability and run blocking ability make him a story to monitor in camp.

Duplessis enters the room in a similar situation as Tom Kennedy did a few years ago, and Kennedy made the most of his chance, playing in 30 games for Motown over five seasons.

Now, however, the room and the roster as a whole are much more competitive, and Duplessis will need to stand out during OTAs and summer camp.

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