The Detroit Lions have finally announced the signings of 2020 Draft picks OG Logan Stenberg and DT John Penisini. It was announced last week that the players had agreed to deals and we were only waiting for the official announcement to call it a done deal. Stenberg, drafted in the 4th Rd, signed a 4-year, $4.037M contract with a $742K signing bonus per Sportrac. He is expected to make a push for playing time at OG and is currently slated to wear number 61 this Fall, but that may change once camp cuts take place and other numbers free up. Penisini, drafted in the 6th Rd, signed a 4-year, $3.467M deal with a $171K signing bonus. Like Stenberg, he is expected to compete for playing time on the DT rotation this fall and will wear number 91. These are the first two signings so far from the class, with the status of each below. Rd 1: Jeff Okudah CB Status: Unsigned Rd 2: D' Andre Swift RB Status: Unsigned Rd 3a: Julian Okwara DE Status: Unsigned Rd 3b: Jonah Jackson OG Status: Unsigned Rd 4: Logan Stenberg OG Status: 4-Year, $4.037M Contract with $742K Signing Bonus Rd 5a: Quintez Cephus WR Status: Unsigned Rd 5b: Jason Huntley RB Status: Unsigned Rd 6: John Penisini DT Status: 4-year $3.467M deal with $171K signing bonus Rd 7: Jashon Cornell DT Status: Unsigned

It is May and we are in the middle of a Covid-19 induced pandemic, but the NFL moves forward and releases their 2020 schedule. So let’s play the obligatory Schedule Game. If you are not familiar with the Schedule Game it works like this: I will look at every game on the Lions schedule and pick a winner of each game. Let’s forget for a moment that none of the 32 NFL teams have held a mini-camp or for the most part have not even signed their 1st Round Draft picks (except for Miami – Overachievers). So away we go!! Week 1 CHI – Mitch or Nick ?? I think the Lions will pull out a close one at home. The Bears still have a good Defense and will make things hard for the home team but they will pull it out. Week 2 @ GB – It is good to get Green Bay in September in Green Bay. No one wants to go to the Frozen Tundra in Week 17!! Green Bay may be in a bit of mess with the drafting of a QB in the 1st Round, but #12 will still be chucking the pigskin in Green Bay for at least this year, and that always gives the Pack a chance. I think the Pack will win at home, again in a close game (the trend is already starting). Week 3 @ ARZ –Kyler Murray will be 1 year older and more in tune with Kliff Kingsbury. I think they will be an improved team from last year offensively. The Lions seem to never do well in the desert. That doesn’t change here. Arizona for the win. Week 4 New Orleans - Drew Brees, Michael Thomas, Alvin Kamara. Too much for the Lions. Saints in a not so close of a game. Week 5 Bye Week – Lions do not lose this week!! Week 6 @ Jax – Minschew vs Stafford- Stafford will prevail. Jacksonville still has Fournette but that is really about it on Offense for the Jags, Defense is in disarray. Lions win on the road! Week 7 @ATL – The Falcons were very busy in the offseason: Gurley, Fowler, Hurst et al… Too much for the Lions on the road. Falcons with the win. Week 8 IND - Is Phillip Rivers enough to push this team over the hump ? Not this day, although the Colts have a great Oline they will lose a close one to the Lions in Ford Field. Week 9 @ MinN – The Vikings and Lions are always a close game and very hard fought. I think home field is the key here, Vikes win another close one. Week 10 – WAS - Chase Young makes an appearance in Detroit but not in Honolulu Blue and Silver… Doesn’t matter, the Redskins will lose this time. Lions big. Week 11 - @ CAR – The Lions have problems on the road, they have for a long time. I don’t see it here though. CAR is in the beginning stages of a rebuild. They went all Defense in the draft and only have Christian McCaffery on Offense. The Lions get win #2 in a row. Week 12 HOU Thanksgiving day game - This is a tough game to figure. No DeAndre Hopkins, will David Johnson be back?? We know DeShaun Watson is the real deal, will JJ Watt play ( a legit question). I want to say the Lions should win this game, but my gut says Texans in a heart breaker. Week 13 @CHI – The Bears will have their QB situation figured out by this game. Bears win at home. Week 14 GB – Finally get GB at home late in the year, but there is nothing on the line for the Lions. However, the Lions win a meaningless game. Week 15 @ TEN - Derrick Henry – Titans win Week 16 TB – So the Patriots South will meet the Patriots North. The last time the Real Patriots came to town with TB12 and Gronk the Lions won. It should be a game that may determine who wins the NFC South for the Bucs. The Bucs have a pretty good defense – Bucs in a tight one. Week 17 MINN – Another NFC North rival and the last game of the year. I think the Lions win this one and continue the split with the NFC North teams. I think the Lions ceiling is 8-8 and I have them winning 7 games. That could change 1 or 2 games either way, but I don’t see them making the Playoffs. The 1st 4 games are tough and the last 4 are brutal. The early BYE week does not help either. Here is hoping to good health for the team and better than predicted results!!

The NFL released the Lions 2020 schedule earlier this evening, and below is what we can expect assuming there is a season. We will come back later this week with a more in-depth analysis, but below are the proposed* dates and opponents along with a quick hit thought on each game: PreSeason 08/13/20: @NE - (7:30PM FOX) 08/20/20: NYJ - ESPN 08/27-08/30: @MIA – FOX 09/03-09/04: BUF - FOX Regular Season Week 01: CHI - (1PM FOX) Week 02: @GB - (1PM FOX) Week 03: @ARZ - (4:25PM FOX) Week 04: NO - (1PM FOX) Week 05: BYE Week 06: @JAX** - (1PM FOX) Week 07: @ATL - (1PM FOX) Week 08: IND - (1PM CBS) Week 09: @MIN - (1PM CBS) Week 10: WAS - (1PM FOX) Week 11: @CAR - (1PM FOX) Week 12: (Thanks.): HOU - (12:30 CBS) Week 13: @CHI - (1PM FOX Week 14: GB - (1PM FOX) Week 15: @TEN - (TBD) Week 16: TB - (TBD) Week 17: MIN - (1PM FOX) *Continual restrictions could cause schedule delays or changes. **This was originally scheduled for Wembley in London

Assuming that the NFL will be allowed to play this Summer going into Fall, the NFl has finalized the Preseason schedule for the Detroit Lions and the rest of the NFL today. The Lions will have the one Prime Time game against the NYJ at Ford Field on August 20th, but the rest will be on the local Fox affiliate in the Detroit Market or tape delayed on NFL Network. Preseason 08/13/20: @NE - (7:30PM FOX) 08/20/20: NYJ - (8PM ESPN 08/27/20: @MIA - (7:30PM FOX) 09/03/20: BUF - (7PM FOX)

A tweet by Dave Birkett of the Detroit free Press this morning stated that the Detroit Lions Rookie class of drafted and UDFA players now have their numbers, albeit with a caveat. A couple of the players have temporary numbers that their position is not allowed to wear in season in Okudah (1) and Swift (6.) So unless something changes, they will need to adjust before the preseason. regardless, here is the full list with the numbers: In addition, the UDFAs and FAs also have their numbers assigned on DetroitLions.com, here is the complete list for all newbies:

Since the last second of the 23-20 loss to the Green Bay Packers last December, the Lions seemed bound and determined to not only remake their defense, but do it in such a way that it fit the vision that Coach Matt Patricia needs to effectively execute his defense to it maximum potential. With the NFL Draft and the initial wave of Free Agency complete, I thought it would be interesting to take a look at whether the projected 2020 Detroit Lions Defense is better off than the 2019 version that did so poor. With that in mind, here are a few reasons why I have come toy the conclusion that the Lions Defense in 2020 will be significantly better than 2019, injuries notwithstanding: Defensive Coaching staff gets some fresh eyes So, this topic has been a bit of an elephant in the room now since Patricia was hired back in 2018. Unfortunately for the Lions, New England, Patricia’s former employer, made it all the way to the Super Bowl before losing to the Eagles. The big problem is that meant Patricia couldn’t officially be hired until Feb 5th and get a staff cobbled together until after many other teams had snatched up assistants. His Defensive hires looked odd from the beginning, specifically the hiring of Paul Pasqualoni at DC and retaining Al Golden, but moving him from TEs to LBs. Fast forward three years, and those two coaches are no longer with the Lions, having been replaced with Cory Undlin at DC and Tyrone McKenzie as LBs coach. McKenzie looks like a natural fit, having played for NE and coached under former NE LB Mike Vrabel with the Titans as ILB coach the last two seasons. Undlin broke into coaching as a one-year defensive assistant with NE, but has cut his teeth working primarily with DBs on some of the best units (Jacksonville, Denver and Eagles) the last several years and coached in three Super Bowls, winning two. I don’t think it was an accident that the LB coach along with the DC were the areas targeted for changes, as they were responsible for many of the weaknesses the Lions Defense suffered through the last couple years. Golden in particular hurt the team, failing to develop Jarrad Davis, Reeves-Maybin and getting more out of Kennard. With Pasqualoni, I think the game had passed him by, and once Patricia realized he needed more than a figurehead calling plays, they found a way to gracefully let his mentor go for the good of the team. The defense has players that want to be here and will play within the system The overhaul reminds me of the sequence in the movie “Moneyball”, where Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) has enough of his manager not playing the players he acquired to make Peter Brand’s (Jonah Hill) sabermetrics-built team effective. So, what does Beane do, he gets rid of the guys that are being played that Art Howe (Philip Seymour Hoffman) keeps playing instead of Brand’s guys so he is forced to play the team that Brand’s analytics says is the most competitive. While this example is a bit extreme and not 100% the Lions situation, I think there is some validity there, with Patricia/Quinn in the Beane/Brand role, and holdover players from the prior administration (Mayhew/Caldwell) playing the role of Art Howe. Gone from the start of last seas on are three strong personalities in Darius Slay, Damon Harrison and Quandre Diggs, that were all very good players, but were resisting the changes that Patricia needed to make to both the scheme and the attitude. Their replacements were S Duron Harmon and DT Danny Shelton, bit NE guys along with Desmond Trufant and Jeffrey Okudah (ATL and Rookie from tOSU) that are known business first low-drama type of players. Slay, Harrison and Diggs will likely have several excellent seasons still in the tank, but the Partriot’s way is to shut up, do your job and do what is best for the team. Moving on from these guys and replacing them with comparable (or better) talent with the right attitude will go a long way towards stabilizing the defense and getting the most out of the youngsters. The one-for-one talent replacements on defense Below is a list of the Lions Defense 2018 projected opening game starters and their direct (and indirect) 2020 replacements: Damon Harrison < Danny Shelton: In a normal year, Harrison would have been easily been considered a better player than Shelton. However, the 2019 Damon Harrison held out even though he didn’t want to be a Lion, got injured and ended up having a down year. Meanwhile, Shelton is five years younger, and outside of the knocked down passes that Harrison was really good at, his career numbers are right in line with what Harrison had produced. Throw in the bonus of playing in the NE Defensive system, and Shelton is clearly an upgrade over a declining Harrison, who is still unsigned as of this being published. Slight Edge Shelton Slay/Melvin < Trufant/Okudah: Of all the changes, this one is the hardest to evaluate. If I went solely Trufant vs Slay, then I think Trufant is a bit of a downgrade from Slay, even though they are the same size and age. Slay has simply produced more over his career, leading the NFL in Passes Defensed since he entered the league. However, this isn’t simply a one-for-one with Trufant and Slay, as we have to throw 1st Rd CB Jeff Okudah into the mix and look at a pairing of Okudah/Trufant vs Slay/Melvin, and I think it is clear that Trufant and Okudah, at least on paper, should be better, if not superior, to what Slay and Melvin produced last season. Clear Edge: Okudah/Trufant Devon Kennard < Jamie Collins: Let me preface by saying Kennard played his butt off and did everything he was asked to do. He played the run, rushed the passer and produced modest success the last few years, especially tying his career high with 7 sacks each of the last two seasons. However, even though Collins is two years older than Kennard, he is something that Kennard isn’t, and that is a three-down back who can cover sideline-to-sideline as well as RBs and TEs. Collins hit triple digit tackles twice in his career and hit 80+ two other times. He also picked off 10 passes in addition to 30 passes defended to go along with his 24.5 sacks. Kennard’s career best? 61 tackles one year, 23.5 acks (14 with Lions), 1 INT and only 8 passes defended. If Collins can give the Lions a couple more years of product like he has last season, then this is not even close. Significant Edge: Collins Quandre Diggs < Duron Harmon: Although Diggs was traded mid-season, this was the first ripple on getting the defense stabilized, and I think that a two-year older Harmon is an upgrade for the secondary due to his intangibles and of course contract. Diggs had some injuries last year that slowed him down, but even before the game-four hamstring against the Chiefs, fans knew something wasn’t right. Unlike the 2018 season, when Diggs was truly the last line of defense, his play had slipped and he was missing many tackles he made before, along with talking bad angles and being out of position. Throw in the injuries and big personality, and it is clear why the Lions decided to move on to protect their investment in youngsters Will Harris and Tracy Walker. Unfortunately, Harris proved he wasn’t quite ready to step in like Walker had done the year before, so the Lions traded for Patriots veteran Harmon, who not only is a Patricia guy, but has been a steady producer for the NE secondary and a willing teacher to the young players often brought in to compete for his job. Slight Edge: Harmon Conclusion: My analysis concludes that the improvement should be pretty clear, as the OLB, CB, S and NT positions were all improved a bit to a lot with the replacements that Quinn has brought in via, trade, FA and the Draft. The players in many cases are of similar production, but you cannot overlook that most of the guys now want to be here and know how to play as a team-first environment. These intangibles cannot be overlooked, as the cohesiveness that comes from that will make the defensive unit more technically sound, and allow for a more efficient performance in 2020. Clear Edge: 2020 Roster Replacements When you look at these three major points in addition to simply having better depth, I think it is logical and obvious that there should be raised expectations of major improvements in the 2020 season. The defense cost the team multiple wins last year both before and after Stafford hurt his back. Having said that, the hard truth is that if they don’t improve, there are no more excuses and everyone will likely be looking for work.

It is not official yet, but it appears that the Lions away game against the Jacksonville Jaguars ion Nov 1st 2020 in London's Wembley Stadium will not be happening per multiple NFL sources. This is not unexpected, as travel restrictions and different ways of handling the virus by countries would make for a logistical nightmare. What this means for the future, I don't know, but it likely will leave the host teams picking up an international game the following season, but the visitors off the hook. more info to follow as the NFL makes a final decision and sorts out how to handle this year and moving forward.

The Lions entered the 2020 NFL Draft with nine draft picks and, whether by accident or on purpose, the team ended up focusing most of those picks on shoring up two areas of the team that have been troublesome for a while. When the dust settled after a few trades and Lions still using nine picks, the picks went towards either improving the Pass Rush or upgrading the Offensive Rushing game. Only two picks, big run-stuffing DT John Penisini (Rd 6) and WR Quintez Cephus (5a), bucked the trend, while the other seven all will ideally impact the performance for the better. Let’s start with the back history and why draft picks were utilized to bolster the Offensive Rushing Game. Since Barry Sanders retired after the 1998 season, the lions have had exactly four 1,000-yard rushers in the last 21 years, and none since Reggie Bush last did it in 2013. Throw in the streak of 70 straight games without a 100-yard rusher that Kerryon Johnson finally broke in 2018 as a rookie, and you kind of get how bleak the situation has been. There were a variety of excuses/reasons such as RBs not talented enough, RB injuries, bad OL play, injuries to OL, scheme issues, OL coaches, RB coaches, etc. But the bottom line is that the Run game has sucked for a while, and Darrel Bevel wants a balanced offense that is equally good at passing as it is at rushing. Running Game Impactful Draft Picks Swift (2), Jackson (3b), Stenberg (4), Huntley (5b) Bevell will have a literal buffet of backs to choose form when he runs plays next season, with guys that can hammer the ball, outrun the Defense to the corner and catch the ball with WR-like skills. Throw in complete backs in Kerryon Johnson and D’Andre Swift, and it is easy to see why the RB component of the rushing game has the most promise it has seen in years. As days pass since the draft, it sounds like Swift was likely the consensus best back in the Draft and the Lions were taking him or JK Dobbins either way to bolster the rush game. He is a three-down back, so will work well with the other back situationally, but I expect him to ultimately become the de-facto “feature back” for the Lions assuming he can avoid the injuries that have plagued Scarborough and Johnson in their young careers. Huntley will add that elusiveness and pass catching ability out of the backfield that was lacking last year and should be a nice option for Bevell to scheme against defenses on third downs. As for the blocking component, Quinn brought on two OG prospects that should ultimately anchor the line with Frank Ragnow for the next several years. Jackson and Stenberg were considered two of the top 10 interior OL in the draft, so this was a bit of a coup grabbing both. Jackson is likely ahead of Stenberg in pass blocking and overall polish, being a starter for multiple years at Rutgers and Ohio State, while Stenberg has a nasty streak and run blocking acumen that should be used immediately in Three TE situations where the Lions need additional beef. My expectations are that Jackson grabs one OG starters slot, and that by year end Stenberg is pushing for playing time in a rotation at the other. Now the Pass Rush situation hasn’t been quite as dire as the rushing game, but it has been maddeningly inconsistent the last five years, with sack totals of 43, 26, 35, 43 and 28 from 2015-2019, and only Ansah reaching double digits with 14 and 12.5 in ‘15 and ’17. To help smooth those ups and downs, the draft added some pieces that should allow the rush to get home a bit more often going forward. Passing Rush Draft Picks Okudah (1), Okwara (3), Cornell (7) Okudah is a CB, how does he help the pass rush? The simple answer is the longer a WR is covered, the more time the pass rush has to get to the QB. While it might be premature to state that Okudah is a better CB right now than Darius Slay was last season, I don’t think it would be that far off base. Okudah is bigger, a better tactician and willing tackler and to be honest, Slay’s play had dipped the last year or so, but IMO was getting Pro Bowl nods on reputation alone. Of all the picks, Okwara is the one that is a direct impact on the pass rush. He is an ideal specimen for the Lions scheme, with a long frame and arms, athletic build and ability to bend off the edge while still agile enough to play the run. Before he broke his leg at Notre Dame, he While Cornell is a bit of a tweener for a DT or traditional DE, at 6’3” 285 he brings a lot to the table to assist the pass rush. He can step out on the DE during rushing downs with his frame, but ideally generate inside pressure and clean up the QBs when Flowers and Okwara brothers are forcing them to step up. Only time and coaching will tell if these picks will impact those two units as expected, but the first step was identifying the deficiencies and with the next step taken on draft day to add guys that can hopefully be an upgrade.

A couple days ago I put up a piece on why the Lions would likely decline to exercise the Fifth-Year option on LB Jarrad Davis. In that piece, I touched on several reasons why I thought the Lions would decline the option, including his lack of playing at a 1st Rd level and the impact of the new CBA on the option parameters. Today, Ian Rapport of NFL Network posted that the Lions will decline to pick up the option, which frankly, is not unexpected. The Lions have not made it official as of now, but paying Davis $10 million for the 2021 season based on his historic production was simply never in the cards. The Lions can, and may explore coming to an agreement on a deal to extend past 2020, but it will be for much less than what Davis could earn on the 5th-year option, and may be well worth what he believes he can get on the open market.

Today is the final look at the Lions roster Post Draft with Special Teams being the emphasis. I covered most of the core special teams’ guys in the offensive and defensive positional analysis the last couple days, so today lest look at K, P and LS and whether the Lion may make a move before camp opens. Special Teams P: Of any position on the Lions roster, the Punter slot is absolutely wide open. Sam Martin has left for Denver, leaving Jack Fox and UDFA Aaron Siposs from Auburn as the challengers. The last time the Lions tried this, it was a disaster, as they went through multiple punters trying to replace an injured martin in 2017 with Kasey Redfern and ultimately Jeff Locke with not so good results. Eventually these two youngsters get time to show Patricia what they can and cannot do, however we should all keep an eye out for a veteran P to be signed if one is cut loose form another team in as a cap casualty. K: Matt Prater is the only kicker on the roster currently, so with camp approaching, there will definitely be an addition by the Lions to share the duties and keep Matt fresh. However, it is extremely unlikely anyone would challenge Prater for his spot. LS: Death, Taxes and Muhlbach. The Mule signed for another year for just over $1M, so although the UDFA from Iowa State was brought in for a look at long-term, Wirtel will likely to be stashed on the practice squad if he shows promise. I expect no signings before camp unless there is a long-term injury or Muhlbach reconsiders and retires.

Yesterday we took a look at the Lions Offensive Positions with the Draft now complete to see what group was ripe for some additional changes prior to camp opening. Today we are going through the defense, which saw major changes at every single level this offseason. I tend to think the lions Defense came out of FA and the Draft somewhat improved on paper, there is still some lingering issues where an unexpected veteran made available could bring about a quick roster change prior to camp opening. Defense DE/Edge: Of all the defensive position groups that needed a makeover, DE and Edge rusher was it. Only Trey Flowers is a proven commodity, with 2019 draft pick Austin Bryant and Romeo Okwara both expected to contribute after recovering from injury and a down season last year. The addition of Romeo’s little brother Julian Okwara should provide some immediate impact, but neither Jonathon Wynn or Frank Herron can be counted on to be productive, much less make the final roster. Will the DE/Edge see any addition before camp, I think it is quite possible, especially if a veteran that fits the scheme come available. DT: Defensive Tackle was the one spot that has received an extreme makeover from last season. Gone are Snacks and Robinson, replaced by Danny Shelton and Nick Williams with the hope a healthy Da’Shawn Hand will be part of the primary rotation. The addition of John Penisini will provide holdovers Kevin Strong and John Atkins, along with Olive Sagapolu competition for the last roster spots on the DL. With some FA signings and a draft pick, hard to see the Lions spend any more money here before camp unless someone too intriguing happens to come available. LB: The Lions LB corp is looking exactly the same as it did prior to the draft, with no picks dedicated to the position and no LB UDFAs signed afterwards. That either means the Lions are really happy with a starting combination of Collins, Tavai, Davis and Jones, or they are looking to make a veteran signing to help push competition. Considering that Reggie Ragland and Elijah Lee were brought in before the draft to compete with Reeves-Maybin, Sam, Pittman and Cabinda, the Lions may feel they have added enough depth and competition to make the group better as a whole. I am pretty sure that unless a perfect fit spring free form another team, there won’t be any additional LBers brought on before camp. CB: With all the changes to the Defense, this is the one spot I personally think has gotten significantly better this offseason and will not have any additions. A top four CB or Okudah, Trufant, Coleman and Oruwariye looks like a big upgrade from last years group. It also means there should be significant competition for the last 2-3 CB/ST spots among Mike Ford, Dee Virgin, Jamal Agnew, Tony McRae, Mike Jackson and Darryl Roberts. I said a few times during the Grey Manes annual draft chat that I didn’t think the Lions would touch the CB spot all weekend (as I am very high on 2nd year player Oruwariye.) Do I expect any additional changes between now and camp? Probably not, this group has lots of talent and should lead to some great camp competition with maybe a surprise or two (Agnew?) not making the final roster. S: The Lions made their updates to Safety mainly with the acquisition of Duron Harmon in a trade before the draft. He will join Tracy Walker as a starter allowing holdover Will Harris to learn without the pressure of being an immediate starter. The depth is sound with holdovers Miles Killebrew and CJ Moore joined by veteran Jayron Kearse and the addition of three UDFAs in Price, Elliott and Dinson. With the core of the Safety position set and an excellent group of veteran Special team aces with the capability for spot duty, I find it unlikely that the Lions will add any other safety’s until they figure out what they have in the three kids they signed as UDFAs.

With the 2020 NFL draft completed and nine UDFAs under contract, the Lions now have a full 90-man roster to start their offseason. However, if history tells us anything, there will be plenty of churn not only at the bottom of the roster, but also signings and cuts of veteran Free Agents as the landscape changes with teams signing their draft picks. Keeping that in mind, here are my thoughts on each Offensive Position Group and whether I believe there will be some additional movement during the offseason leading into camp. Offense QB: At this point, unless the Lions really want to gibe up on David Blough for another developmental QB, I think the group of Stafford, Daniel and Blough will see the field in camp this Summer. RB/FB: I would have to say there will be zero movement at the RB/FB position before camp. With Kerryon Johnson, Scarborough and Ty Johnson all back, along with addition of Swift and Huntley, Wes Hills isn’t the only player that likely won’t survive camp. Bawden picked up a challenger with UDFA Nick Sellers, so I doubt either will be replaced prior to camp. WR: I would imagine the Lions are set here with Golladay, Jones and Amendola as starters. The depth has 2020 Draft pick Cephus, FA signing Allison, last year contributor Hall and several guys in Lacy, Kennedy, Fulgham, Davis and Bolden that fill out the camp roster pretty well. Unless a surprise cut of Jones takes place, it seems the likeliest movement scenario is that Golladay gets a long-term deal and the rest of the guys sort themselves out during camp. TE: I think this group is pretty stable, with Hockenson, James and Nauta all back and the addition of Bryant as a UDFA after the draft. Its conceivable a run blocking TE could free up and be added to the mix, which would likely push Matt Sokol off the camp roster. OT: This is the one spot that the Lions could very well make a move before camp to bring in a veteran to compete. While Vaitai and Decker are the presumptive starters, outside of Crosby, the backups are Dan Skipper and Matt Nelson, not exactly the guys you would hope could step in and start games in a pinch at this point. OG: This position is a bit of a mess right now, but I don’t see significant changes being made before camp starts. Although Dahl coming off a back injury and Aboushi/Wiggins (who all were contributors or part of rotation last year) are back, the Lions used some serious draft capital and development time on three youngsters in Benzschawel, Jackson and Stenberg to compete to start sooner than later. The bottom of the roster guys (Benenoch and Garnett) will be fighting to stay through camp cuts. C: This is clear cut, Ragnow is the center and Aboushi or one of the rookies will be the backup.