Finishing off the Lions training camp 53-man roster projection, it’s time to tackle the defense. This side of the ball features some players who might not be available to start the season due to injuries, which certainly makes the projections uncertain.
The projection for the offense featured 24 players. That leaves 26 for defense and the three specialists, who all enter camp unchallenged.
Defensive tackle – 5
Starters: Tyleik Williams, DJ Reader
Reserves: Roy Lopez, Pat O’Connor, Myles Adams
Competing: Raequan Williams, Brodric Martin, Chris Smith
Injured: Levi Onwuzurike, Alim McNeill, Mekhi Wingo
Reader enters his second year in Detroit, pairing with the team’s first-round pick in Williams. The veteran Reader is known for his mentoring nature as well as his superb run defense, and Williams comes in with untapped pass rush ability that can shine next to the savvy vet.
With three of the top six sidelined to start the season, it’s tough to determine the reserves behind Williams and Reader. There is a chance Wingo, last year’s sixth-rounder, is ready to roll after a meniscus tear last season, but it’s also possible he’s on the shelf well into the regular season. Onwuzurike is out for at least the first four weeks on the PUP/Reserve list, and McNeill’s realistic timeline to return is sometime midseason at the earliest.
Adams and Williams benefit from the injuries and make it, though there is definitely a chance the Lions bring in someone from the outside who usurps the competition. Williams stood out in spring sessions as a veteran reclamation project worth a much longer look. O’Connor feels like a safe projection to make it due to his positional versatility and his decided grit factor. Lopez, signed as a free agent from the Cardinals, is installed as Reader’s backup at nose tackle until proven otherwise.
EDGE – 5
Starters: Aidan Hutchinson, Marcus Davenport
Reserves: Al-Quadin Muhammad, Ahmed Hassanein, Josh Paschal*
Competing: Isaac Ukwu, Mitchell Agude, Nate Lynn, Keith Cooper
Hutchinson was well on his way to NFL Defensive Player of the Year when he broke his leg in Week 6. He’s back and has looked impressive in the rehab videos he’s posted on social media. Davenport–when healthy–is an ideal complement to Hutchinson with his power, length and high football IQ. Keeping the duo on the field together is the tricky part, as Davenport’s well-chronicled durability concerns are never out of mind.
Paschal slates in as the next man up, but he’s beginning camp on the non-football injury list and has had an adventurous injury history of his own. As long as he’s healthy, Paschal makes it, but that merits an asterisk. Muhammad flashed enough as an injury fill-in last season to pencil onto the roster. Hassanein is a sixth-round rookie with a lot of promise but also in need of a lot of refinement.
Of the others competing, Ukwu has the highest ceiling. Yet all are meriting of at least practice squad consideration, be it in Detroit or elsewhere.
Linebackers – 6
Starting: Alex Anzalone, Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes
Reserves: Grant Stuard, Trevor Nowaske, Anthony Pittman
Competing: Zach Cunningham, Ezekiel Turner, DaRon Gilbert
Injured: Malcolm Rodriguez
The starting threesome is set here, and it’s a good one. Anzalone is a team captain and strong all-around backer. Campbell is a rising star entering his third year, while Barnes returns to the SAM role where he was thriving in 2024 before injury.
Rodriguez being out for an extended time opens the summer competition for depth and special teams roles. Stuard looks like he’s seized the top role after a commanding spring. Nowaske continues to learn the SAM role and is also a special teams fixture. The final spot goes to Pittman here, but ask me again on Monday and it could be veteran acquisition Cunningham. Turner and Gilbert have work to do to make their way into that conversation, but both could stick on the practice squad.
Cornerbacks – 5
Starters: Terrion Arnold, D.J. Reed
Reserves: Amik Robertson, Ennis Rakestraw, Rock Ya-Sin
Competing: Stantley Thomas-Oliver, Tyson Russell
Injured: Khalil Dorsey
Reed comes from the Jets as Detroit’s prized free agency acquisition, and he’s the immediate No. 1 CB with Arnold eagerly stepping up in his second season. Robertson is a very good No. 3 outside CB who played well enough in the slot in 2024 to leave entrenched there, too. Avonte Maddox is listed with the safeties, but he’s certainly capable of playing cornerback.
Ya-Sin fits the Lions profile of press-man cornerback, though he’s going to have to earn that spot on special teams. If Dorsey is healthy, that spot is his.
Safeties – 5
Starters: Brian Branch, Kerby Joseph
Reserves: Avonte Maddox, Dan Jackson, Loren Strickland
Competing: Morice Norris, Ian Kennelly, Erick Hallett
Branch and Joseph are the best safety tandem in the league; both made ESPN’s top-5 list in the safety rankings. Maddox flutters between safety and nickelback (as does Branch), and the longtime Eagle figures to see a lot of action.
The battle for the fourth safety (and fifth if the Lions keep five) is fairly wide open. Jackson gets the tentative nod for his seventh-round draft status and special teams upside, but Strickland, Hallett and Norris figure to be strong competition. Strickland snags the 53rd spot due to special teams. Kennelly, a supremely athletic undrafted rookie from Grand Valley State, is an optimal practice squad stash.
Specialists – 3
Punter (and holder): Jack Fox
Kicker: Jake Bates
Long snapper: Hogan Hatten
No changes from last season, and all three incumbents enter camp without any competition.
This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Lions pre-training camp 53-man roster prediction: Defense and specialists
Reporting by Jeff Risdon, Lions Wire / Lions Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
