Getty Brian Price recovers a fumble for the Packers.
The Detroit Lions’ defensive line sustained a bit of a hit last week with the news that the team had lost Joel Heath to a torn ACL, so they made a quick move this week to help provide some depth and perhaps rectify the situation.
Tuesday morning, Detroit revealed that they had signed defensive tackle Brian Price to their roster. Price was most recently with the Green Bay Packers, and that is where he started his career as an undrafted free agent back in 2016.
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Now that he’s on the roster, Price will fill the void that was left by Heath, who was competing for a reserve role in the middle of the line up front. Given the depth on the roster, it’s
Price’s Stats and Highlights
While playing at UTSA, Price was teammates with current Lions’ defensive tackle Kevin Strong. That connection could help both be more comfortable while playing in the league. Price himself was very productive in college with 81 tackles and 3 sacks, and though he went undrafted in 2016, his 6-3 size helped him land a fast role in the league. Out of college, Price latched on first with the Green Bay Packers in 2016, then joined the Dallas Cowboys in 2017, Cleveland Browns in 2018, Indianapolis Colts in 2019, Jacksonville Jaguars in 2019 and 2020 and finally back to Green Bay for parts of last season. In the league, Price has only seen spot duty and has 20 tackles to go with a pass deflection.
Here’s a look at Price playing against Arizona in college:
Price is a beefy player who clogs lanes in the middle, and that’s just what the Lions figure to see in him at this point in time for his role on the roster.
Lions Defensive Line
If there was a spot on the Detroit roster that should have been primed for some sort of upgrade, it was the defensive line. The Lions lacked depth in the middle, but adding Levi Onwuzurike and Alim McNeill will help that in a big way. The deeper the Lions get in the middle of the line, the better off they will be in terms of getting better presence on the outside as well as depth.
If Onwuzurike was to be able to become a star, that would be a huge development for the Lions and their defensive line depth up front. Already, the depth has been upgraded, which is good to know ahead of a season in which the Lions have to get tougher up front on defense for a complete turnaround.
Without Heath, the group’s depth took a bit more of a blow heading into the offseason, but Price could fill in for the team in the time being. He probably has a long way to go to make the roster, but he does have some NFL experience to rely on which is great for the Lions.
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