Getty Jalen Reeves-Maybin stretches for a tackle against Arizona in 2021.
The Detroit Lions handed out short-term contracts to plenty of free agents last offseason, and many of them have delivered on the personal goal of playing well enough to earn a trip back to the Motor City.
After not being used effectively with the first staff that drafted him, linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin has seen a major career resurgence with the Lions in 2021. Reeve-Maybin has earned the trust of his new staff and has started to see the field in a big way. He’s also impressed when on the field, with multiple big plays to his credit this season.
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Reeves-Maybin is showing his chops as a player for his team since being given the opportunity to play a bigger role, and as a result, the Lions could want him back this offseason. Speaking to the media on Thursday, December 30, defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn showered Reeves-Maybin with praise as Chris Burke of The Athletic pointed out.
Aaron Glenn on Jalen Reeves-Maybin: “Anytime you have a player of that magnitude, you can’t help but put him on the field. You can’t help but play him.”
Says JRM will have a chance to be the Lions’ starting inside linebacker. (Reeves-Maybin is an impending free agent.)
“Anytime you have a player of that magnitude, you can’t help but put him on the field. You can’t help but play him,” Glenn said at the press conference as tweeted by Burke.
It seems as if Reeves-Maybin has passed the test for the Lions in terms of being able to be thought of as a player who can shoulder the load. That could lead to a major offseason reward for the team’s home-grown talent at linebacker.
Glenn: Reeves-Maybin Could Start for 2022 Lions
What will Reeves-Maybin’s future be in Detroit if he does return? Based on what Glenn told the media, the team could be prepared to hand him a starting job in 2022 if they bring him back. That’s something the coach talked about with the media this week and was very open about as Justin Rogers of the Detroit News tweeted:
Aaron Glenn said he’d love to have Jalen Reeves-Maybin back in 2022 and he’d have a good shot to be a starting inside linebacker if he does come back.
Reeves-Maybin has played well in the time he has seen the field given the fact that he has piled up 67 tackles to go with 2 forced fumbles, both of which came at critical times in the game. In Week 16, Reeeves-Maybin gave Detroit a great shot to win the game with a huge play in the fourth-quarter:
Our ball❗️
#DETvsATL | 📺 FOX
As a result of plays like this and his steadying presence so far this year, it would not be a shock if the team were to decide to go with Reeves-Maybin and reward him with an even bigger role next season. That seems to be a tell as it relates to what the team is looking at doing.
Reeves-Maybin’s Stats & Highlights
After being a fourth-round pick of the Lions in the 2017 NFL draft, Reeves-Maybin has not gone on to play a huge role with the team in the last few seasons. He hasn’t started immediately nor locked down any type of significant role on the team’s defense.
When Reeves-Maybin has played, he has been able to put up huge numbers, with just 90 tackles and 0.5 sacks in his credit during his career. There’s a chance if this new staff gives Reeves-Maybin a bigger role he could end up accounting for more production, and that could be the simple hope for the team with all of this in mind.
Here’s a look at some of his highlights from college:
At Tennessee, Reeves-Maybin was a productive player given he put up 240 tackles, 8.0 sacks and an interception in his career. That kind of versatile production is just what the Lions are starting to see now that they’ve given Reeves-Maybin a bigger chance to play, which could lead to a happy return.
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