Getty Kenny Golladay makes a catch against the Packers.
The Detroit Lions have another shoe set to drop this offseason with the franchise tag decision set to play out with Kenny Golladay, and an insider thinks he has a good idea of what is to come.
Many have wondered for weeks what the Lions might do with Golladay, and according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the answer is clear. The Lions are likely to tag Golladay so that he can stick around. Rapoport also thinks Detroit might still try to work a long-term deal with Golladay soon as well. This is after weeks of teams dreaming about Golladay potentially hitting the free agency market.
He said:
“I’d be very surprised if he is actually available. Another strong franchise tag candidate. I know they had talks last year about a long-term extension, did not happen. Going to try again this year, but expect him to be tagged if they don’t get a deal.”
It feels as if the Lions will tag Golladay first, then try to work out a deal later given the lack of any information about the sides negotiating for the last few months. Perhaps Brad Holmes keeps things closer to the vest, but at this point, an extension would be a surprise.
Detroit could then negotiate with Golladay or work a trade later, but if Rapoport is to be believed, it sounds as if the team wants him as part of their future for at least the short term.
The Argument for Keeping Kenny Golladay
Detroit is going to have a significant talent drain at wideout this offseason, likely led by Marvin Jones, who seems to want out. Danny Amendola will likely follow him out the door. Knowing this, Detroit has to make wideout a priority, and the best way to help their new quarterback Jared Goff would be to keep one of his top weapons around for 2021. Detroit can draft a wideout as well, but Golladay is just 27 and theoretically coming into his prime. Allowing him to grow more with the team and perhaps mentor some young players of his own would be a big win for the organization.
Lions’ Decision With Kenny Golladay
With 3,068 yards and 21 touchdowns thus far in his career coming into the 2021 season on the field after being a third-round pick in 2017, Golladay looks like an obvious top dog in Detroit for the foreseeable future no matter who is playing quarterback and a clear home grown talent. He proved that to be the case in 2020 itself with 338 yards and 2 scores in spite of missing most of the season with nagging injuries.
Even in spite of all of that, the Lions have plenty of things going on multiple fronts. Dan Campbell, Brad Holmes, Ray Agnew and John Dorsey are now in control of the direction of the team. Obviously, this means that Golladay’s future is firmly up in the air considering it will be hard to say what a new staff will think of handing out a big deal to a wideout, no matter how important Golladay might be. Holmes said the Lions want to retool and not rebuild, so keeping a guy like Golladay around could play into that, especially given the depth the Lions are slated to lose at wideout.
Golladay has maintained he wants to stay and seems to have good thoughts about Dan Campbell and the Lions. Will that be good news for the team long-term? Many expect so, but at the very least, there could be a marriage between the sides on the franchise tag.