The Detroit Lions have made gradual upgrades to their secondary, taking what was once a league-worst unit and turning it into a strength of the defense.
But the Lions are expected to have more fine-tuning this summer, which could include the release of a veteran defensive back who slid into a key role over the past two seasons. SI.com reporter Josh Maakaron offered his prediction of the team’s final 53-man roster, suggesting there will be some difficult decisions in the secondary.
Lions May Have No More Room for Loren Strickland
Maakaron predicted the Lions would keep five players on the roster at safety — Kerby Joseph, Chuck Clark, Christian Izien, Avonte Maddox, and Thomas Harper — with Brian Branch starting the season on injured reserve.
Maakaron did not find room for Loren Strickland, who appeared in seven games over the last two years and played an important role as a reserve and special teams regular.
“Chuck Clark and Christian Izien have performed well throughout the spring,” Maakaron wrote. “With Joseph and Branch working their way back from injury, the team will also rely on veterans like Avonte Maddox to assist the back end.”
Lions Could Make More Changes at Cornerback
Maakaron also predicted a bit of turmoil at cornerback, suggesting the Lions will part ways with veteran Nick Whiteside and force third-year cornerback Terrion Arnold to fight for his job.
“Detroit’s coaching staff wants third-year cornerback Terrion Arnold to earn his starting job again by competing and executing at a high level all throughout training camp,” Maakaron wrote. “The former first-round pick admits to being 75 percent healthy heading into the summer.”
Arnold acknowledged the pressure he felt going into training camp, but said it’s no different than the normal roster jostling that takes place from year to year.
“That’s kind of like the narrative that the media puts out on it, but for me, I feel like every year is a make-or-break year,” Arnold said, via SB Nation’s Pride of Detroit. “Just when you go out there and you have to perform under pressure, have certain circumstances, players grow every year. So when I go out there and play, I don’t treat it almost as far as it’s a make-or-break year. Every game is a win-or-lose game. Every play, every down, it means something.”
Lions head coach Dan Campbell also added a bit of pressure to Arnold, suggesting that his chances could grow smaller as newer and younger players come in.
“There’s always a balance when you get into the season of, there could be a player that’s a tick better,” Campbel said, not directly addressing Arnold. “He’s an older player, he’s a veteran player. But if you really feel like a young guy is learning from his mistakes and is growing, not making the same mistake twice and you feel constant growth, at some point it’s time to push him into that position and let him go because, in about four weeks they will be better and then they’ll continue to grow from there,” Campbell said. “If that’s not showing up, I don’t care who those players are, we are not going through it, we’re not going to do it.”
Lions Predicted to Part Ways With Veteran Safety After Training Camp