Lions general manager Brad Holmes and assistant GM Ray Agnew met with the media Thursday morning, taking questions for more than a half-hour on the team's recent roster decisions.
How times change. I remember not long ago when Brad Holmes said something like "We haven't even made the post season, we haven't done anything yet." Now, the Lions have done some things. Even the national media sees them as contenders. The early 90's Lions were good teams, but the nothing like now. I like having expectations.
Something I'm curious about since we didn't see any starters really play during the preseason is are any of them going to wear the guardian caps during the game? Have any of the beat asked the starters?
Speculative, couldn't say. Lions often carry a lot of receivers on their practice squad. Pretty sure they had three all last season, while having at least five on the main roster. So you can figure eight total is kind of the target, between the 53 and practice squad. Could DPJ end up being replaced by a different option? Sure, but I don't have any information to predict that.
Second question. I have heard it suggested that Nowaske was working out with the Cardinals as a SAM and that the Lions have him slotted as a backup for Barnes. Which would explain carrying 7 LB. Your thoughts?
That's speculative and I would say unlikely out the box. Could he be acclimated to fill that void over time? Sure. But I'd guess Niemann would have a better shot of being that guy (or JRM/Rodriguez if they wanted to shuffle down-to-down roles).
From a fan’s viewpoint, why not pay Josh Reynolds the $9 mil. But it’s easy to spend other people’s money. Do you suppose Holmes has a budget that is part of a long term plan that we can’t see, and that he is taking a disciplined approach to building the team? Or should he have ponied up the $9 mil.
Would I have paid it? Yes. Do I understand why they thought they could get nearly equal production from DPJ at a fraction of the cost? Also yes. I know there were some concerns about mounting injuries that had Reynolds in the training room regularly. At some point toughness has limitations and production declines because of that toll.
The team prioritized re-signing its bigger names, including some down the road (read: Hutchinson, McNeill). That requires you to be judicious with your budget elsewhere, even if the cap dollars appear there today.
Interesting point about the injuries. It makes me think about how Belichek let players go before they declined. I am all in favor of players getting their money, and I wish Reynolds success but it will be interesting to see if his level of play stays at a level that justifies his pay.
A player can be poached at any point, but unspoken protocol is a current team is given the opportunity to match the promotion. One advantage another team has is they're required to roster that player for three weeks. That's three game checks. If I was an agent, I'd ask for current team to match that guarantee, financially, in addition to a promotion.
Correct, there's a level of projection here. Based on the salary offer, against a rising cap, the Lions projected a decline. Could they end up being wrong? Absolutely. But you have to bet on your cap and analytics departments, too. Maybe Reynolds dominates in Denver, or maybe, it's a Reeves-Maybin situation, where he gets cut after a year because he didn't fit as well in his new home. JRM didn't suddenly suck, obviously, All-Pro last year, but he didn't project to be the player in Houston's scheme they anticipated.
The reason I would have paid Reynolds is the annual cost was essentially equal to the annual cost the previous few seasons, with cap inflation factored in. It was still a modest price for a No. 3 receiver, even if Jamo is going to eat into his snap count and production. But again, I totally understood the idea you could pay DPJ to be 80% of Reynolds at 25% the cost. DPJ had a better single season in 2022 than Reynolds has had in his career. It was a logical bet.
They also were projecting growth from Antoine Green, and Holmes did say that it looked like that was about to pay off when he got injured. Player development has really been critical for the Lions success — it’s another facet of their long-term vision (which I really love). But of course it doesn’t pay off every time.
How times change. I remember not long ago when Brad Holmes said something like "We haven't even made the post season, we haven't done anything yet." Now, the Lions have done some things. Even the national media sees them as contenders. The early 90's Lions were good teams, but the nothing like now. I like having expectations.
Something I'm curious about since we didn't see any starters really play during the preseason is are any of them going to wear the guardian caps during the game? Have any of the beat asked the starters?
Very much appreciate the all in 1 article rather than spreading it out. The time saved is absolutely awesome!
Curious that they would release CJ Moore after only a day without anyone to replace him.
As with all things, a little patience typically provides the answer. Lions added safety Erick Hallett to that spot this afternoon.
I'd take this to mean that DPJ is a goner once the two new big bodies get 'acclimated'?
Speculative, couldn't say. Lions often carry a lot of receivers on their practice squad. Pretty sure they had three all last season, while having at least five on the main roster. So you can figure eight total is kind of the target, between the 53 and practice squad. Could DPJ end up being replaced by a different option? Sure, but I don't have any information to predict that.
Second question. I have heard it suggested that Nowaske was working out with the Cardinals as a SAM and that the Lions have him slotted as a backup for Barnes. Which would explain carrying 7 LB. Your thoughts?
That's speculative and I would say unlikely out the box. Could he be acclimated to fill that void over time? Sure. But I'd guess Niemann would have a better shot of being that guy (or JRM/Rodriguez if they wanted to shuffle down-to-down roles).
Two questions.
From a fan’s viewpoint, why not pay Josh Reynolds the $9 mil. But it’s easy to spend other people’s money. Do you suppose Holmes has a budget that is part of a long term plan that we can’t see, and that he is taking a disciplined approach to building the team? Or should he have ponied up the $9 mil.
Would I have paid it? Yes. Do I understand why they thought they could get nearly equal production from DPJ at a fraction of the cost? Also yes. I know there were some concerns about mounting injuries that had Reynolds in the training room regularly. At some point toughness has limitations and production declines because of that toll.
The team prioritized re-signing its bigger names, including some down the road (read: Hutchinson, McNeill). That requires you to be judicious with your budget elsewhere, even if the cap dollars appear there today.
Interesting point about the injuries. It makes me think about how Belichek let players go before they declined. I am all in favor of players getting their money, and I wish Reynolds success but it will be interesting to see if his level of play stays at a level that justifies his pay.
Thanks Justin and your new site is awesome!
Can another team just poach Tim Patrick off our practice squad at anytime...or do the Lions have an opportunity to move him to the
active roster before that happens
A player can be poached at any point, but unspoken protocol is a current team is given the opportunity to match the promotion. One advantage another team has is they're required to roster that player for three weeks. That's three game checks. If I was an agent, I'd ask for current team to match that guarantee, financially, in addition to a promotion.
Correct, there's a level of projection here. Based on the salary offer, against a rising cap, the Lions projected a decline. Could they end up being wrong? Absolutely. But you have to bet on your cap and analytics departments, too. Maybe Reynolds dominates in Denver, or maybe, it's a Reeves-Maybin situation, where he gets cut after a year because he didn't fit as well in his new home. JRM didn't suddenly suck, obviously, All-Pro last year, but he didn't project to be the player in Houston's scheme they anticipated.
The reason I would have paid Reynolds is the annual cost was essentially equal to the annual cost the previous few seasons, with cap inflation factored in. It was still a modest price for a No. 3 receiver, even if Jamo is going to eat into his snap count and production. But again, I totally understood the idea you could pay DPJ to be 80% of Reynolds at 25% the cost. DPJ had a better single season in 2022 than Reynolds has had in his career. It was a logical bet.
They also were projecting growth from Antoine Green, and Holmes did say that it looked like that was about to pay off when he got injured. Player development has really been critical for the Lions success — it’s another facet of their long-term vision (which I really love). But of course it doesn’t pay off every time.
So with the focus not on page views, but giving the people what they want…where do you land on draft grades?
Sorry, I meant reasonable people. The irrational group can go read Kiper.
lol
Good stuff Justin....
And on an unrelated note, you must be thrilled to now be a Netflix star.
Unless I get an IMDB page out of it, it's just another day.