Detroit Lions Roster
- NFC North
- Stadium
- Ford Field
- Head Coach
- Dan Campbell
- Offensive Coordinator
- Ben Johnson
- Defensive Coordinator
- Aaron Glenn
- Special Teams Coach
- Dave Fipp
- Defensive Scheme
- 4-3
It's clear that the Detroit Lions want second-year running back Jahmyr Gibbs to be more involved in their offense in 2024 after he rushed for almost 1,000 yards as a rookie and finished third in the league in yards per carry (5.2). Heading into his second year, the Lions are looking for more consistency out of Gibbs, mainly in pass protection, as he was graded 61st out of 63 qualified RBs in pass-blocking in 2023 by PFF. The Lions also want Gibbs to be more involved in the passing game, even though he was in the top 10 among RBs with 52 catches and 71 targets in 2023. His average depth of target, per PFF, was literally zero yards, so Detroit will be looking to use him more in the slot and deeper down the field in 2024. With David Montgomery still in town, Gibbs' ceiling will remain somewhat limited, but if he's more involved as a pass-catcher deeper down the field, he'll still have RB1 upside in PPR leagues.
Detroit Lions quarterback Hendon Hooker was rumored to be a first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft in the middle of his stellar final season at Tennessee in 2022. However, he suffered a late-season ACL tear and was ultimately a third-round selection by Detroit. Teddy Bridgewater was Jared Goff's primary backup last season, while Hooker spent most of his debut campaign on the Injured Reserve list. With Bridgewater announcing his retirement this offseason, the 26-year-old is set to move into the QB2 role in 2024. So far at OTAs, the reviews have been promising. "It was fun watching Hendon Hooker sling it in a team setting for the very first time," Colton Pouncy of The Athletic wrote. "Really nice touch on his deep ball. Good velocity. One of his best plays of the day was a deep ball down the right sideline to Daurice Fountain, which drew "oooohs" and "aaahhs" from the team." After Goff signed a four-year extension to remain with the organization, Hooker's narrow path to the starting job closed. However, he can be stashed in deep Superflex or two-QB leagues. If Goff had to miss any time due to injury, the 26-year-old sophomore would have intriguing upside thanks to his rushing ability and pass-catching group headlined by Amon-Ra St. Brown and Sam LaPorta.
Detroit Lions tight end Shane Zylstra (knee), who was out with a knee injury last year, was back at practice at organized team activities last week and looked great. Zylstra picked up right where he left off and was catching everything thrown his way. He showed good chemistry with quarterback Hendon Hooker and the second-team offense. The 27-year-old tight end spent all of the 2023 campaign on Injured Reserve due to a knee injury that he suffered in training camp last summer. Now that he's back and looking good, Zylstra will give the team extra depth at the tight end position behind Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright and James Mitchell. The former undrafted free agent isn't anywhere close to the fantasy radar and has only 14 receptions for 94 yards and four touchdowns since entering the league in 2021.
Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said second-year linebacker Jack Campbell has taken control of the offseason the way he should. Glenn called Campbell a "grown man" with the way he's approaching things as a true Mike linebacker. After the team tinkered with his positional versatility in 2023, the Lions seem to want him to settle in as their middle linebacker moving forward. Campbell was drafted with the 18th overall pick last year out of Iowa and finished his first year in the NFL with 95 tackles (52 solo), two sacks and five tackles for loss in 17 regular-season games (12 starts). The 23-year-old was in the starting lineup for 11 of the team's final 12 games and should continue to see a bigger role for Detroit's D heading into his second season.
It sounds as though Detroit Lions defensive back Brian Branch (leg) will be out until training camp, at the very least. Head coach Dan Campbell said that Branch had a clean-up surgery for an injury they thought would heal on its own, but the Lions decided they'd rather just get it done and let Branch heal before the season. He was spotted riding a scooter around the facility during organized team activities last week. The 22-year-old cornerback is progressing well despite the fact that he wasn't available to take part in OTAs this spring. In his rookie campaign in 2023 for the Lions, Branch looked pretty good, recording 74 tackles (50 solo), one sack, three interceptions, 13 passes defended and a forced fumble that resulted in a touchdown.