The 2019 season was a wash once Matthew Stafford went down and the offseason was a questionable one heading into a year where they could have improved and competed while the division was in a limbo. Detroit decided to trade Darius Slay with a pedestrian return and then took the best cornerback in the draft. They also drafted D’Andre Swift as they might not view Kerryon Johnson as the guy anymore, especially with his injury issues. Most of the offense returns with Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones as the primary weapons in the offense. T.J. Hockenson will try and get going after an injury-riddled rookie season.
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QB |
![]() ![]() |
9 |
80
|
#16 QB | 6'3" | 232 | 32 | 2/7/88 | 12 | 2009 | 1 | 1 | Georgia |
QB |
![]() ![]() |
4 |
67
|
#45 QB | 6'0" | 225 | 34 | 10/7/86 | 12 | 2009 | Missouri | ||
QB |
![]() ![]() |
10 |
67
|
#45 QB | 6'0" | 205 | 25 | 7/31/95 | 0 | 2019 | Purdue | ||
RB |
![]() ![]() |
33 |
78
|
#38 RB | 5'11" | 213 | 23 | 6/30/97 | 3 | 2018 | 2 | 43 | Auburn |
RB |
![]() ![]() |
28 |
76
|
#46 RB | 6'1" | 217 | 35 | 3/21/85 | 13 | 2007 | 1 | 7 | Oklahoma |
RB |
![]() ![]() |
32 |
75
|
#55 RB | 5'8" | 212 | 22 | 1/14/99 | 0 | 2020 | 2 | 35 | Georgia |
WR |
![]() ![]() |
19 |
87
|
#19 WR | 6'4" | 218 | 27 | 11/3/93 | 4 | 2017 | 3 | 96 | Northern Illinois |
WR |
![]() ![]() |
11 |
84
|
#29 WR | 6'2" | 200 | 30 | 3/12/90 | 9 | 2012 | 5 | 166 | California |
WR |
![]() ![]() |
80 |
80
|
#48 WR | 5'10" | 186 | 35 | 11/2/85 | 12 | 2008 | Texas Tech | ||
WR |
![]() ![]() |
12 |
79
|
#53 WR | 6'1" | 211 | 31 | 8/22/89 | 9 | 2012 | 3 | 83 | Rutgers |
WR |
![]() ![]() |
87 |
67
|
#137 WR | 6'1" | 202 | 22 | 4/1/98 | 0 | 2020 | 5 | 166 | Wisconsin |
WR |
![]() ![]() |
39 |
67
|
#137 WR | 5'10" | 194 | 25 | 4/3/95 | 4 | 2017 | 5 | 165 | San Diego |
TE |
![]() ![]() |
88 |
85
|
#9 TE | 6'5" | 251 | 23 | 7/3/97 | 2 | 2019 | 1 | 8 | Iowa |
TE |
![]() ![]() |
83 |
74
|
#44 TE | 6'7" | 261 | 26 | 6/4/94 | 6 | 2015 | 5 | 160 | Penn State |
TE |
![]() ![]() |
86 |
67
|
#84 TE | 6'2" | 248 | 22 | 8/20/98 | 0 | 2020 | Washington | ||
C |
![]() ![]() |
77 |
88
|
#3 C | 6'5" | 312 | 24 | 5/17/96 | 3 | 2018 | 1 | 20 | Arkansas |
OG |
![]() ![]() |
66 |
71
|
#37 OG | 6'4" | 304 | 27 | 4/9/93 | 5 | 2016 | 5 | 151 | Washington State |
OG |
![]() ![]() |
73 |
67
|
#44 OG | 6'3" | 306 | 23 | 2/5/97 | 0 | 2020 | 3 | 75 | Ohio State |
OG |
![]() ![]() |
61 |
67
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#44 OG | 6'6" | 317 | 23 | 3/18/97 | 0 | 2020 | 4 | 121 | Kentucky |
OT |
![]() ![]() |
68 |
75
|
#26 OT | 6'7" | 310 | 26 | 8/23/94 | 5 | 2016 | 1 | 16 | Ohio State |
OT |
![]() ![]() |
67 |
68
|
#51 OT | 6'7" | 294 | 25 | 12/19/95 | 1 | 2019 | Iowa | ||
OT |
![]() ![]() |
70 |
67
|
#60 OT | 6'10" | 317 | 26 | 9/20/94 | 2 | 2017 | Arkansas | ||
OT |
![]() ![]() |
65 |
67
|
#60 OT | 6'5" | 309 | 25 | 9/5/95 | 3 | 2018 | 5 | 153 | Oregon |
OT |
![]() ![]() |
72 |
67
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#60 OT | 6'6" | 320 | 27 | 6/16/93 | 5 | 2016 | 5 | 164 | TCU |
OT |
![]() ![]() |
76 |
67
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#60 OT | 6'5" | 308 | 29 | 6/5/91 | 8 | 2013 | 5 | 141 | Virginia |
NT |
![]() ![]() |
71 |
75
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#6 NT | 6'2" | 339 | 27 | 8/20/93 | 6 | 2015 | 1 | 12 | Washington |
DT |
![]() ![]() |
91 |
67
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#66 DT | 6'1" | 318 | 23 | 5/31/97 | 0 | 2020 | 6 | 197 | Utah |
DT |
![]() ![]() |
92 |
67
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#66 DT | 6'3" | 295 | 24 | 8/5/96 | 2 | 2019 | Texas-San Antonio | ||
DE |
![]() ![]() |
95 |
82
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#21 DE | 6'5" | 265 | 25 | 6/17/95 | 5 | 2016 | Notre Dame | ||
DE |
![]() ![]() |
98 |
80
|
#27 DE | 6'3" | 273 | 33 | 12/22/87 | 11 | 2010 | 4 | 100 | USC |
DE |
![]() ![]() |
94 |
67
|
#90 DE | 6'4" | 271 | 24 | 11/12/96 | 2 | 2019 | 4 | 117 | Clemson |
DE |
![]() ![]() |
97 |
67
|
#90 DE | 6'4" | 309 | 30 | 2/21/90 | 6 | 2013 | 7 | 223 | Samford - AL |
LB |
![]() ![]() |
58 |
83
|
#17 LB | 6'3" | 250 | 30 | 5/2/90 | 8 | 2013 | 2 | 52 | Southern Miss |
LB |
![]() ![]() |
52 |
76
|
#58 LB | 6'3" | 240 | 29 | 2/18/91 | 7 | 2014 | Florida State | ||
LB |
![]() ![]() |
51 |
69
|
#107 LB | 6'2" | 250 | 24 | 9/28/96 | 2 | 2019 | 2 | 43 | Hawaii |
LB |
![]() ![]() |
59 |
68
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#113 LB | 6'1" | 247 | 27 | 9/24/93 | 5 | 2016 | 2 | 41 | Alabama |
LB |
![]() ![]() |
44 |
67
|
#121 LB | 6'0" | 230 | 25 | 1/31/95 | 4 | 2017 | 4 | 124 | Tennessee |
LB |
![]() ![]() |
99 |
67
|
#121 LB | 6'4" | 252 | 23 | 12/27/97 | 0 | 2020 | 3 | 67 | Notre Dame |
LB |
![]() ![]() |
45 |
67
|
#121 LB | 6'1" | 239 | 24 | 3/17/96 | 2 | 2018 | Penn State | ||
LB |
![]() ![]() |
40 |
67
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#121 LB | 6'1" | 238 | 26 | 11/16/94 | 4 | 2017 | 1 | 21 | Florida |
CB |
![]() ![]() |
27 |
79
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#43 CB | 5'11" | 185 | 27 | 3/27/93 | 6 | 2015 | Tennessee | ||
CB |
![]() ![]() |
24 |
74
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#79 CB | 6'2" | 205 | 24 | 2/9/96 | 2 | 2019 | 5 | 146 | Penn State |
CB |
![]() ![]() |
29 |
73
|
#87 CB | 5'11" | 187 | 30 | 11/26/90 | 6 | 2015 | 7 | 247 | Marshall |
CB |
![]() ![]() |
38 |
67
|
#120 CB | 6'0" | 191 | 25 | 8/4/95 | 3 | 2018 | SE Missouri State | ||
SS |
![]() ![]() |
21 |
76
|
#15 SS | 6'1" | 206 | 25 | 2/1/95 | 3 | 2018 | 3 | 82 | UL Lafayette |
SS |
![]() ![]() |
47 |
67
|
#42 SS | 6'3" | 205 | 22 | 4/25/98 | 0 | 2020 | Norfolk State | ||
SS |
![]() ![]() |
35 |
67
|
#42 SS | 6'2" | 219 | 27 | 5/10/93 | 5 | 2016 | 4 | 111 | Southern Utah |
SS |
![]() ![]() |
25 |
67
|
#42 SS | 6'1" | 207 | 25 | 12/19/95 | 2 | 2019 | 3 | 81 | Boston College |
FS |
![]() ![]() |
26 |
83
|
#13 FS | 6'1" | 204 | 29 | 1/24/91 | 8 | 2013 | 3 | 91 | Rutgers |
FS |
![]() ![]() |
49 |
67
|
#47 FS | 5'11" | 197 | 25 | 12/15/95 | 2 | 2019 | Mississippi | ||
LS |
![]() ![]() |
48 | 6'4" | 265 | 39 | 8/17/81 | 17 | 2004 | Texas A&M | ||||
P |
![]() ![]() |
3 |
80
|
#7 P | 6'2" | 211 | 24 | 9/1/96 | 1 | 2019 | Rice | ||
PK |
![]() ![]() |
5 |
78
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#10 PK | 5'10" | 187 | 36 | 8/10/84 | 14 | 2006 | Central Florida |
Contents
The Lions had an incredibly disappointing 2019 season with a 3-12-1 record. The team went through a ton of injuries as their top quarterback, running back, and tight end in Matthew Stafford, Kerryon Johnson, and T.J. Hockenson all missed significant chunks of time. It's worth noting that the Lions were 3-4-1 last season with Stafford at QB before he was injured midway through the year, with three of their four losses being one-score games. The Lions had a very productive offseason and likely brought in as many as seven new defensive starters between free agents Jamie Collins, Duron Harmon, Reggie Ragland, Danny Shelton, and Desmond Trufant as well as rookies Jeff Okudah and Julian Okwara. Detroit also drafted DeAndre Swift at running back, a high-upside athlete from Georgia. The Lions don't have strong odds to make the playoffs this season, but they have as good a chance to win the NFC North as any of their division-mates.
The Lions' highest-paid player heading into the 2020-21 season is starting quarterback Matthew Stafford who has a cap hit of $21.3 million for this season. Stafford was on pace for 38 passing touchdowns last season and is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL so this is a worthy investment.
The current principal owner of the Lions is Martha Firestone Ford who acquired the team when her husband William passed away in 2014. William Clay Ford Sr. was the last surviving grandchild of Henry Ford, who founded Ford Motor Company. The Ford family has been a fixture in Detroit for decades.
Matt Patricia is entering his third season as the Lions' head coach and has compiled a 9-22-1 record in his first two seasons in that role. Patricia is a defensive specialist, serving as the defensive coordinator for the Patriots under Bill Belichick for six seasons.
The Lions have $29.1 million in salary-cap space, which is the third-most in the NFL. This is despite over $20 million in dead cap money owed to veteran players who are no longer on the team. The Lions could look to bolster what is already a strong roster before the season starts.
Kerryon Johnson is the incumbent starter as a third-year pro, but he's only been able to be on the field for 18 of 32 games in his career. The Lions drafted D'Andre Swift in the second round of this year's draft, who has a strong chance to take the starting role.
The Lions' youngest players are first-round draft pick Jeff Okudah, a cornerback out of Ohio State, and second-round pick D'Andre Swift, a running back out of Georgia, both of whom are 21 years old, as is undrafted rookie wide receiver Hunter Bryant.
Don Muhlbach, the Lions' longtime long-snapper, is currently the oldest player on the team at 38 years old. Muhlbach has been on the roster since 2004 and is entering his 17th season. Matt Prater, the team's starting kicker, is the second-oldest player at 35 years old.
The Michigan
After a few rough months for the industry, the
Michigan initially limited the sports betting options to retail sportsbooks, but there will be online sportsbooks available by the end of 2020. The Michigan sports betting industry could become one of the biggest in the United States, and the Detroit Lions will play a major factor.
PointsBet Michigan is set to launch when online sports betting becomes available, and this company will be a huge player in the industry. PointsBet is an Australian-based operator but has had great success since joining the US market.
PointsBet Michigan has already partnered with the Detroit Tigers, but this operator will feature plenty of Detroit Lions promos as well. PointsBet is known for its wide range of promotional offerings, which will become popular in the Michigan sports betting industry.
PointsBet has partnered with the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, and retail sports betting is already offered at the Northern Waters Casino.
DraftKings Michigan has partnered with the Bay Mills Indian Community, which has a large presence in the state. DraftKings Michigan will look to the Detroit Lions to help with the launch of its online sports betting app.
FanDuel Michigan will also offer mobile sports betting when that industry is available to launch, and it will likely become one of the biggest players in the market. FanDuel has a long history of partnering with professional sports teams, and the company will likely target the Detroit Lions.
FanDuel has targeted specific states to offer sports betting, and it chose Michigan as one of the states to target. The popularity of the Detroit Lions in the state of Michigan will help FanDuel Michigan achieve tremendous success in the industry.
The Detroit Lions might not be one of the most successful teams in the NFL, but William Hill will use that team to help drive traffic and interest. Sports bettors excited about the Michigan sports betting industry will enjoy having William Hill Michigan in the mix.
The Michigan sports betting industry might have gotten off to a slow start, but things have started to turn around in a hurry. The Detroit Lions have played a role in helping these sportsbooks post some impressive numbers, but it will be up to other teams after the 2020 NFL season concludes.
The launch of mobile betting will help the Michigan sports betting industry grow, and 2021 should provide some huge handle and revenue totals.