Last night’s Super Bowl officially ended the 2023 season. It’s time now for free agency and the draft, and loading up the Detroit Lions for another deep playoff run, hopefully one that culminates in playing in next year’s final game.
There’s another way to add impact talent to the roster: trades. And the Philadelphia Eagles have created an opportunity for the Lions to answer one of their biggest questions on defense.
The Eagles have given permission to edge rusher Haason Reddick to seek a trade. Reddick has hit double figures in sacks in each of the last four seasons, with 11 in 2023 after 16 in his fantastic 2022 campaign. The two-time Pro Bowler is one of the most consistent stand-up pass rushers in the league.
Yes, the Lions should have interest in trading for Reddick. But it’s not as simple as GM Brad Holmes calling up his Eagles counterpart, Howie Roseman, and snatching away a good starter for nothing.
First, there’s the matter of salary. Reddick is due $15.5 million in the final year of the three-year, $45 million contract he signed with the Eagles in 2022. There’s also a $1 million roster bonus due on March 15 that likely serves as an unofficial deadline for the Eagles to get a trade done.
The Lions can readily absorb the $15.5 million hit. But one of the reasons the Eagles are prepared to move on is because Reddick, who turns 30 in September, has already been angling for a deal similar to what Montez Sweat (Chicago Bears) and Rashan Gary (Green Bay Packers) have gotten recently. That’s in the range of $20 million to $24 million per year.
Making that kind of contract fit would be difficult for Detroit. Remember, the Lions have to pay (in no particular order) Amon-Ra St. Brown, Penei Sewell, Jared Goff and at least one of their starting guards a lot more money than they get now — all in the next six to 12 months.
Of course, the Lions could view Reddick as an expensive one-year rental, but that would figure to lower what Detroit would be willing to give up to acquire him. The Lions will not be the only bidder. Pay attention to the wording from the Eagles, too. They’ve given permission to Reddick to seek a trade. Read as: Reddick and his representation get to seek out the best deal they can find, and then the Eagles have to agree to it. Reddick wants to cash in before he turns 30 and before his decline in overall play starts to get more noticeable. He has never been a great run defender or tackler with the Eagles, Panthers or Cardinals, so keeping up the sacks and pressures is mandatory to his value.
The 11 sacks were great, and the manner in which Reddick gets them would perfectly fit into the Lions defense on the opposite side of Aidan Hutchinson. Detroit should definitely be interested in paying Reddick for the 11 sacks and the closing speed around the outside edge that the team sorely lacked in 2023. But they have to be careful not to expect the 16-sack season that Reddick posted in 2022, when he was named second-team All-Pro. That sure looks like an anomalous peak season.
That distinction might not seem important, but it certainly is for Reddick. This is most likely his last chance to get a big paycheck, and he’ll emphasize his peak. So will the Eagles in any trade discussion, and that’s the difference between (spitballing here) two Day 2 picks over the next two drafts or a second-round pick this year and a sixth-round pick swap in 2025. For a team like the Lions, who build so carefully in the draft, that’s a big deal.
I would expect Holmes and the Lions to be a leading contender to acquire Reddick. They should be, anyway. He’d make for a wonderful complement to Hutchinson and give the pass rush the dimension it sorely lacked from the likes of Charles Harris, Romeo Okwara and an injured James Houston in 2023. But the price will need to be right, and that’s something the Lions cannot control.