Category: Lions News

Lions announce partnership with BetMGM

In-person sports wagering is now legal in Michigan

The Detroit Lions have an official sports betting partner for the first time. The Lions have paired with BetMGM, an extension of the team’s prior partnership with MGM Resorts.

The BetMGM Sports Lounge at MGM Grand Detroit opened in March after in-person sports wagering was made legal in the state of Michigan. The partnership between the Lions and BetMGM also includes a bingo game on the Lions app that allows fans to predict certain outcomes throughout the game.

The Detroit Lions historic relationship with BetMGM has been years in the making and we’re proud to announce details of our official partnership,” said Detroit Lions Team President Rod Wood in a joint statement. “We’re continuously seeking new ways to entertain and involve our fans which is especially important during such unusual times; this partnership with BetMGM will provide additional and exciting opportunities to engage our fans.”

Lions Wire, via the USA TODAY SMG, also has a partnership with BetMGM, as a full disclosure. It is not in any way affiliated with the Detroit Lions or the team’s partnership with MGM.

Bob Quinn, Matt Patricia make statements on Taylor Decker extension

Detroit Lions general manager Bob Quinn and coach Matt Patricia made statements on left tackle Taylor Decker’s contract extension.

On Tuesday the Detroit Lions and Taylor Decker agreed to a contract extension that would keep the left tackle in Detroit through the 2024 season.

This morning, coach Matt Patricia spoke about Decker at his morning press conference and had the following to say:

I’ve just seen so much growth in him over the last couple years in his ability to get better at the position, just be more consistent, his technique, his leadership is outstanding, the way that he approaches every single day. He’s just been a really consistent guy for us on the offensive line. I would say his overall football knowledge has just really increased with the different types of looks and protections, blitz packages that they see on the offensive line, the run game, just overall improvement by him each year.

I think he’s having a great camp; I think he’s working really hard. He’s been the same guy every day. I just couldn’t be any happier for him in general with his development as a player and obviously everything that goes along with that for his future.

I think he’s just an intricate part of what we’re trying to do and what we’re trying to be about. Every day I get a chance to work with him (and) it’s been great. I’m really excited about that. I’m excited about all of it. But I would say that the improvement he’s made over the last couple years – and with the coaching changes and head coaching changes and all the rest of it, you just see the growth and development that he’s had.

You always want to do everything you can to raise your own and reward your own. Certainly, Taylor has done an awesome job for us.

Once the agreement became official, Quinn issued a statement:

Since the day we drafted him, Taylor has dedicated himself to our program and has developed into an important piece of our offense. As one of our team captains, he sets a great example for every player in our locker room. This extension is a reflection of all of Taylor’s hard work, and we are incredibly excited to come to this agreement and continue to work with Taylor for years to come. I also want to thank Taylor and his representatives for their work in making this extension a reality.

Hunter Bryant’s injury continues to keep the UDFA tight end sidelined

It’s hard to see Bryant making the Lions final roster after he’s missed weeks of practice with a hamstring injury

When the Detroit Lions first revealed their undrafted rookie class of 2020, Hunter Bryant was a popular favorite to be the most likely to make the 53-man roster. An undersized (6-2, 239) receiving-oriented tight end from Washington, Bryant offered the right promise of upside and ability at a position of weakness in Detroit.

Bryant earned some early praise from head coach Matt Patricia.

“I think, obviously, there’s a great deal that he does well in the passing game, and we’ve been able to see a little bit of that,” Patricia said in August. “And I think he’s done an outstanding job first and foremost of just taking advantage of his opportunity with maybe some of the other things that have gone on. And he’s gotten out there with some of those groups and has really just done a great job.”

Alas, Bryant’s strong start and chances of making the roster have been hamstrung by a hamstring injury. The rookie has not practiced since August 22nd and remains out with just two full days to go before the roster cutdown is due.

Coach Patricia initially left Bryant off his list of limited participants or those sitting out Wednesday’s practice. He was unusually (for Patricia) short on words when asked specifically about Bryant later in his Zoom press conference.

 “Thank you, I did skip that by accident. Hunter Bryant will not be at practice today,” Patricia said. Next question.
Unfortunately for Bryant, availability is an ability he has not shown in training camp. It’s difficult to project him making the final roster after missing the final two-plus weeks of training camp. Bryant could be a candidate for injured reserve as a rookie with a chance to try and prove he can make it in 2021.

Report: Kenny Golladay and Lions closing in on contract extension

Golladay projects to earn more than $16 million per season

With Taylor Decker’s big new contract extension out of the way, Detroit Lions GM Bob Quinn can now turn his attention to the other prominent expiring contract on the team. And there are several reports that the Lions are doing just that with Pro Bowl wide receiver Kenny Golladay.

A report from Pro Football Talk, as well as a comment from The Athletic’s Chris Burke, indicate the Lions are close to having a contract extension done with Golladay before the season starts on Sept. 13th.

Golladay broke out in his third season, leading the NFL in touchdown receptions and averaging 18.3 yards per reception despite playing with three different QBs in 2019. He is in the final year of his rookie contract signed as the team’s third-round pick from Northern Illinois in the 2017 NFL Draft.

Golladay figures to get a healthy payday. Our Erik Schlitt projected a 4-year, $72 million deal that averages $18 million per year. That seems on par with the various reports, though nothing has been officially discussed publicly. The Lions have enough cap room to accommodate such a deal.

Taylor Decker contract extension: Breaking down the Lions left tackle’s new deal

The deal is more complex than initially reported

The Detroit Lions locked up left tackle Taylor Decker on Tuesday, agreeing to a contract extension that will keep Decker in Detroit through at least the 2024 season.

More details are emerging about the deal. Initially reported — by Decker’s representation — as a six-year, $85 million extension with $37.5 million fully guaranteed, it’s more of a four-year deal on top of the final year of Decker’s existing contract with a voidable year at the end for salary cap purposes.

Decker was due $10.35 million on the fifth-year option from his initial rookie contract as the No. 16 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. The new deal rolls that figure into the extension while also lowering Decker’s cap obligation for 2020 to just $8.35 million, per Spotrac.

Ian Rapoport of NFL.com provided more specifics on Decker’s new deal, including a breakdown of the full guaranteed figures for each of the next four years.

https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/1300929578773499911?s=20

Decker’s annual average salary of $15 million ranks seventh among offensive tackles. The $42.4 total guaranteed ranks fourth, behind Lane Johnson, Taylor Lewan and Laremy Tunsil, again per Spotrac. His total contract value is the 10th-highest for offensive tackles.

By way of comparison, the Lions signed right tackle Halapoulivaati Vaitai for five years and $45 million, which ranks 18th overall in total contract value for OTs. The Lions are also paying Rick Wagner, the man Vaitai replaced, $5.8 million in cap room to not play for the team in 2020.

 

Lions sign Taylor Decker to a 6 year $85 M contract extension

The Detroit Lions have signed left tackle Taylor Decker to a massive six-year $85 million dollar contract extension per his agent.

The Detroit Lions have signed left tackle Taylor Decker to a massive six-year $85 million dollar contract extension per his agent AMDG Sports Maganagemt.

With a year left on his current deal, and a voidable sixth year worked in for salary cap purposes, the new money Decker is making $60 million in new money spread out over the four more years extending through the 2025 season.

This is a big win for both the Lions and Decker as it puts him in the Top-5 highest-paid on average for offensive tackles in the NFL, with the ninth most in guaranteed money.

Decker has steadily taken on a leadership role within the organization, stepping up on the field and in the locker room — including being one of four Lions’ player to speak out last Tuesday during the Lions’ social justice stand.

After a stellar rookie season, Decker’s labrum injury set him back during his sophomore season, but since then he has steadily improved and played his best football as a professional the back half of last season.

In training camp this season he has been remarkable and if his play carries over to the season, he will already have proven that investing Top-5 money at his position was a wise move by the organization.

Lions worked out 4 DBs including former Michigan CB Jeremy Clark

Lions worked out 4 DBs including former Michigan CB Jeremy Clark

The Detroit Lions are in the process of cutting down the roster to just 53 players by Saturday, but they are still also looking to add potential talent too.

The Lions worked out four defensive backs as part of Monday’s festivities at team headquarters in Allen Park. The foursome, courtesy of Kyle Meinke of MLive,

Clark is probably the most familiar name for Lions fans. He played collegiately at Michigan before being a sixth-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. He was most recently with the Seattle Dragons of the XFL after several injuries derailed his Jets career.

None of the players were immediately signed to the roster.

[vertical-gallery id=49421]

Lions ‘trying to be smart’ in easing D’Andre Swift back into action

Swift sat out Tuesday’s practice after going through drills on Monday

D’Andre Swift’s absence from practices continues to be a pressing issue for the Detroit Lions. With lofty expectations for the team’s second-round pick, Swift missing more than a week of the Lions’ summer practice sessions has sounded some serious alarm bells.

Head coach Matt Patricia tried to quiet those alarms in his pre-practice Zoom session with the media on Tuesday. Despite practice being closed, Patricia still meets with the media for a daily update.

“We’re trying to be smart with that,” Patricia said in answering questions about Swift’s status.

Patricia indicated Swift did not have any setbacks after participating in drills during Monday’s session. The rookie from Georgia has only made brief appearances on the practice field in the last two weeks after suffering an unspecified lower-body injury. Swift also sat out Tuesday’s session.

Swift is expected to share the primary RB role with Kerryon Johnson, if not exceed the third-year vet’s workload. Johnson is healthy after missing most of last season with a knee injury.

[lawrence-related id=49463]

Lions waive WR Geremy Davis

Davis couldn’t climb up the Lions deep roster at WR

The Detroit Lions have begun the painful process of whittling down the roster in advance of Saturday’s deadline. Head coach Matt Patricia confirmed in his pre-practice Zoom session with reporters that the team has released wide receiver Geremy Davis.

Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press first reported the news.

Davis joined the Lions this offseason after four seasons with the Chargers. His size and experience on special teams gave him a chance to make it, but the Lions depth at wide receiver made it a foreboding challenge. He can now try to latch on with another team prior to the season.

[lawrence-related id=49463]

The Lions need to just say no on DeShone Kizer

The Lions need to just say no on free agent QB DeShone Kizer, who is working out for the team this week

Free agent quarterback DeShone Kizer is working out for the Detroit Lions this week. The news of the pending workout got the social media world buzzing about the former Notre Dame and Cleveland Browns starter.

While it’s never a bad idea to work out players, especially younger players, the Lions need to avoid biting into the Kizer apple. While it’s shiny and looks sweet on the outside, the actual experience of Kizer playing quarterback is terribly sour.

I covered Kizer and his 15-game run as the Browns starter in 2017. As managing editor of the Browns Wire, I intently watched every play. I watched every fumble, all nine of them. I had to break down every interception, all 24 of them. The Browns lost every game, and Kizer drove that bus straight over the winless cliff.

Was it all his fault? Heck no. The Browns committed myriad football sins in that year, from having an incompetent GM, Sashi Brown, who didn’t value talent as much as valued draft value, to trotting out one of the worst receiving corps in modern NFL history (Kenny Britt, Corey Coleman, Ricardo Louis). Coach Hue Jackson proved the offensive version of Rod Marinelli, a good man hopelessly swimming in waters well over his head as the leader of the entire football team. The veteran mentors for the second-round rookie were Cody Kessler and Kevin Hogan after Brown sold off Brock Osweiler for spare parts.

But Kizer was brutal on his own, too. His complete lack of decisiveness and anticipation was downright painful to watch. It led to the league-leading turnover figure. What really killed Kizer was his lack of ball security in the red zone. It was so astonishingly awful it merited a special breakdown.

DeShone Kizer leads all QBs in red-zone turnover percentage, giving the ball away on 9.5 percent of his red-zone plays.

Kizer had more red zone turnovers on his own that season (10) than any other entire team did. They were not flukish giveaways, either.

Despite playing behind one of the league’s best offensive lines (Joe Thomas, Joel Bitonio, JC Tretter, Kevin Zeitler, Shon Coleman), Kizer was a panicky mess. He utterly refused to throw the ball until he saw the receiver open, completely eliminating any semblance of timing on routes.

Putting his miserable Browns experience aside, look at what happened with Kizer in Green Bay. The Packers pounced, trading a starting safety (Damarious Randall) to land him as their latest “Aaron Rodgers eventual successor”. Lions fans witnessed that one firsthand. It went something like this…

Kizer’s stat line from his backup duty in Green Bay — another team that featured a pretty good offensive line: 20-for-42, 187 yards, 0 TDs, 2 INTs, 4 sacks, 1 fumble. The Packers quietly dumped him after the season, less than 10 months after they traded away a former first-round pick to get him, brimming with promise. He hasn’t played since, sitting on the Raiders bench as their No. 3 QB last year behind Derek Carr and Mike Glennon.

Could Kizer turn it around and prove doubters like me wrong? It could happen. The draftnik in me that liked him coming out of Notre Dame still hopes it happens for Kizer, a genuinely nice and smart young man who does have some physical tools. But the odds of that happening in Detroit simply aren’t worth the time in this altered summer.