The Lions and defensive tackle Akeem Spence have agreed to a reworked contract, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Spence’s base salary has been rolled back from $3.15MM to $2.575M, though he can bridge the gap through incentives. The adjustments to the deal will give Detroit $500K in cap space. 
As Mike Rothstein of ESPN.com tweets, this is an unexpected move by the Lions. Spence played well in 2017 and earned playing time bonuses that boosted his 2018 salary in the first place.
Spence joined the Lions last year on a three-year, $10.5MM deal. In his first season in Detroit, Spence appeared in every game and made eleven starts at defensive tackle. He finished out with three sacks and 39 total tackles while the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus scored it as his best season to date.
Spence projects to serve as the primary backup at defensive tackle behind starters A’Shawn Robinson and Sylvester Williams. For a complete look at the Lions roster, you can view their depth chart on Roster Resource.