11:32am: The Lions have officially signed Wootton, the team announced in a press release.
10:57am: Wootton’s deal with the Lions is a minimum salary benefit contract, with an $80K signing bonus and a portion of the base salary guaranteed, tweets Birkett.
10:18am: The Lions are adding a little more depth to their revamped defensive line, according to agent Mike McCartney, who tweets that his client Corey Wootton is heading to Detroit on a one-year contract. Wootton had worked out for the club earlier this month.
Wootton, who turns 28 next month, spent the first four seasons of his NFL career in Chicago before joining the Vikings for the 2014 season. While he has never been an every-down player, Wootton saw 22 starts and totaled 10 sacks during his final two seasons with the Bears. Last year in Minnesota, he came off the bench and recorded just a single sack.
In Detroit, Wootton will be part of a new-look defensive line for the Lions, who lost Ndamukong Suh, Nick Fairley, and George Johnson in free agency. C.J. Mosley also remains unsigned. To replace the departed players, the team has brought in Haloti Ngata, Tyrunn Walker, rookie Gabe Wright, and now Wootton.
According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link), Wootton is expected to play primarily at defensive end for the Lions. The veteran lineman also tried out for the Jaguars and Titans earlier in the offseason and visited with the Saints in April before landing in Detroit.