HEADLINES

Gabe Wright

Lions Trim Roster To 53

September 3rd, 2016 at 3:28pm CST by Zachary Links

The Lions have released offensive lineman Brandon Thomas, as Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets. Thomas came to Detroit in the Jeremy Kerley trade earlier this week. Brandon Thomas (vertical)

Thomas, a former third-round pick, has never taken a snap in the NFL. He missed his entire rookie season in 2014 while recovering from a torn ACL suffered in college, and didn’t appear in a game during his sophomore campaign. Thomas wasn’t need in the Bay Area given that Anthony Davis has come out of retirement and shifted to guard and he apparently wasn’t wanted in Detroit either.

Thomas obviously wasn’t the Lions’ only victim of cut day. Cuts include:

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Extra Points: Bradford, Jets, Giants, Falcons, Lions

May 6th, 2016 at 8:30pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Given quarterback Sam Bradford‘s unhappiness in Philadelphia, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk examined the seemingly far-fetched possibility of the 28-year-old retiring – at least temporarily. Bradford would have to surrender the $11MM signing bonus he received from the Eagles earlier this offseason if he were to walk away, but he would offset that loss somewhat by avoiding any fines or forfeitures that would accompany a potential holdout.

The appeal of retiring from Bradford’s point of view is that he could wait for another team’s starting quarterback to suffer an injury, whether it be this year or in 2017, thus leading that club to approach the Eagles about a trade. It would be similar to the situation Carson Palmer found himself in five years ago as a disgruntled member of the Bengals. Early in the 2011 season, the Raiders lost starter Jason Campbell to an injury and then made a trade with the Bengals to bring Palmer out of his short-lived retirement.

Most teams’ starting quarterback situations are set right now, and the Eagles haven’t shown a willingness to move Bradford in the wake of trading up to No. 2 in the draft for Carson Wentz and signing Chase Daniel, so Florio opines that retirement could be his most sensible option.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

  • There was potential for a New York-New York trade in the first round of last week’s draft, according to the New York Daily News’ Gary Myers, who reports that the Jets offered their first- (20th overall) and second-rounders to the Giants for No. 10. The Jets had their sights set on Ole Miss offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil, but the Giants didn’t want to move down and risk losing out on Ohio State cornerback Eli Apple. Had the Giants accepted the Jets’ offer, they would have either taken TCU wideout Josh Doctson or the best cornerback available (likely Houston’s William Jackson III) at No. 20, per Myers. Doctson ultimately went 22nd to Washington and Jackson landed with the Bengals two picks later. Meanwhile, instead of nabbing Tunsil, the Jets kept their top two picks and used them on Ohio State linebacker Darron Lee and Penn State quarterback Christian Hackenberg.
  • The Falcons are currently mulling whether to sign free agent cornerback Leon Hall, who visited them this week, reports Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. Hall would add depth to a Falcons defensive backfield in need of it, especially given the four-game suspension the league handed Jalen Collins, as McClure writes. The ex-Michigan standout’s entire NFL career has thus far been spent in Cincinnati, where he totaled 26 interceptions from 2007-15, though it doesn’t appear he’ll return to the Bengals. Aside from the Falcons, Hall has also visited the Giants, Cardinals and Cowboys this offseason, but his age (31) and injury history (he has torn both Achilles) are seemingly working against him in landing a contract.
  • With the draft in the books, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com took a look at six Lions veterans whose jobs could now be in jeopardy. Meinke points to quarterback Dan Orlovsky, center Travis Swanson, offensive tackle Cornelius Lucas, linebacker Kyle Van Noy, defensive tackle Gabe Wright and long snapper Don Muhlbach as players who aren’t locks to remain in the Motor City.

Lions Sign Five Rookies

May 7th, 2015 at 10:12pm CST by Zachary Links

The Lions announced that they have signed draft picks Alex Carter, Gabe Wright, Michael Burton, Quandre Diggs, and Corey Robinson, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com tweets.

Carter, a third round choice, was the highest draft pick of any of the players that signed today. The former Stanford standout was ranked as the third-best safety prospect of his class coming out of high school. Carter hit the ground running as a true frosh and after a solid 2014 season, he decided to enter his name in the draft early.

First-round choice Laken Tomlinson and second-round pick Ameer Abdullah remain unsigned.

Lions Notes: Wright, Mayhew, Swanson

May 3rd, 2015 at 10:36am CST by Rory Parks

As this weekend’s draft dust continues to settle, let’s take a look at a few draft-related notes out of Detroit:

  • The Lions ultimately drafted DT Gabe Wright in yesterday’s fourth round after trading a 2016 third-round pick to the Eagles to move up to the 113th-overall selection. As Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com tweets, one of the reasons they were comfortable in doing that was because they knew that they would likely be getting a fairly high compensatory selection in 2016’s draft as a result of losing Ndamukong Suh in free agency.
  • Last season’s injuries played a major role in the Lions’ draft strategy this year, writes Carlos Monarrez of The Detroit Free Press. The team went through four right tackles and lost their top two nickel corners after Week 2, so GM Martin Mayhew drafted durable offensive linemen Laken Tomlinson and Corey Robinson. Detroit also added Stanford corner Alex Carter in the third round and Texas nickel corner Quandre Diggs in the sixth.
  • Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com points out that, for the first time in his seven-draft tenure as Lions GM, Mayhew did not select a wide receiver. “There were a couple of times during the draft when a receiver’s name was up there,” Mayhew said. “But there was somebody else who was more of a reason to go in a different direction.”
  • After hinting for the past few months that they wanted to shift to a more run-oriented offense, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com says the Lions took a definitive step in that direction this weekend by drafting a mauling guard (Tomlinson), a tailback (Ameer Abdullah), and even a fullback (Michael Burton).
  • The Lions drafted Travis Swanson in the third round last year with intentions of having him take over for Dominic Raiola at center this season. But as Dave Birkett of The Detroit Free Press writes, Detroit, which has spent four high-round draft picks on offensive linemen in the last three years, is not willing to commit to Swanson as its starting center just yet. He was penciled into the starting lineup until Thursday night, when the Lions acquired veteran interior blocker Manny Ramirez in a trade with Denver.

Lions Acquire No. 113 Pick From Eagles

May 2nd, 2015 at 11:45am CST by Ben Levine

Having entered the day with no picks until the fifth round, the Lions have moved up to the fourth round. According to Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter), Detroit has acquired pick No. 113 from the Eagles. In exchange, the Eagles have received a 2016 third-rounder from Detroit, according to Zach Berman of The Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).

According to the Baltimore Sun’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter), the Lions will select Auburn defensive tackle Gabe Wright. The 23-year-old will never be confused with departed defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh (or replacement Haloti Ngata), but the rookie will certainly provide some depth and reinforcement at the position.

After trading out of the fourth round, the Eagles’s next selection is in round six, at pick No 191.