2025 Detroit Lions 53-man roster projection: Post-HOF game edition

Erik Schlitt and Jeremy Reisman put their heads together for an updated Lions 53-man roster projection.

The Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Chargers opened up the 2025 preseason on Thursday, and that means it’s time for another installment of our 53-man roster projection.

As has become tradition, Jeremy Reisman and I collaborate on this projection in an attempt to give you a balanced look at where the roster sits coming out of the summer break. We come together to debate the roster, fight for our favorites, and compromise when possible. We will publish updated collaborative editions of the 53-man projection throughout training camp. Then, at cutdowns, we will each publish our own projections.

Let’s get started.

Note: An asterisk (*) denotes the player is a rookie

Quarterbacks (2)

Jared Goff
Hendon Hooker
Kyle Allen

Jeremy:

Despite Kyle Allen starting the preseason game and looking much better on Thursday, we’re sticking with Hendon Hooker as the backup. It was a disappointing night for the third-year quarterback, but just one piece of the scouting puzzing, and coach Dan Campbell even found some positives from Hooker’s performance . I’m eager to see how much better Hooker will look when he plays with the second-team offense rather than the third-team.

Running back (4)

Jahmyr Gibbs
David Montgomery
Craig Reynolds
Sione Vaki
Kye Robichaux*
Jabari Small
Jacob Saylors

Erik: This competition continues to be very straightforward, as most expect the Lions to roll with the same four running backs from last season. With the changes we’ve seen in the last few seasons on special teams, players like Reynolds and Vaki have become extremely valuable.

Wide receiver (6)

Amon-Ra St. Brown
Jameson Williams
Tim Patrick
Kalif Raymond
Isaac TeSlaa*
Dominic Lovett*
Jackson Meeks*
Tom Kennedy
Jakobie Keeney-James*
Ronnie Bell
Malik Taylor

Jeremy:

Despite a couple of errors, Lovett seemed to create some distance from the depth receivers on the team for the final roster spot. Of the five players we’re cutting here, only one made a catch in Thursday’s preseason game: Jackson Meeks. Lovett, on the other hand, was consistently open and hauled in five catches on nine targets. The competition isn’t over, but he’s got a commanding lead, in my mind.

Tight end (3)

Sam LaPorta
Brock Wright
Shane Zylstra
Kenny Yeboah
Zach Horton*

Erik: Yeboah showed off his blocking prowess against the Chargers, and Horton displayed his range to play multiple positions, but Zylstra remains the most complete tight end amongst the reserves and is firmly holding onto the TE3 spot.

Offensive tackle (4)

Penei Sewell
Taylor Decker (Active/PUP )
Dan Skipper
Giovanni Manu
Jamarco Jones
Mason Miller*

Jeremy:

I’ll admit I’m starting to wonder if Dan Skipper is on shaky ground, considering he essentially played all of the first half of the preseason opener. Additionally, he suffered a low-ankle sprain and his availability is currently unknown. That could give Jamarco Jones a shot for the roster, but we’re not there yet.

Interior offensive line (5 + 1 PUP)

Graham Glasgow
Christian Mahogany
Tate Ratledge*
Kayode Awosika
Kingsley Eguakun
Trystan Colon
Netane Muti
Michael Niese
Colby Sorsdal

Active/PUP : Miles Frazier*

Erik: The only real debate between Jeremy and I in this entire discussion ended up being between Kingsley Eguakun versus Trystan Colon. In the end, we landed on upside over experience, and have put some weight into the fact that the Lions have consistently started their rotations with Eguakun over Colon in the pecking order.

Defensive end (5)

Aidan Hutchinson
Marcus Davenport
Josh Paschal (Active/NFI )
Al-Quadin Muhammad
Ahmed Hassanein*
Nate Lynn
Mitchell Agude
Isaac Ukwu

Jeremy:

While I liked some things I saw from Lynn and Ukwu in the preseason game, Hassanein was brilliant for his first NFL action. His ability to defend the run was much better than advertised, giving me a little extra hope in this unit.

That being said, the Lions face an interesting decision with Paschal. Campbell said this week that he could return to practice early September but would need a couple weeks to be football ready. Could he start the year on the Non-Football Injury list, miss the first four games, and open up a roster spot? We’re sticking with no, because being on the NFI list would also mean no practicing during September. But if the roster gets tight, this could be an option.

Defensive tackle (5 + 1 PUP)

DJ Reader
Tyleik Williams*
Roy Lopez
Mekhi Wingo (Active/PUP )
Pat O’Connor
Keith Cooper*
Chris Smith
Myles Adams
Raequan Williams
Brodric Martin

Active/PUP : Alim McNeill
Reserve/PUP : Levi Onwuzurike (Season is over)

Erik: With Wingo expected to remain on the PUP until September, there’s a chance he could start the season on the PUP, which could open the door for another interior defender. However, at this time, we are anticipating his return ahead of the season and have included him as “in” our 53-man roster.

Linebacker (6 + 1 PUP)

Alex Anzalone
Jack Campbell
Derrick Barnes
Grant Stuard
Trevor Nowaske
Zach Cunningham
Anthony Pittman
Ezekiel Turner
DaRon Gilbert

Active/PUP : Malcolm Rodriguez

Jeremy:

It was a disappointing night for both Nowaske and Cunningham in the preseason game, but no one in Detroit’s depth did much of anything to jump them in the depth chart. Pittman made a case with two tackles for loss, but PFF also credited him with three missed tackles on the night.

Cornerback (6)

Terrion Arnold
D.J. Reed
Amik Robertson
Ennis Rakestraw Jr.
Khalil Dorsey (Active/PUP )
Rock Ya-Sin
Erick Hallett
DiCaprio Bootle
Tyson Russell
Nick Whiteside

Erik: Rock Ya-Sin has consistently improved over his time in Detroit, and his performance against the Chargers illustrated that he has the physical mentality to fit this team’s culture and approach to defense. We’ll be keeping a close eye on Dorsey’s PUP status over the next few weeks.

Safety (4)

Brian Branch
Kerby Joseph
Avonte Maddox
Dan Jackson*
Morice Norris
Loren Strickland
Ian Kennelly*

Jeremy: The final safety spot remains one of the most competitive. Jackson still gets the nod for his special teams work, but we’ve admittedly seen more on defense from guys like Norris and Kennelly. I fully expect at least two depth safeties to stick around on the practice squad.

Specialists (3)

Jack Fox (P)
Jake Bates (K)
Hogan Hatten (LS)

Erik: With no competition, this is the easiest section on our docket.

At a glance, here’s a look at our current 53-man roster projection: