Detroit Lions: Preseason Roster Stack
By Erik Schlitt
The purpose of a “roster stack” is to identify where the Detroit Lions players stand with regards to their position on the current roster.
The Detroit Lions roster currently stands at 90 players. On August 30th it will be cut down to a maximum player count of 75. By September 3rd, that number will again be reduced, this time down to a final 53 player roster.
This roster stack is an organized player grouping that is broken down into five groups: 1) Impact Players, 2) Core Players, 3) Players with a Secure Spot, 4) Players on the Roster Bubble, and 5) the Long Shots.
Impact Players
These are players, who if they were removed from the roster, would greatly impact the teams overall performance.
| QB | Matthew Stafford | Roster Spot #1 |
| RB | Ameer Abdullah | 2 |
| WR | Golden Tate | 3 |
| TE | Eric Ebron | 4 |
| LT | Taylor Decker | 5 |
| RT | Riley Reiff | 6 |
| DE | Ziggy Ansah | 7 |
| OLB | DeAndre Levy | 8 |
| CB | Darius Slay | 9 |
| S | Glover Quin | 10 |
Core Players
These player make up the foundation of the roster. While a loss of a player in this group would be significant, it is something a team could recover from.
| RB | Theo Riddick | 11 |
| WR | Marvin Jones | 12 |
| WR | Anquan Boldin | 13 |
| LG | Laken Tomlinson | 14 |
| RG | Larry Warford | 15 |
| DT | Haloti Ngata | 16 |
| DT | Tyrunn Walker | 17 |
| DT | A’Shawn Robinson | 18 |
| DE | Devin Taylor | 19 |
| ILB | Tahir Whitehead | 20 |
| CB | Nevin Lawson | 21 |
| CB | Quandre Diggs | 22 |
| K | Matt Prater | 23 |
| P | Sam Martin | 24 |
Players with a Secure Spot
These players, should feel comfortable with their position on the roster as they have a proven skill set that the team desires. A player in this group is a preferred player but is also one who has a replacement somewhere on the roster.
| FB | Mike Burton | 25 |
| WR | TJ Jones | 26 |
| TE | Cole Wick | 27 |
| C | Travis Swanson | 28 |
| C/G | Graham Glasgow | 29 |
| OL | Geoff Schwartz | 30 |
| OL | Joe Dahl | 31 |
| DT | Caraun Reid | 32 |
| OLB | Kyle Van Noy | 33 |
| LB | Josh Bynes | 34 |
| LB | Antwione Williams | 35 |
| DB | Johnson Bademosi | 36 |
| SS | Rafael Bush | 37 |
| SS | Miles Killebrew | 38 |
Players on the Roster Bubble
With 38 spots that look to be secured, that leaves only 15 spots for the remaining players to compete over. That means a little less than half the players on this list will be on the final roster. A quick formatting note: If a player has a (PS) following their name it indicates they are still eligible for the practice squad.
| QB | Dan Orlovsky | * Will the Lions will keep one or two backup Quarterbacks? |
| QB | Jake Rudock (PS) | |
| RB | Zach Zenner (PS) | * With two running backs and a full back already in the fold, the Lions will likely keep two more players from this group. |
| RB | Stevan Ridley | |
| RB | D. Washington (PS) | |
| RB | George Winn (PS) | |
| WR | Jay Lee (PS) | * The Lions have four wide receivers who look to have locked up a roster spot. What we don’t know is how many wide receivers Bob Quinn plans on keeping. With that number likely at five or six, it means one or two guys from this group will make the team. |
| WR | Quinshad Davis (PS) | |
| WR | Jeremy Kerley | |
| WR | Andre Roberts | |
| WR | Andre Caldwell | |
| WR | Corey Fuller | |
| TE | Brandon Pettigrew | * If Pettigrew stays on the PUP (Physically Unable to Perform) list, this would almost assuredly be Mulligan’s job. |
| TE | Matthew Mulligan | |
| OL | Michael Ola | * Lions appear to have eight offensive lineman who have separated themselves and secured a spot. That means there is likely only one or two spots remaining. |
| C | Gabe Ikard (PS) | |
| OT | Cornelius Lucas (PS) | |
| DL | Stefan Charles | * The Lions Defensive line is deep, specifically at tackle with four spots already taken. They will likely add pass rushing depth from this group and maybe another tackle that they don’t want to part with. Expect four from this group to stick around. |
| DL | Wallace Gilberry | |
| DL | Anthony Zettel (PS) | |
| DE | Brandon Copeland (PS) | |
| DT | Gabe Wright (PS) | |
| DT | Khyri Thornton (PS) | |
| DL | Kerry Hyder (PS) | |
| LB | Jon Bostic | * Will the Lions keep five or six linebackers? |
| S | Tavon Wilson | * The starting three corner backs are locked in, as are three safeties, and special teams ace Johnson Bademosi. That leaves three (maybe four if they only keep five linebackers) spots available for the remaining defensive backs. |
| CB | Darrin Walls | |
| CB | Crezdon Butler | |
| CB | Alex Carter (PS) | |
| S | Don Carey | |
| S | Isaiah Johnson (PS) | |
| LS | Jimmy Landes (PS) | * The battle for the long snapper position only has room for one. |
| LS | Don Muhlbach |
Long Shots
These players appear to be on the outside looking in as the roster stands right now. They still have a chance to make the final 53, but they have some work to do.
| WR | Jace Billingsley (PS) | |
| WR | Alex Chisum (PS) | |
| TE | Orson Charles (PS) | |
| TE | Adam Fuehne (PS) | |
| TE | Ben McCord (PS) | |
| OL | Chase Farris (PS) | |
| OT | Corey Robinson (PS) | |
| OT | Luke Marquardt | |
| DE | Quanterus Smith | |
| DE | Deonte Gibson (PS) | |
| DE | Louis Palmer (PS) | |
| LB | Zaviar Gooden | |
| LB | Khaseem Greene | |
| LB | Chi Chi Ariguzo (PS) | |
| CB | Adairius Barnes (PS) | |
| CB | Charles Washington (PS) | |
| CB | Keith Lewis (PS) | |
| CB | Rashaad Reynolds (PS) | |
| K/P | Devon Bell (PS) |
Next: Detroit Lions Training Camp Observations
One thing to keep in mind is that this document is fluid. It can and will change varying amounts depending on player performance during the preseason.
Did I put your favorite player in the wrong group? Do you like my groupings? Let me know in the replies or on Twitter at @erikschlitt.