Detroit Lions: Bob Quinn acquires assets on way to 53-man roster
By Zac Snyder
Detroit Lions general manager Bob Quinn is showing cutting a roster down to 53 players doesn’t mean having to lose players for nothing.
By 4 p.m. ET today, the Detroit Lions and the rest of the NFL will have to have rosters trimmed to 53 players. That means having to go through the difficult process of identifying which players will stick with the team into the regular season and which player the team will say goodbye to.
That often means having to waive or release players who don’t fit into the team’s plans for week one, but in more than one case, Bob Quinn has used the opportunity to add assets for the future.
It was a deal that sent Laken Tomlinson to the San Francisco 49ers yesterday in exchange for a fifth round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. After losing his spot as the starting left guard during the 2016 season, Tomlinson was not in the mix for a starting job in camp. Rather than having to release him or retain him for over-priced depth, Quinn was able to find a trade partner to move on from Tomlinson while also securing something for the future.
Quinn followed a simlar script today as cornerback Johnson Bademosi was trimmed from the roster. The cornerback group is one of the team’s deepest and Bademosi’s biggest contributions come on special teams. With competent corners ahead of him and special teams becoming a focus area for many of Quinn’s moves since he became general manager, Bademosi was expendable and sent to the New England Patriots in exchange for a 2019 sixth round pick.
Those may not be game-changing picks but they are nice additions for players who may not have figured into the Lions’ mix for this season. You never know, an extra fifth or sixth round pick could be just what the Lions need to package with another pick to make a bigger move in the draft.
It’s also a good sign for the kind of depth Quinn is building in the Lions roster. Jim Caldwell commented this week that he felt this was the deepest group he has coached in Detroit. Being able to trim the roster with trades helps prove the point.
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The Liosn aren’t quite down to the 53-man roster quite yet but notable cuts so far include tight end Cole Wick, linebacker Antwione Williams and quarterback Brad Kaaya.