The Detroit Lions' attention is fully on the 2026 offseason after a disheartening end to the year. While the Lions upset the Chicago Bears in Week 18, it simply pointed to the potential of a unit that fumbled away the opportunity of the 2025 season. This is going to demand a number of offseason changes, including allowing key pieces to walk away in free agency.
Detroit should have a new sense of urgency based on how the season ended and be more than willing to let failing pieces walk away without a second thought. This leads us to look at three names that stand out as pending free agents and clear liabilities that cannot return for the 2026 season.
1. Kyle Allen
The Lions have been incredibly lucky when it comes to the durability of starting quarterback Jared Goff. Still, there is no debate that it would be ideal to have a more reliable option behind Goff than Allen. This is especially the case after Hendon Hooker was released ahead of the 2025 season, no longer giving Detroit hope that a project quarterback is waiting in the wings. The Lions finished the season incredibly thin at the position and will look to remedy this in the 2026 offseason.
Allen simply is underwhelming when it comes to arm talent or any traits you want from a backup if forced into action. The quarterback has thrown 21 interceptions in his career despite playing extremely limited snaps. Detroit simply isn't going to have a difficult time finding a backup who offers more upside if anything were to happen to Goff.
Joe Flacco and Russell Wilson jump out as possible additions who are both decided upgrades over Allen. Regardless of who, it is clear that Allen's time with the organization is coming to an end. There simply isn't a reason to re-sign such a limited backup option.
2. Kalif Raymond
Raymond's fate was clear late in the season when his snap count cratered. This included playing only six offensive snaps in Week 17 during a must-win game. Raymond has been surpassed in the offense by young pass catcher Isaac TeSlaa, and there are options with considerable upside in the return game. Raymond had some solid seasons with the Lions, including in 2022 when the pass catcher totaled 616 receiving yards and was a consistently trusted target.
However, Raymond's role is continually slipping in the wrong direction, leaving the receiver with zero reason to want to return, ahead of hitting free agency at the official start of the new league year. For the Lions, the story is the same, with younger players able to take reps offensively, and the return game being an option for Tom Kennedy or Dominic Lovett, who have both shown promise and will be far more affordable than bringing back Raymond.
The pass catcher shouldn't have a difficult time finding a new landing spot that offers a more consistent offensive role. Raymond is only 31 and likely has a handful of productive seasons ahead of him. Seasons that simply won't be in Detroit with the two sides clearly moving in different directions.
3. Shane Zylstra
Zylstra played 66% of Detroit's offensive snaps in Week 17 when the franchise was still fighting for playoff positioning. This speaks both to poor coaching from Dan Campbell and just how incredibly thin the Lions had become at the tight end position. Both Brock Wright and Sam LaPorta were lost for the 2025 season, forcing a level of desperation that brought Zylstra and Anthony Firkser into meaningful roles.
For Zylstra, the reason for a lack of consistent reps in seasons past were quickly exposed. There was a notable lack of physicality in run blocking and pass protection, not from lack of effort but due to a lack of skill. The same could be said in the passing game, where Zylstra simply could be guarded by nearly any defensive matchup, and it was going to be impossible for the tight end to find separation.
With this in mind, it seems impossible that the pending free agent is going to be re-signed for the 2026 season. LaPorta is expected to return, and the Lions aren't going to have a difficult time finding improved depth over the underwhelming Zylstra.