The Detroit Lions' 2025 season was a campaign to forget.
What started as a promising season quickly turned sour, resulting in one of the more disappointing finishes in recent years. Most of the problems came on the defensive side of the ball once again. Amid a slew of disappointments and underwhelming performances, Al-Quadin Muhammad's emergence was a silver lining.
The veteran pass rusher had a breakout campaign and was one of the most productive defenders on the team, finishing with personal-best stats when it came to (per Pro Football Focus):
- Total pressures: 53
- Hurries: 32
- Quarterback hits: 9
- Sacks: 12
- Pass rush grade: 71.9
The issue, however, is the fact that Muhammad will be a free agent this spring. Now that his one-year deal with the Lions has expired, Detroit has to make a difficult decision. Do they want to give a lucrative, multi-year deal to a pass rusher who is about to turn 31 when they have so many key contract extensions looming?
Lions May Find It a Little Easier to Re-Sign Al-Quadin Muhammad
Fortunately, the Lions received some help from a big league announcement on Friday.
The NFL informed teams that "it is projecting a 2026 salary cap in the range of $301.2 million to $305.7 million," per NFL insider Tom Pelissero. This means that each team will have between $22 million and a $26.5 million more to spend on player salaries next season than in 2025. It will also be the first $300 million cap in NFL history.
While this is good news for almost all teams in the league, the Lions — who are more than $8.2 million over the cap — will especially benefit from the increase. Detroit has to sign Jahmyr Gibbs, Jack Campbell, Sam LaPorta, and Brian Branch to long-term deals in the near future, as well as find a way to bring back Alex Anzalone, Roy Lopez, and Muhammad.
Spotrac calculated Muhammad's market value as a two-year, $15.7 million deal. This $7.9 million annual average salary valuation is the highest number among the Lions' pending free agents. OverTheCap's valuation for Muhammad is even higher at $10.5 million AAV.
On paper, that may seem like a lot for a 31-year-old who only has one year of producing at an elite level. While there are certainly risks associated with that type of deal, pass rush is a premium position, and pass rushers with double-digit sacks are very difficult to come by.
Teams rarely give up on their quality defensive ends. The Lions, who have struggled to find a reliable pass rusher opposite Aidan Hutchinson, should certainly be hesitant to do so.
Muhammad will have suitors on the market. The Lions may not be able to make the most lucrative offer when there are several pass-rush needy teams with over $50 million in cap space. After Friday's news, however, Detroit's chances of keeping Muhammad have significantly increased, and Lions fans should be happy about this development.