The Detroit Lions finished off an encouraging NFL Draft and immediately got to work signing undrafted rookies, bringing in as much talent as possible to ensure that the 2025 roster is a better one than that of 2024.
On top of the draft, the Lions have made several acquisitions in free agency, bringing guys like D.J. Reed into the fold while extending players such as Derrick Barnes.
However, one new Detroit signing is already on thin ice with his new team following the NFL Draft, as the Lions may have just drafted someone who will push him out of the rotation before he even gets started.
Tyleik Williams finished with 20 run stops and showed some juice as a pass rusher in 2024 pic.twitter.com/FVmVWrPW7H
— Billy M (@BillyM_91) April 13, 2025
Lions' Tyleik Williams Pick Puts Roy Lopez on Hot Seat
In the first round, the Lions took Ohio State defensive tackle Tyleik Williams. He should be expected to play right away, joining a rotation that includes players like Levi Onwuzurike and Mekhi Wingo while Alim McNeill recovers from injury.
Detroit signed veteran Roy Lopez to a one-year, $4.65 million deal in the offseason. He spent the last two years with the Arizona Cardinals, starting all 16 games in 2024 while ranking 116th out of 219 qualified interior defensive linemen at Pro Football Focus.
That said, it's hard to see how he fits into the rotation. He's used to being on the field, but the selection of Williams should cut into a significant portion of Lopez's potential snaps. If Williams is who the Lions think he is, it'll be hard to keep him off the field. He recorded 100 tackles, 18 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks over the last two seasons and is a dominant run defender, something that Detroit certainly needed.
The Lions were torched by the Washington Commanders in the NFC playoffs, and stopping the run was a major problem. Williams has the ability to create a dominant defensive line alongside Aidan Hutchinson, and Lopez simply isn't good enough to stop that from happening.
It'll be interesting to see how the linemen are deployed, but Lopez may already be on the chopping block before he's even gotten to Detroit.