The Detroit Lions may not wait long if they decide their secondary needs help.
With the trade deadline set for Tuesday, Nov. 10 - one month from Saturday - Detroit sits at 2-2 and is heading into a tricky stretch that starts with a trip to the Arizona Cardinals before the bye week. Two straight division games await after that, and the Lions’ defensive problems have been loud enough to make a move feel possible sooner rather than later.
That urgency is tied to a simple problem: Detroit’s secondary has ranked last in the league. If the Lions want to stay on track for a division title, which would be their third in four years, they may need to add a defensive back before the market gets too thin.
One of the more established names on the board is Tampa Bay cornerback Zyon McCollum. The Buccaneers finally got their first win of the season on Thursday after opening 0-4, and if their slow start pushes them toward selling, McCollum could become available.
He’s in the first year of a three-year extension signed last year that included $35 million in guaranteed money, so a deal would not be cheap. Still, McCollum brings stability and has the kind of man-coverage ability Detroit would value.
The concern is his tackling, with a missed tackle rate that sits at 25 percent through five games.
Another corner who could surface is Giants defensive back Cor’Dale Flott Newsome. New York lost quarterback Jaxson Dart to a season-ending knee injury early in the year, but the team has stayed afloat behind veteran quarterback Jameis Winston and company.
If that changes, Newsome could be moved after signing a one-year deal with the Giants this offseason. He has been productive, posting an interception and five passes defensed, and he has the size Detroit likes at 6-foot-2.
There are also cheaper swings on younger players who have not fully established themselves.
Kelee Ringo fits that category. The 2023 draft pick was once viewed as one of the top cornerbacks in his class, but he slipped to the third day of the draft and his NFL career has not taken off the way many expected.
Through the first four weeks, he has played only on special teams. If Detroit had interest, the price would likely be manageable since he is in the final year of his rookie contract and does not have a defined role on defense.
Another 2023 draftee, Julius Brents, offers a different profile. He played some safety in college, brings a long frame at 6-foot-3 and has shown some success despite not yet playing more than nine games in a season.
His biggest selling point is reliability in the open field: according to Pro Football Focus, his missed tackle rate is 12.5 percent. He’s also in the final year of his rookie deal, which makes him another rental-type option.
The most intriguing name may also be the toughest to pull off: Antoine Winfield Jr. He is one of Tampa Bay’s premium defenders, with two Pro Bowls and a First Team All-Pro nod on his résumé. But he would cost plenty, and he still has two years left on the extension that made him the highest-paid safety shortly after the Lions gave Kerby Joseph a major new deal.
Detroit is expected to get Brian Branch back after the bye week, and any move for Winfield would likely require bad news on Joseph, whose injury has kept him out to start the season. Winfield would immediately upgrade the secondary and address several of Detroit’s issues at once, but he also looks like the longest shot of the group.
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