The Detroit Lions have set their initial 53-man roster for the 2026 regular season, and the first cut-down day brought the usual churn that comes with the end of training camp.
Detroit had to get from as many as 91 players down to the league limit of 53, and the roster is already expected to keep moving. The Lions could still add help on the waiver wire or in free agency, with offensive line and secondary depth mentioned as possible areas to watch. They also can build a practice squad of up to 16 players, or 17 if one player qualifies for an International Player Pathways exemption.
That part of the process came with a little extra pressure for Detroit. The Lions played their final preseason game on Saturday, which left the front office less time than most teams to finish its evaluations. Before that game, Dan Campbell acknowledged the workload facing Brad Holmes’ group.
“There’s an enormous burden on (Holmes') staff, and the amount of work that they have been putting in and continue to put in, and we’ll have to put in, we’re behind everybody now because we’re playing on Saturday," Campbell said prior to Saturday's game in an interview with Lions' flagship radio. "These guys, you know, there’s grades coming in. He’s watching every one of these, there’s a lot that goes into this.
"I’ve said it before, Brad (Holmes) and Ray (Agnew) and all those guys, they’re just grinders man," Campbell continued. "They put in the work, and it means something, it’s important to them because it’s important for us as an organization.
They take pride in what they do. It’s why we bring in good players, because of Brad."
Here’s the Lions’ initial 53-man roster:
Quarterback, running back, receiver, tight end and line groups all made their way onto the list, along with the defensive core and the specialists. On offense, the roster includes Jahmyr Gibbs, Isiah Pacheco, Sione Vaki, Jacob Saylors and Jabari Small at running back; Amon-Ra St.
Brown, Jameson Williams, Isaac TeSlaa and Tay Martin at receiver; and Penei Sewell, Blake Miller, Christian Mahogany, Tate Ratledge, Juice Scruggs, Larry Borom, Ben Bartch, Miles Frazier and Seth McLaughlin on the offensive line. Cade Mays is listed on IR to Return.
Up front on defense, the Lions kept Aidan Hutchinson, DJ Wonnum, Derrick Moore, Tyler Lacy, Ahmed Hassanein and Eric O’Neill at edge, while Alim McNeill, Tyleik Williams, Skyler Gill-Howard, Mekhi Wingo and Levi Onwuzurike make up the defensive tackle group.
At linebacker, Detroit’s initial group features Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes, Devin White, Malcolm Rodriguez, Jimmy Rolder and Trevor Nowaske.
The secondary includes DJ Reed, Rock Ya-Sin, Ennis Rakestraw Jr., Keith Abney II, Khalil Dorsey and Roger McCreary at corner, with Chuck Clark, Avonte Maddox, Christian Izien and Thomas Harper at safety. Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch are on PUP.
Detroit also released DL Myles Adams, LB Joe Bachie, TE Tyler Conklin, WR Greg Dortch, WR Tom Kennedy, LB Amen Ogbongbemiga, LB Troy Reeder, DL Ben Stille and RB Trayveon Williams.
The waiver wire brought a longer list of players moving on: QB Luke Altmyer, WR Tarik Black, CB Ekow Boye-Doe, DB Aamaris Brown, OL Devin Cochran, CB Bump Cooper Jr., WR Malik Cunningham, TE Thomas Gordon, OL Gus Hartwig, TE Zach Horton, LB Erick Hunter, S Dan Jackson, WR Lucky Jackson, WR Dominic Lovett, EDGE Anthony Lucas, G Mason Miller, G Melvin Priestly, CB Eric Scott Jr., DL Chris Smith, OL Colby Sorsdal, S Jason Taylor II, DL Ty West, CB Nick Whiteside and RB Roydell Williams.
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