The Detroit Lions’ linebacker room has turned into one of the trickier parts of the 53-man roster puzzle. Jack Campbell is locked in, but after that, the group has enough bodies and enough competing jobs to make cutdown day interesting.
My current guess is that Detroit keeps six linebackers: Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes, Malcolm Rodriguez, Damone Clark, Trevor Nowaske, and Troy Reeder. The top three are straightforward. Campbell, Barnes, and Rodriguez are the names that don’t really need a sales pitch.
The real decision starts with the depth spots, and the Lions have a clear history here. In each of the last three seasons - 2023, 2024, and 2025 - they carried six linebackers on the Week 1 roster.
In 2025, they did it even after starting with only 50 players. That recent pattern points to a team that usually wants three starters, one backup who can help on defense, and two more who can handle special teams.
Right now, there are 10 linebackers on the 90-man roster, and all of them have at least some case to make. Jimmy Rolder is the most intriguing of the bunch, but an injury with an unknown timeline makes his status hard to pin down.
If not for that, he would be the clearest roster lock in the group. Clark brings a mix of defensive experience, special teams work, and youth.
Nowaske is back again and has developed into a trusted special teams piece with SAM potential on defense. Those three stand out as the strongest bubble candidates, assuming Rolder remains in limbo.
The rest of the room includes Devin White, Joe Bachie, Reeder, and undrafted rookie Erick Hunter. White arrived most recently and is coming off a 174-tackle season, though the performance grades were poor.
Bachie has been a frequent traveler around the league, with most of his value coming on special teams and only the occasional start. Reeder has been a regular starter for the Los Angeles Rams since 2019, but 2025 was the first season in which he was mostly limited to special teams.
Hunter, meanwhile, is the developmental swing - an undrafted rookie with an intriguing athletic profile and a strong ceiling if he sticks around.
Rolder’s injury situation changes the math. The Lions moved quickly to sign White after that injury, and there’s a decent chance Rolder begins the season on Injured Reserve.
That would keep him out for at least four games, which is unfortunate but not a long-term setback. If he can’t get on the field in training camp or the preseason, the Lions probably won’t need him early anyway.
That leaves a working group of five - Campbell, Barnes, Rodriguez, Clark, and Nowaske - but Detroit has still tended to keep six. Even with the Lions leaning away from three-linebacker looks, there’s enough room here for one more.
My early lean is Reeder. Clark can plausibly fill the LB4 role on defense and help on special teams, which lowers the value of carrying a defense-only option like White.
Reeder feels more flexible, capable of stepping into either side of the job when needed. It also matters that White was signed only after Rolder’s injury, while Reeder was added at the start of training camp.
That’s only a matter of days, but White’s move felt reactive, while Reeder’s did not.
In Other News...
Lions Camp Competition Just Took A Telling Turn At Tight End
The tight end group in Lions camp got a little thinner before the first padded practice even arrived, and Detroit responded by bringing in another veteran option. Nick Muse, who spent the past four seasons in the NFL and most recently was with the Minnesota Vikings, joined the roster as the team continued sorting through its depth at the position.
The move came after undrafted tight end Miles Kitselman went down with an injury that is expected to keep him out for a while, prompting a corresponding roster adjustment. To make room, the Lions released wide receiver Tarik Black, a small but telling shift as camp competition starts to sharpen and the team looks for a workable mix behind its top tight ends. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Rookie Tyleik Williams Draws Backlash Over Viral Off-Field Clip
A video of rookie defensive tackle Tyleik Williams has been making the rounds on social media, and it has created an unwelcome side conversation around the Lions as they head into the heart of the offseason. Williams, the No. 28 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, spent much of his first year working as a rotational interior lineman, staying on the field for all 17 games while finishing with 18 tackles and a sack.
The clip has drawn plenty of reaction because of the way it shows Williams playfully slapping his girlfriend, putting the rookie in an off-field spotlight he did not need after a season in which his late-year conditioning issues already affected his snap count and production. For a Detroit team that drafted him to help fortify the middle of the defense, the bigger question now is how the organization handles the latest attention around a young player still trying to establish himself. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Cornerback Battle Just Got More Complicated Opposite DJ Reed
Training camp has already put Detroits cornerback depth under a microscope, and the competition opposite DJ Reed is shaping up as one of the more watched battles on the roster. Dan Campbell singled out Rock Ya-Sin, Ennis Rakestraw Jr. and Nick Whiteside as the main names in the mix, giving the Lions a three-man fight for a job that could carry plenty of weight once the games count.
Whiteside has been one of the more interesting developments in the group, especially considering his path as an undrafted player who has bounced between the practice squad and the active roster. His camp has been strong enough to keep him squarely in the conversation for a regular-season spot, and Campbells praise suggests the Lions have taken notice of how he has fit into both the defensive plan and special teams work. [Read more 🡒]