Detroit Lions Offseason Needs: Defense headlines long list of needs
By Kyle Edmond
The Detroit Lions have quite a long list of offseason needs.
The Detroit Lions have a steep hill to climb to be competitive, but things are trending in the right direction after the first season under Dan Campbell. Moves to strip down the roster has provided the Detroit Lions the assets to add the necessary pieces moving forward and it could be happening at the right time.
The Chicago Bears are stuck in a similar position to the Lions, but will enter the 2022 season with a new regime. The Minnesota Vikings are a similar position, albeit with more pieces, and the Green Bay Packers are just waiting to see what Aaron Rodgers decides to do this offseason.
If Rodgers does in fact leave Green Bay, the NFC North could be wide open with the potential of Kirk Cousins, Jared Goff and Justin Fields battling it out to be the best quarterback in the division, barring a surprise first starting season by Jordan Love. While the opportunity could be there for a tremendous leap this upcoming season, the Lions need to stay the course this offseason and continue building for the future.
Detroit Lions Offseason Needs
The 2021 season saw flashes for the Lions. D’Andre Swift proved to be a dynamic running back and late in the season Amon-Ra St. Brown began to showcase his high potential. Even Jared Goff was a serviceable starter, posting arguably his best NFL season statistically with a career-high completion percentage and the fewest interceptions since his first Pro Bowl season in 2017.
While those flashes were great to see, there’s still plenty of work to be done in Detroit. And it starts on the defensive side of the ball. The offense will need some more pieces as well, but the bulk of focus for the Lions this offseason needs to be on the defense. They have weapons on offense to score, but they need to be able to stop other teams much better than they did in 2021.