Lions News

[whatever_gong82]

Note that this article about QBs and potential backup quarterbacks was posted before Smith re-signed with Seattle and the other news from the NY Giants.

Detroit Lions backup QB options: Why Teddy Bridgewater may be best fit in NFL free agency

Dave Birkett

Detroit Free Press



When the new NFL league year opens next week, one item high on the Detroit Lions’ to-do list will be to find a backup quarterback for Jared Goff.

Lions general manager Brad Holmes admitted at the NFL combine last week he neglected the No. 2 quarterback spot the past two seasons while trying to build other areas of his roster. And while the Lions were lucky that did not come back to bite them last year — Goff started every game for the first time since 2019 — Holmes does not want to leave his contending team without a security blanket in 2023.

“I feel like last year we kind of left training camp kind of sliding into home plate trying to fill that backup quarterback role and that's on me,” Holmes said. “I’ve got to do a better job of making sure that we're not in that position again, so that is something that we're going to need to address, whether it's here in free agency or upcoming in the draft.”



The veteran quarterback market remains in a holding pattern for now, with NFL teams waiting to see what happens with Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers.

Once the Packers and Rodgers come to an agreement on Rodgers’ future, that could start a domino effect of quarterback-needy teams filling their vacancies. The New Orleans Saints and Derek Carr agreed to a free agent deal Monday, and the New York Jets, Tennessee Titans, Washington Commanders and Las Vegas Raiders are among other teams who could be in the market for a veteran starter.

The Lions’ pursuit of a backup likely will not be impacted by the top of free agent quarterback market.





With about $23 million in available cap space, the Lions are not candidates to spend big at the position, and some pending free agents like Daniel Jones (if he avoids the franchise tag), Geno Smith (who's expected to re-sign with the Seattle Seahawks) and Jimmy Garoppolo will be looking for starting jobs — or the chance to compete for one — this fall.


Holmes praised the job Nate Sudfeld did as the Lions’ backup last season. The Lions signed Sudfeld, who played nine offensive snaps last season and did not attempt a pass, days before the regular season opener after he was released by the San Francisco 49ers, when Tim Boyle and David Blough failed to impress in their bids to win the job in training camp.


Holmes was adamant the Lions will not be caught shorthanded at the position again.

“Look, we love Jared, he's our starter, he's our guy going into (2023), but we don't have anything behind him,” Holmes said. “I thought Nate did a nice job when we got him, but he’s a UFA as well. So again, we got to make sure that we address everything again, whether it’s free agency and through the draft.”




The Lions seem unlikely to take a quarterback with one of their two first-round picks, Nos. 6 and 18 overall, but could go the developmental route with one of their remaining picks.

Holmes said “some of those guys at the quarterback position in free agency might not be ready to make a decision” before the draft, preferring instead to wait to see which teams invest in young quarterbacks.

But several pending free agents fit the profile Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said he wants in his backup quarterback.



Johnson said he’s less concerned with a backup quarterback’s skill set and whether he’d present a change-of-pace for opponents — a mobile quarterback, for instance, behind a pocket passer like Goff — than he is with finding “the best guy that can win a game for us.”

“When I look at a backup quarterback, the two areas that I start with are third down and two-minute (offense), because that's where they really have the most impact,” Johnson said. “Base downs, you normally, I think you can mask them to a degree with the running game or the play-action pass. But if you want to see the true character, the true identity of a backup quarterback, it's those third downs and the two-minutes, to know if the game’s on the line, do they have that ability to ultimately win it for you?


“Cause there’s a number of backups out there that — I think that’s probably the majority of the backups out there, they’re just more just, keep the train on the tracks, let's just manage this thing. The really good ones, the best backups, are the ones that can still win a ballgame for you. I think if you look at the record, the win-loss record for backups in the league, it's hard to find ones that are over .500.”

continued..

[whatever_gong82]

Excluding Jones, Smith and Garoppolo, here are how several of the top backup quarterbacks set to hit the market compare in win percentage, third down passing and late-game, two-minute situations.

All statistics are from Stathead.com, and several options have ties to the Lions’ staff:



Teddy Bridgewater, Miami Dolphins


Bridgewater, 30, went 0-2 as starter for the Dolphins last season but checks several important boxes. He’s 33-32 as a starter with seven career game-winning drives, including two with the New Orleans Saints, when Lions coach Dan Campbell was an assistant there in 2019. Bridgewater had a 94.4 passer rating on third downs in 2021, when he started 14 games for the Denver Broncos, and is a 65.2% passer (with 24 TDs and 14 INTs) on third down for his career. When tied or losing in the final two minutes of games for his career, Bridgewater has completed 62.5% of his passes with three touchdowns. He played for $6.5 million last season.



Case Keenum, Buffalo Bills


Keenum started the first nine games of the 2016 season for the Los Angeles Rams, when Goff was his backup as the team’s No. 1 overall pick. Goff has said Keenum was crucial in his development, so the two appear to have a good relationship. Keenum, 35, is 29-35 in his career as a starter with 10 game-winning drives. He’s a 55.1% passer on third down for his career, with 17 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, and a 52% passer in trailing or tied late-game, two-minute situations. He made $3.5 million last season with the Bills.




Gardner Minshew, Philadelphia Eagles


Minshew, 26, is younger than some of the other quarterbacks on this list, and has an 8-16 career record as a starter (including 0-2 with the NFC champs last season). He stacks up well in some of the other metrics Johnson likes. A 61% passer on third down for his career, Minshew has thrown 18 touchdowns and five interceptions in these situations, and last year had an 85.1 passer rating on third down. When trailing in the final two minutes of games, Minshew is 40 of 66 passing for 490 yards with five touchdowns and one interception. He started his career with the Jacksonville Jaguars, the franchise Lions quarterbacks coach Mark Brunell played for (and the city he lived in) before coming to Detroit in 2021. Minshew was on the final year of his rookie deal as a sixth-round pick last season.




Taylor Heinicke, Washington Commanders


Heinicke played in the XFL and was briefly out of football before resurrecting his career with Washington. He went 5-3-1 as a starter for the Commanders last season, throwing 12 touchdowns with six interceptions, and nearly led them to the playoffs. Heinicke’s third down passing numbers (54.1%; 8 TDs, 8 INTs) are similar to Keenum’s, and he was 10 of 13 for 180 yards and a touchdown when trailing in late-game, two-minute situations last season.




Jacoby Brissett, Cleveland Browns


Brissett has been thrust into some difficult situations in his career. He started two games for Tom Brady in 2016, was a late-summer replacement for an injured Andrew Luck in 2017, and was the placeholder for Deshaun Watson with the Cleveland Browns last season. He has an 18-30 career record, including 4-7 last season, and is a 57.2% passer on third downs for his career. Brissett has five touchdowns and two interceptions while trailing in late-game two-minute situations. He made $4.65 million last season.



Andy Dalton, New Orleans Saints


Dalton is the most experienced backup quarterback on the market, having made 162 career starts (83-77-2) with the Cincinnati Bengals, Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys and Saints. He went 6-8 as starter in New Orleans last season and has 29 career game-winning drives and a 56.7% completion rate on third downs. Last season, Dalton was 8 of 17 passing for 85 yards while trailing in the final two minutes of games. He played for $3 million last season and had another $3 million in incentives.




Mason Rudolph, Pittsburgh Steelers


The Lions were rumored to be interested in Rudolph last summer, but the Steelers ended up keeping him as their third quarterback. Rudolph, 27, is 5-4-1 as a starter with one game-winning drive. He lost his only start last season, but is a 56.9% passer on third downs for his career. Though it’s a small sample size, Rudolph is 9 of 14 passing for 66 yards with a touchdown while trailing in two-minute situations for his career. He was a third-round pick in 2018 and made a little over $5 million last season.


Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

[Whitley]

So we roll the dice on Carter if he falls to us?

Yes yes yes

[froot loops]

For this year, I would prefer Dalton as a backup.

[Futureshock]

Has anything that's bubbled up around this situation seemed consistent with the character driven narrative Holmes and DC have continuously hammered on? Sure as hell doesn't seem like it. But they will no doubt be spending the next 6-7 weeks to sort this out. At least this shit came out now and not a week before the draft,.

Carter? No. But if you're going to pass on him you better be sure because he may just been a young guy that got too excited 1 night and then things just downward spiraled when he could see everything going down the drain. It's not like AA always get the red carpet with police officers nowadays. And being in the South he may have been afraid. It's a bigger factor then some people understand. You are afraid someone is going to kill you for nothing. So I am going to knock him for lying to the cops, but I understand where that may have come from. The racing is more concerning for me. Is he done? Forever?

Have anything else happened that he made a poor decision?

The credo is young talented guys who love ball. If he did not have that night (which is all we know) there would be nothing we know of to go against the teams "credo"

What else bubbled up?

[Futureshock]

Yes yes yes

The thing that makes me think it's not possible is that there's teams with less of a compas picking ahead of them that will pick him or pass. If they pass, won't the Lions?

[Mainevent]

There’s a lot of chatter that he loves game day but doesnt like to put in the work on the other days.. So if accurate, is that just youthful bad habits he’ can outgrow especially in a good culture? Or is it the type of thing that will be exacerbated with money and fame? Does that fit the “football character” they want?

Also, he has at least two instances of reckless driving. Again, stupid kid that who learned his lesson or knucklehead that will continue to do this shit? That’s why Holmes gets paid the big bucks, to figure that shit out. I don’t think they will compromise what they are building so if they take him (if available) we’ll know the answer.

[Whitley]

I remember what Kevin Costner said in Draft Day, "We need to find it (what he can't do) and see if we can live with it."

[ghandi]

There’s a lot of chatter that he loves game day but doesnt like to put in the work on the other days.. So if accurate, is that just youthful bad habits he’ can outgrow especially in a good culture? Or is it the type of thing that will be exacerbated with money and fame? Does that fit the “football character” they want?

Also, he has at least two instances of reckless driving. Again, stupid kid that who learned his lesson or knucklehead that will continue to do this shit? That’s why Holmes gets paid the big bucks, to figure that shit out. I don’t think they will compromise what they are building so if they take him (if available) we’ll know the answer.

The (football) knocks I have heard on Carter are he's a bit lazy and people are unsure just how much he loves football. Yes he has some awesome tape, but that doesnt sound like a Dan Campbell guy to me.

[DanO]

The (football) knocks I have heard on Carter are he's a bit lazy and people are unsure just how much he loves football. Yes he has some awesome tape, but that doesnt sound like a Dan Campbell guy to me.

Not at all!!! Haven't heard this but if true definitely not a Lion guy.

[Trickalicious]

I don't know. Game tape matters. Draft him if he's there at 6. Consider him a rental until rookie contract's over, if he's a three coil poo at practice or is clocked at 130 in a lambo on Woodward. Worked for A.I. and Miggy.

If they are holding to the culture thing in spite of talent, draft me for league minimum. I'll do a bare bottom "golden" cartwheel and whistle zippity doo da everytime coach says football.

[ghandi]

Not at all!!! Haven't heard this but if true definitely not a Lion guy.

What's funny with Carter is he is both what the Lions say they want (great tape/position of great need) and what they dont want (questionablecharacter/possible culture fit issues)...At this point, I am still guessing he is gone by 6, but it would be very entertaining if he were on the board when the Lions pick.

[jaadam4]

I'll do a bare bottom "golden" cartwheel and whistle zippity doo da everytime coach says football.

You’re in my top 5 friends list on MySpace for this. It’ll be tough to crack the top 4 as we have a nipple ring pact if the Lions win the Super Bowl. DanO and Malto are locked in, they’re already getting their nips ready.

[ghandi]

https://www.freep.com/story/sports/n...3/69977056007/

Vote on the Lions pending free agents....The only problem with something like this is that the money is no factor.....I am guessing too many people just put in re-sign almsot every player without factoring in how it affects cap space..>>Sure we would love to keep msot or all of them, but there just isnt enough money unless there are more players cut.

[whatever_gong82]

Detroit Lions' Dave Fipp sees 'some great free agent kickers out there this year'

Dave Birkett

Detroit Free Press



When Detroit Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp ran into one of his colleagues at the NFL combine last week, the coach told Fipp, “I’ve been watching your film all offseason.”

“I’m like, ‘Hey, stay away,’” Fipp joked with reporters last week.

The Lions had one of the best all-around special teams units in the NFL last season. They finished sixth in Rick Gosselin’s cumulative special teams rankings, ranked second in punt return average and converted all three of their fake punts.

But Fipp was less worried about his colleague stealing his schemes than he was his players.



Three of the Lions’ top coverage specialists plus kick returner Justin Jackson will be unrestricted free agents next week, and the team’s vaunted special teams units could look significantly different in 2023.

“I do know, on special teams, the roster changes every year and that’s a part of the deal,” Fipp said. “That’s part of the challenge is figuring out a way with this group here of how we can make them operate as best we possibly can in these four different phases. So anyway, it’ll be a new challenge this year regardless of who we get back and who we don’t, but anytime you have guys who are productive players and play with a lot of energy and spirit, it’s difficult to lose those types of guys.”




Linebacker Josh Woods, who led the Lions (and tied for seventh in the NFL) with 14 special teams tackles last season, should be one of the most coveted coverage specialists on the market.

Woods was a special teams captain for the Lions in 2022 and is in line for a healthy raise after playing for $1.5 million last season. Nick Bellore, a former Lion and top special teams player with the Seattle Seahawks who is seven years older than Woods, signed a two-year extension worth $6.6 million last month.


Chris Board, who led the Lions in special teams snaps and finished second with 10 tackles, is expected to test the market as an unrestricted free agent after he played less than expected on defense last season, and Jackson (fifth in special teams tackles, fourth in snaps) and safety C.J. Moore (fourth in tackles, fifth in snaps) also will be free agents.




The Lions will not be starting from scratch on special teams in 2023. Four-core coverage player Jason Cabinda, punt returner Kalif Raymond and punter Jack Fox remain under contract, and the Lions can retain three other key special teams players — cornerback Bobby Price, linebacker Anthony Pittman and long snapper Scott Daly — by tendering them exclusive rights contracts as free agents this week.


But the team also is in the market for a kicker to compete with Michael Badgley for the starting job. And while the Lions might prefer to take one in this year’s draft — Michigan’s Jake Moody and Maryland’s Chad Ryland, formerly of Eastern Michigan, are two of the top kickers available — Fipp said there are “some great free agent kickers out there this year.”

Matt Gay of the Los Angeles Rams (28 of 30 field goals last season), Chase McLaughlin of the Indianapolis Colts (9 of 12 on 50-plus-yarders in 2022) and veterans Robbie Gould of the San Francisco 49ers and Matt Prater of the Arizona Cardinals are the top kickers in free agency.




The Lions let Prater walk in free agency in 2021.

“There is some security from my standpoint of like, ‘Hey, this guy’s done it, he’s done it at a high level and he’s done it consistently for some period of time at a high level,’ and it gives you some comfort in knowing that that’s probably not going to change a whole lot from that, good or bad,” Fipp said. “But then when you get a younger guy you also are getting a player who’s young and fresh and healthy, hopefully, and he’s got a great future out in front of him and you’ve got him for four or five years before you even have to re-sign him, so you know you’ve got him for a while there. So there’s benefits to really all the above. I personally have never shied away from a younger player. I think there’s a lot of young talent out there.”


The Lions could go young on their coverage units, too, which teams tend to fill with cost-controlled players from the draft, though they entered Wednesday with a healthy cap surplus of about $23 million and have reaped rewards from their willingness to invest in special teams in the recent past.



“I don’t really think you ever really replace one (player) with another, but you just hope that with the guys that come in, you can get the same results or better,” Fipp said. “And how you go about doing that depends on who they are.”

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.