There may not be a more muddled position battle for the 2025 Detroit Lions than what is happening in the secondary. Not only have injuries to Khalil Dorsey, Ennis Rakestraw, and Dan Jackson opened up opportunities for other players, but there is so much versatility in that room that it’s hard to figure out how the pieces fit together.
On this week’s Bubble Watch, there are a lot of differing opinions on what the Lions should do with their defensive backs, and not a lot of consensus. Let’s get into
it with our staff’s roster predictions for the defensive roster bubble.
See our latest predictions on offense here.
Edge defender:
- Assumed in: Aidan Hutchinson, Marcus Davenport
Voting:
- Al-Quadin Muhammad: 11 “IN” votes (up 1)
- Josh Paschal: 10 votes (down 1)
- Nate Lynn: 10 votes (up 5)
- Ahmed Hassanein: 2 votes (down 9)
- Mitchell Agude: 0 votes (no change)
- Isaac Ukwu: 0 votes (no change)
Clearly our staff is not very optimistic about the injury to Ahmed Hassanein injury. While we don’t have an official update from the team, it certainly didn’t sound great from coach Dan Campbell after the game.
“He is, out of the (injuries) we had today, he might be the one that could be a minute. It could be a little bit,” Campbell said. “We’ll know more in the morning. For everybody else, I think we got out okay.”
If Hassanein’s injury is considered serious, or even if it just holds him out for a month, it may make sense to use an IR-to-return spot on him and give the opportunity to Nate Lynn, who has had a strong preseason. Another big factor is the status of Josh Paschal, who remains on the Non-Football Injury list, but his status for making the 53-man roster is still very much up in the air.
Defensive tackle:
- Assumed in: DJ Reader, Tyleik Williams, Roy Lopez
- Assumed out: Alim McNeill (PUP), Levi Onwuzurike (PUP/reserve)
Voting:
- Pat O’Connor: 11 votes (no change)
- Keith Cooper Jr.: 9 votes (up 8)
- Mekhi Wingo: 1 votes (down 6)
- Chris Smith: 0 votes (down 1)
- Brodric Martin: 0 votes
Keith Cooper continues to rep high and play well enough that this was the week in which our staff collectively decided that it was okay to start Mekhi Wingo on the Physically Unable to Perform list and have Cooper fill in for him for the first month of the season. It wouldn’t be an ideal development for Wingo, but it would give him time to fully recuperate and be 100% by the time he hits the field in his second season.
Chris Smith and Brodric Martin both continue to show big improvements, but with the Lions set at nose tackle with DJ Reader, Roy Lopez, and occasionally Tyleik Williams, it’s just a numbers game for both.
Linebacker
- Assumed in: Jack Campbell, Alex Anzalone, Derrick Barnes, Grant Stuard
- Assumed out: Malcolm Rodriguez (PUP)
- Trevor Nowaske: 11 votes (no change)
- Zach Cunningham: 11 (no change)
- Ezekiel Turner: 0 votes (no change)
- Anthony Pittman: 0 votes (no change)
No changes here, as the hierarchy of the Lions’ linebacker room seems relatively straightforward.
Cornerbacks:
- Assumed in: Terrion Arnold, D.J. Reed, Amik Robertson, Rock Ya-sin
Voting:
- Khalil Dorsey: 11 votes (no change)
- Erick Hallett: 6 votes (up 6)
- Nick Whiteside: 5 votes (down 1)
- Dicaprio Bootle: 0 votes
- Tyson Russell: 0 votes
While our entire staff has Khalil Dorsey in, I don’t think it’s a guarantee he’s activated off PUP before the start of the season. That being said, Erick Hallett is making waves after a strong preseason performance that displayed both his coverage skills (three pass breakups) and his versatility. Hallett played corner, nickel, and safety against the Dolphins, making him an intriguing option for the 53-man roster.
Nick Whiteside started after a strong preseason game against the Falcons and had another solid game against Miami. But it appears his play was overshadowed by Hallett.
Safeties:
- Assumed in: Brian Branch, Kerby Joseph, Avonte Maddox
Voting:
- Ian Kennelly: 5 votes (up 3)
- Loren Strickland: 1 vote (down 7)
- Morice Norris: 0 votes (no change)
Kennelly continues to rep over Strickland both on defense and special teams, seemingly indicating his higher status on the depth chart. And while this room looks awfully thin, don’t forget about Rock Ya-Sin and Erick Hallett’s ability to drop back to safety.
