By hitting on so many draft picks, the Lions are facing a cap crunch. They will spend carefully in free agency as a result, says Brad Holmes. They may also have to let some of their own players walk.
"We're at the juncture with our roster right now that we have identified a lot of young core pieces that we want to keep around, and unfortunately that's the tough part: you have to make decisions on other players contractually that you might not be able to keep that you want to keep," Holmes said Tuesday in Indianapolis at the NFL combine. "You just can't have everybody."
The way Holmes sees it, the Lions added seven first-round picks to the roster over his first three years as general manager, starting with Penei Sewell in 2021. Aidan Hutchinson and Jameson Williams arrived in 2022, followed by Jahmyr Gibbs and Jack Campbell in 2023. The Lions also had first-round grades that year on their two second-rounders, Sam LaPorta and Brian Branch.
They locked up Sewell last spring with a $112 million extension, with the rest on deck in the next couple years. And when you factor in "the other non-first-round picks," said Holmes, "that already got rewarded" in the last year -- like Amon-Ra St. Brown ($120 million), Alim McNeill ($97 million) and Jared Goff ($212 million), with Kerby Joseph next in line this offseason -- you start to see how the money gets tight. Those commitments all kick in over the next two seasons.
"That stuff starts adding up and you have to make some tough decisions. We've already started a lot of that work in terms of the preparation, planning, forecasting, because whatever you do this year is going to impact financially the next year after as well, so it’s a lot of work to be done on that front," said Holmes.
The tough decisions could start next month on some of the Lions' own free agents. If cornerback Carlton Davis III, defensive lineman Levi Onwuzurike and/or linebacker Derrick Barnes command long-term deals on the open market, they could be squeezed out by the math. On offense, guard Kevin Zeitler could be a casualty of a cheaper replacement within.
Likewise, Holmes acknowledged that "because we have so much that's upcoming, I don't really foresee us" spending big on imports.
The Lions have been open to adding players in the $6 to $12 million-per-year range in the past, said Holmes, "but obviously it does put a limit to how much you can actually spend externally in free agency when you're trying to keep your guys that you know."
"Because you want to keep the known good players and you don't want to compromise them to overspend on unknowns," he said.