In each of their first four years under Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell, the Lions saw at least one undrafted rookie crack their roster out of camp -- a streak that goes back 15 years for the organization. This could be the year it comes to an end.
In fact, even seventh-round pick Dan Jackson was looking at an uphill battle for a roster spot in a deep safeties room before he went down with a leg injury. Meanwhile, 2023 draftees Brodric Martin and Colby Sorsdal are on the roster bubble a few weeks out from cut-down day. Martin, the third-round developmental defensive tackle who just hasn't, well, developed like the Lions hoped, is likely on the wrong side of it.
This reflects well on the state of the organization. It also creates challenges for Holmes and Campbell as they piece together the 53-man team they'll take into a season in which the Lions have Super Bowl aspirations. They only have so much room for projects.
"As the roster has improved, we first started seeing those challenges in the draft, really, on the approach that we took," Holmes said Wednesday on 97.1 The Ticket. "It's getting harder and harder for a lot of the young guys, just because when you add more veterans, you have better players that are going into their second and third year, you want to really give these guys time to develop and all that, but sometimes you just might not (be able to), because me and Dan are, 'The best man's gonna play, the best man's gonna make the team.'
"That's one (area) that's gotten harder. There's a lot of different avenues I can take, but that's probably the biggest challenge that I'm seeing."
Every healthy player from this year's draft class is a safe bet to make the roster, including speedy seventh-round receiver and special-teams gadget Dominic Lovett. The same goes for last year's six-man draft class. But for the most recent crop of undrafted free agents, the pathways to the 53-man are hard to find.
The player with the best odds at the moment is interior defensive lineman Keith Cooper Jr., who plays a position where the Lions are thinned out by injuries and has not coincidentally been repping with the first-team defense at times in camp. Veteran nose tackle D.J. Reader likes what he's seen out of the 6'5, 280-pound rookie, calling him "a long, athletic kid who’s got a good body type."
"Can play a lot of positions on the D-line, and that’s rare, so he’s using that to his advantage. He’s smart, rolling with the punches, and he’s making some plays. Just gotta get him moving with a little more sense of urgency -- these young kids and urgency, man, boy, I’ll tell ya," Reader said with a chuckle. "But Coop’s going to be a good player. Being undrafted and getting these opportunities, I think he should see that it’s special and that he should take advantage of it, and he’s doing a good job."
Second-year guard Christian Mahogany has seen a good bit of Cooper from the other side of the line. He said that because Cooper's longer, a little lighter and "shiftier than some of our 3-techs, it’s something that if you don’t know too much or you’re not watching enough film, it could hurt an O-line, for sure."
Another undrafted free agent who's stood out in camp is safety Ian Kennelly, a local product from Grand Valley State. But Kennelly, like Jackson, finds himself in a crowded secondary where there aren't many jobs up for grabs. It doesn't mean he can't win one, but Kennelly seems more likely to stick around on the practice squad than the 53-man.