Kenny Golladay wants to stay with the Lions, and it sounds like the Lions want to keep him.
It just won't be on Golladay's terms.
According to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, Golladay is a sure thing to get franchise tagged by Detroit, which would put him under contract for about $16 million in 2021 and delay a much larger payday.
"Being honest, I'd rather get a deal done," Golladay said in December. "But if the franchise tag was to come, I wouldn't be able to do anything about it. But yeah, like I said, I want to get a long-term deal done."
That was before the Lions hired Brad Holmes as GM and Dan Campbell as head coach. And before they traded Matthew Stafford to the Rams, the beginning of a full-scale rebuild. If that changes things for Golladay, he might not have a way out until 2022.
In a recent projection of which players will get franchise tagged this offseason, La Canfora listed Golladay as one of five 'sure things' -- while leaving the door open on a potential trade.
"Multiple league sources have told me Golladay will get the tag after his relationship with the prior regime in Detroit got rocky over prolonged extension negotiations," La Canfora writes. "Could this be an eventual tag and trade? People around the league wouldn't rule that out with the Lions rebuilding and trying to amass picks."
Though he missed most of last season due to hamstring and hip injuries, Golladay could reasonably fetch $18 million per year on the open market. He had consecutive 1,000-yard seasons in 2018 and 2019 and led the NFL in receiving touchdowns in the latter one.
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"Many teams view him as the best WR option out there, but keeping him on the tag at around $16M, when the open market may bear around $19M, would make a lot of sense," writes La Canfora.
Golladay, for what it's worth, spoke fondly of Campbell in a recent appearance on Good Morning Football, noting Campbell "brought that energy" in his introductory press conference.
"I guess we're gonna be biting some kneecaps off," Golladay said.
He turns 28 next season and said in December he wants to continue his career where it started.
"They drafted me here, so I just want to show my loyalty. They believed in me," he said. "The contract, if it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out. I’ll go somewhere else and just ball out and play. But like I said, I’m a loyal person and of course I want to be here."