5 Thoughts to End the Week: Upcoming extensions, did NFL learn anything missing on star WRs, and long-term outlook at safety
Allen Park — Here are five thoughts to end the week as the Detroit Lions prepare to travel to Los Angeles to play the Rams on Sunday.
Big extensions on deck
Since the Lions got the anticipated extension done with Hutchinson in late October, focus shifted to the next wave of talent worthy of new deals. That talk is centered around the team’s 2023 draft class, a top-heavy group that becomes eligible for extensions this offseason.
The situation has evolved in recent weeks, with Sam LaPorta and Brian Branch undergoing season-ending surgeries for concerning injuries. That should provide cause for the organization to push pause on talks, at least until there’s clarity with the long-term status of both.
With the other two, running back Jahmyr Gibbs and linebacker Jack Campbell, the Lions can also afford a little patience. As first-round draft picks, the team holds fifth-year options, which they’re sure to exercise ahead of the early May deadline.
However, even with the option exercised, the Lions managed to work out long-term extensions with general manager Brad Holmes’ two previous first-rounders, Penei Sewell and Hutchinson, before the fifth-year money kicked in. Arguably, Gibbs and Campbell are in the same foundational tier as Sewell and Hutchinson, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see the team work toward locking up one or both this offseason.
I intend to do a deeper dive on those contract projections, individually, during the offseason. Still, let’s take a cursory look at where things are trending, because it appears the Lions are tracking toward another set of top-of-the-market deals at those respective positions. That’s been a trend for the team under Holmes, with Hutchinson, Sewell, quarterback Jared Goff, receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, safety Kerby Joseph and defensive tackle Alim McNeill all getting extensions with average salaries averaging near the top of the league at their respective positions.