The preseason finale shouldn’t override months of evaluation, but the Detroit Lions’ 25-16 victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday did cause some small ripples in our roster projection.
Here’s a final effort at piecing together the team’s initial regular-season roster and practice squad ahead of Sunday’s 6 p.m. deadline to get down to 53 players.
Quarterback (2)
In: Jared Goff, Josh Dobbs
Out: Luke Altmyer
What’s changed: None
Quick thoughts: The Lions should be praised for giving Altmyer a long and serious look to win the backup job, including a lopsided percentage of the practice reps behind Goff.
Altmyer has proven to be a strong, post-draft find with developable traits. In the likely event he goes unclaimed on waivers, he’ll make for a natural fit on the practice squad.
However, Dobbs proved why he was the right veteran to target after Teddy Bridgewater opted for retirement early in camp. Dobbs was poised and accurate in his final audition on Saturday, thriving on third and fourth downs, as well as during an end-of-half, two-minute situation.
Obviously, the Lions hope to never need to turn to their backup, but Dobbs is presently more capable of keeping the ship afloat in an emergency situation.
Running back (4)
In: Jahmyr Gibbs, Isiah Pacheco, Sione Vaki, Jacob Saylors