The Lions showed this year that they are only a few pieces and upgrades from being a serious contender in the NFC. The Lions have some players who could save significant money to spend in free agency if they were to cut them, and some players who are upcoming free agents who were a liability this season. Here is why the Lions should let these players go this off-season.
One- Michael Brockers, Detroit Lions Defensive Lineman
Brockers is probably the biggest cap casualty for the Lions this off-season and potentially one of the biggest in the league. Michael Brockers barely played at all this season for Detroit, largely due to him not playing well enough so coaches held him out of games. So why would the Lions keep a player, who’s not good enough to get any playing time, but also takes up some of the most cap space of any player on the team. If the Lions cut Michael Brockers this off-season, they would save $10,000,000 in the salary cap and open up a roster spot for a younger guy that they can get for cheap.
Two- Will Harris, Detroit Lions Cornerback
Will Harris has been a liability in the Lions’ secondary ever since he was drafted, no matter where the Lions played him. Both Matt Patricia’s and Dan Campbell’s coaching staffs attempted to put Will Harris in a position to succeed but he never really lived up to the hype and was constantly giving up big plays. They tried to move him to safety and get him in run defense, where he wasn’t terrible but he wasn’t even close to starter caliber. So even though some people want to keep him for depth, it would be smart of Brad Holmes to let him walk and find a replacement in free agency or the draft.
Three- Amani Oruwariye, Detroit Lions Cornerback
Oruwariye had an all-time downfall during the 2022 season, going from the future of the Detroit Lions secondary to a player almost no one wants back unless it’s for depth. Oruwariye was a lockdown corner in the 2021 season after taking over the CB1 job for an injured Jeff Okudah, allowing almost no yards and putting up 11 pass deflections and six interceptions. Then he got injured and started the 2022 season off horribly, giving up more yards in five games than he did the entire 2021 season and he could not stop committing penalties. So while he could be decent depth, he showed too much bad football this year for Detroit to want to bring him back.
Four- Charles Harris, Detroit Lions Edge Rusher
Charles Harris had a breakout season for Detroit in 2021 but has constantly been injured this and last year. On top of being injured almost this entire year, Harris has been buried on the depth chart due to the emergence of James Houston and Romeo Okwara coming back from injury. Cutting Harris would save the Lions $4,000,000 in cap space and would allow Harris to get playing time on a team that he can start.
Five- Halapoulivaati Vaitai, Detroit Lions Offensive Gaurd
Vaitai is a very unfortunate victim of the injury bug and it might cost his future with the team. Vaitai got a back injury before the regular season started and it caused him to miss the rest of the year and potentially sometime next year. Back injuries are some of the worst in all of the sports to try and come back from as they affect every part of your body, and it’s unlikely he can return to how good he was in 2021. Cutting Vaitai would save Detroit $6,551,801 in cap space, so this move is a no-brainer if Brad Holmes believes he’ll never return to how good he was.
