D.J. Reed May End Up Giving The Lions The Best Bargain in the NFC North
Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
It wasn’t long ago that you couldn’t convince free agents to come to Detroit. The Detroit Lions were the NFL’s doormat, and even if they signed a free agent, it came with a lot of money for a player who couldn’t live up to the hype of their new, massive salary.
The Lions used to be the team paying $26 million a season for guys like Milton Williams, who has never played more than 653 snaps during a season but is now considered the free agent hero for the New England Patriots. Detroit also has the reputation of being anything other than a warm, sunny destination that swayed free agents to head to the income-tax free land of Jacksonville, Miami or Texas.
As a result, free agency hasn’t been a fun time for Lions fans. But things change when you start winning. After reaching the NFC Championship Game in 2023 and earning the No. 1 seed in the NFC last season, players want to come to Detroit to pursue a Super Bowl ring. That’s a tall task for a franchise that has never played in that game, but it’s becoming closer to reality, helping Lions land a player that may be the best bargain in the NFC North.
D.J. Reed caused some sticker shock on the opening Monday afternoon when he agreed to a three-year, $48 million contract with the Lions. The 28-year-old was one of the league’s most reliable corners, grading 31st out of 116 qualifiers according to Pro Football Focus, but he came at a cost the Lions can stomach.
Take a look at what happened during the opening hours of the NFL’s “legal tampering” window. Carlton Davis was one of the Lions’ top free agents, grading 21st among qualifiers last season but also came with a variety of injuries including a broken jaw that made him one of 13 defenders that ended the season on IR. Detroit probably would have liked to have had Davis return but the Patriots stepped up with a three-year, $60 million contract that forced the Lions to turn their attention elsewhere.
That put Reed in the Lions’ crosshairs. Outside of his comparison with other cornerbacks, Reed is what the Lions need in their secondary. His overall stats are good, posting a 70.7 PFF coverage grade and a 97.1 passer rating against. But he also is strong in man coverage, posting a 66.1 man coverage grade and 1.37 yards per coverage snap last season.
Reed was even better in 2023, allowing 0.79 yards per coverage snap in man coverage and earned a 75.6 overall grade with 1.01 yards per coverage snap in 2022.
With the Lions’ insistence to play man coverage under new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard, having a corner that can play that style is important. Even as he gives up four inches to Davis’s 6-foot-1 frame.
But for the price, the Lions might get the most bang for their buck.
Consider the Green Bay Packers, who signed Nate Hobbs in the shadow of Jaire Alexander’s pending departure. Hobbs’s contract doesn’t look like a terrible deal with just $16 million guaranteed on a four-year, $48 million contract. But he also has just one good rookie season under his belt with an 80.1 grade in 2021. Hobbs hasn’t posted an overall grade over 70 since and had a 49.1 grade and 1.42 yards allowed per coverage snap last season.
Things also look the same with the Minnesota Vikings, who signed Byron Murphy Jr. to a three-year, $66 million contract on Monday night. Murphy made the Pro Bowl last season but consistency has been an issue. While he posted a career-high 73.4 overall grade last season, it was the first time in his career posting a grade over 70. Murphy’s 73.5 coverage grade was also a career-high but eclipsed his previous mark of 63.9 in his final year with the Arizona Cardinals in 2022.
Both the Packers and the Vikings are spending big on players who don’t have the track record that Reed does. There’s also a benefit that Reed is the better fit, which is something that wouldn’t have happened if the Lions were still trying to get out of last place in their division.
Instead, the Lions are on top and successfully wooing top free agents to come to Detroit. It’s a change of outcomes from Detroit’s previous forays onto the free agent market but could be the norm as the culture has changed under Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell.
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