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Lions NFL free agency: 7 pending free agents Detroit should prioritize to re-sign
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- Lions NFL free agency: 7 pending free agents Detroit should prioritize to re-sign
The Detroit Lions have some decisions to make on who to re-sign ahead of Wednesday, when the new league year and 2025 NFL free agency officially begins.
The Lions have over more than 20 players set to become unrestricted free agents , plus a handful of restricted and exclusive rights free agents. The Lions did not use the franchise tag , meaning all 22 players will become free agents.
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The Lions can sign their own free agents at any time. Pending free agents can begin negotiations with other teams Monday at noon when the legal tampering period opens, however, they cannot officially sign until Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Here is a list of the Lions' pending free agents and a look at five they should look to bring back.
Lions unrestricted free agents
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CB Carlton Davis .
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OG Kevin Zeitler .
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DL Levi Onwuzurike .
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LB Derrick Barnes .
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WR Tim Patrick .
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OT Dan Skipper .
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DB Ifeatu Melifonwu .
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CB Khalil Dorsey .
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DE Marcus Davenport .
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DE John Cominsky .
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DE Al-Quadin Muhammad .
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LB Ezekiel Turner .
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LB Ben Niemann .
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DE Pat O'Connor.
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CB Kindle Vildor.
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CB Emmanuel Moseley .
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K Michael Badgley .
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DT Kyle Peko .
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OG Netane Muti .
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QB Teddy Bridgewater .
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LB Kwon Alexander .
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DL Jonah Williams .
Lions restricted free agents
A restricted free agent is a player with three accrued NFL seasons and has an expired contract. A restricted free agent can sign with any team, but their original team has a window to offer a qualifying offer before that.
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RB Craig Reynolds .
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TE Shane Zylstra .
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OG Kayode Awosika .
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LB Anthony Pittman .
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DL Myles Adams .
Lions exclusive rights free agents
According to the NFL , an exclusive rights free agent is "any player with fewer than three accrued seasons and an expired contract. If his original team offers him a one-year contract at the league minimum, the player cannot negotiate with other teams."
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LB Trevor Nowaske .
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OG/C Michael Niese .
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DE Mitchell Agude .
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OT Connor Galvin .
7 free agents Lions should prioritize to re-sign
∎ Davis and Zeitler are two of the top options at their respective positions in free agency. Davis could command a deal in the $10-$20 million range annually , while Zeitler will likely sign a short-term deal similar to the one-year deal he inked with the Lions last year.
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∎ Barnes, who started at strongside linebacker before suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 3, could re-sign on a discount to continue playing for new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard , his former position coach.
∎ Melifonwu spent most of 2024 injured before returning late in the season.
∎ Patrick thrived in the third wide receiver role alongside Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams . He provided sure hands, a big target over the middle for Jared Goff and strong run blocking on the edge.
∎ Nowaske re-signed with the Lions off waivers just ahead of the 2024 season after the Cardinals picked him up from Detroit in 2023. He appeared in 14 games at linebacker and on special teams due to the injuries in the front seven and finished with 15 solo tackles, two sacks and an interception. Since the Lions can offer him the minimum to keep him as an ERFA, it feels like an easy option to maintain depth that has experience in the system.
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∎ Skipper started a career-high five games in place of an injured Taylor Decker at left tackle during 2024. He appeared in all 17 games as the sixth offensive lineman in the Lions' jumbo package, even finishing with a touchdown catch, as a key part of the Lions' running attack.
Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press . Follow Jared on X or Bluesky , and email him at jramsey@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Lions NFL free agency: Who Detroit should prioritize to return
