DE D.J. Wonnum signs 1-year deal with Detroit Lions

Finally, the Detroit Lions got some help on the edge.

The Lions signed free agent defensive end D.J. Wonnum to a one-year contract worth up to $6 million, ESPN reported.

Wonnum, 28, made a free agent visit to the Lions on Tuesday, March 17. He played the past two seasons for the Carolina Panthers and spent his first four NFL seasons with the Minnesota Vikings .

The Lions spent the early part of free agency addressing needs on the offensive line and in their secondary, but Wonnum fills the biggest hole left on their roster – a defensive end to play opposite Aidan Hutchinson .

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At 6 feet 5 and 258 pounds, he has the length the Lions like at defensive end and has played more than 50% of his team's defensive snaps in each of his six NFL seasons.

The Lions had just two true defensive ends on their roster: Hutchinson and second-year end Ahmed Hassanein, who did not play as a rookie. Linemen Levi Onwuzurike and Tyler Lacy have tackle-end flexibility.

Al-Quadin Muhammad , who finished second on the team with a career-high 11 sacks last season, signed a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in free agency, and Marcus Davenport , who started seven of the eight games he played for the Lions last season, remains a free agent.

Wonnum, a fourth-round pick out of South Carolina in 2020, had a career-high eight sacks for the Vikings in 2023 and has 30 sacks in his six-year career.

Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at  dbirkett@freepress.com . Follow him on  Bluesky ,  X  and  Instagram  at @davebirkett.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions sign D.J. Wonnum to 1-year deal in NFL free agency