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Detroit Lions OTAs: Staff shocked to land Anthony Lucas as UDFA
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- Detroit Lions OTAs: Staff shocked to land Anthony Lucas as UDFA
Enhancing its group of edge rushers was one of the points of emphasis for the Detroit Lions this offseason.
Detroit inked former Panthers EDGE DJ Wonnum and former Cowboys EDGE Payton Turner in NFL free agency. Then, the Lions traded up to draft Michigan EDGE Derrick Moore at pick No. 44 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft.
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While those moves naturally garnered the bulk of the headlines, second-year Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said he and Detroit are excited about rookie UDFA Anthony Lucas, too.
"Absolutely," Sheppard said when asked if Lucas had caught his eye. "That's why I say six, seven. You go in there. We know the obvious. The guys kind of when the banner goes across ESPN. DJ Wonnum. Lions signed DJ Wonnum. Lions drafted Derrick Moore . Former first-rounder Payton Turner.
"But, the guys they may not know is a guy like Ahmed (Hassanein). Spent last year on practice squad. He's looking to make a push to this roster. A guy like Anthony Lucas. You turn on his college tape... I turned on his junior film at USC, and unfortunately it was against LSU, and he was a game wrecker. If people go back, those two tackles that played at LSU that year, one was the No. 4 pick ( Will Campbell ) and the other went in the third round ( Emery Jones Jr. ). Those were some pretty good players, and he wrecked that game. So, it was a guy I had my radar up on, like, how did we get this guy undrafted?"
The Lions inked Lucas out of USC as one of its nine undrafted free agent signings .
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Lucas, a 6-foot-5, 256-pound EDGE, enjoyed a 2025 campaign with the Trojans where he totaled 37 tackles, 23 pressures, three sacks and one forced fumble.
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This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Detroit Lions OTAs: Staff shocked to land Anthony Lucas as UDFA
