Lions Urged to Sign $58 Million Former SuperStar LB Player On the Ground…
The Detroit Lions addressed a lot of areas in NFL free agency this offseason. But one part of the roster where they have yet to make any additions is linebacker. Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder argued the team should change that by signing veteran linebacker Zach Cunningham.
On April 7, Holder named Cunningham the one free agent still on the market who could help the Lions.
“While Alex Anzalone had a good season in 2023, the Lions could use another option to line up alongside Anzalone,” Holder wrote. “Derrick Barnes’ play was up and down for the majority of last year and Jack Campbell had a pedestrian rookie campaign.
“Adding Cunningham would give them another veteran option to compete for a starting spot during training camp, and Pro Football Focus is only projecting him to receive a one-year, $2.75 million contract. So, it’s worth the shot to bring him in and at least add some depth to the position group.”
Cunningham isn’t the tackling machine he once was, but he’s still a solid contributor. Last season, he posted 85 combined tackles, including 2 tackles for loss and 4 pass defenses in 13 games with the Philadelphia Eagles.
After his rookie contract, Cunningham signed a 4-year, $58 million contract with the Houston Texans. He spent parts of five seasons with the Texans. Cunningham has also played for the Tennessee Titans and Eagles during his seven-year NFL career.
How LB Zach Cunningham Could Fit With the Lions
Cunningham began his career as a second-round pick in the 2017 NFL draft. He posted 125 total tackles during his final season at Vanderbilt. Then in the NFL, Cunningham continued to make an impact as a tackler.
As a rookie, Cunningham had 90 combined tackles, including 5 tackles for loss. He then recorded three consecutive seasons with more than 100 tackles. Cunningham peaked in 2020 with a league-leading 164 combined tackles, including 106 solos.
The following season, Cunningham continued to record a lot of tackles when on the field. But he missed two games because of injuries, and the Texans waived him during the season for violating team rules twice.
The Titans claimed Cunningham off waivers. He ended the 2021 season with 93 total tackles. Then after playing only six games in 2022, Cunningham bounced back with the Eagles last season.
n Detroit, Cunningham could provide depth at inside linebacker, where the Lions haven’t added any free agents this offseason. Alex Anzalone has reached more than 100 combined tackles each of the past two seasons. But the Lions haven’t had another linebacker record 100 combined tackles since Jamie Collins in 2020.
Expectations for Jack Campbell Heading Into 2024
Whether the Lions are interested in a veteran linebacker such as Cunningham will greatly depend on how they view Jack Campbell going into 2024.
A first-round pick last season, Campbell didn’t make a huge impact on the stat sheet in 2023. But he was a solid contributor, making 12 starts and recording 95 combined tackles.
His playing time generally increased as the season went. Campbell lined up for 89% of the team’s defensive snaps in the NFC championship game against the San Francisco 49ers.
There are both reasons for optimism and concern with Campbell’s development. SI.com’s All Lions’ Christian Booher argued Campbell experienced “an up and down season” as a rookie.
“The Iowa product will need to be much improved in the area of coverage,” Booher wrote. “While it wasn’t a particularly bad season for the rookie, and he did finish strong, early on was a struggle for the defender.”
Anzalone, Campbell and Derrick Barnes ended the season as Detroit’s starting linebackers. The Lions also have Malcolm Rodriguez and Jalen Reeves-Maybin for linebacker depth.
Therefore, the Lions don’t really have roster space for another veteran linebacker. But if the Lions lose faith in Campbell’s development or the other depth linebackers on the roster, Cunningham could be an intriguing target for Detroit.
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Your guide to the NFL Draft in Detroit..
Geez, is this city of ours living in pro football favor, or what? Our Detroit Lions completed their best season in more than 30 years, coming within one horrific second half of their first Super Bowl appearance ever, and as a reward for our fanatical enthusiasm we get to host the 2024 NFL Draft!
Well… that’s not exactly accurate. In truth, the league selected Detroit as the site of this year’s NFL Draft Presented by Bud Light — the free event expected to attract nearly 400,000 football fans to Hart Plaza, Cadillac Square, Campus Martius, and various other downtown sites from Thursday, April 25 to Saturday, April 27 — during its annual league meetings two years ago in Palm Beach, Florida. So The D has been on the clock in our preparations for a while, and the timing of the Lions restoring its roar up through the NFC Championship game is purely coincidental.
Is it ever. It has been reported that the Lions and consortiums of local civic boosters tried twice before to drive the NFL Draft to Woodward Avenue, but their bids were rejected both times. The league wouldn’t divulge the reasons why, of course, but it’s believed the concerns had more to do with rooms than reputation: there simply didn’t seem to be enough hotel space to accommodate the massive crowds expected. Those anxieties have been relieved somewhat through the recent addition of more than 1,000 rooms downtown in such new hotels as the Roost Detroit at Book Tower, the Cambria Hotel, and the Godfrey Hotel in Corktown.
“What you have done in this community is amazing,” Goodell told an audience at Ford Field that included representatives from the Lions organization, Visit Detroit, the Detroit Sports Commission, and other stakeholders involved in getting the Draft to the D. “I’ve been coming here for decades. You see what you’ve done physically in the downtown area, but it’s really as much about the way you’ve come together.”
The NFL Draft was held in New York City for 14 consecutive years — and, had it not been for a scheduling conflict at Radio City Music Hall, might still be — but when the decision was made to take the show on the road it was important to Goodell that each league city put its unique personality on the event.
“We want you to do it Detroit style,” Goodell encouraged. “Let people understand what Detroit is all about. And you won’t get a bigger platform: our draft here will probably be viewed by 60 to 70 million people over the three days. There are not many opportunities like that.”