Lions Re-Sign $78Million QB Top Player Due To…

For reasons that are wholly unrelated to his two critical drops in the NFC Championship Game loss to the San Francisco 49ers, or perceptions of his response to the rough game, it has seemed very likely Josh Reynolds would be leaving the Detroit Lions in free agency.

When it gets down to it, another team may be able to give Reynolds a bigger role next season, if not more money over a multi-year deal as well. As the third week of free agency gets rolling, he has one reported free agent visit (with the Baltimore Ravens). Not that his market was going to be massive, but it was safe to think Reynolds would have more interest out there.

Reynolds has been a solid player for the Lions over two-and-half seasons. He is also clearly a culture fit, as head coach Dan Campbell has given him a long list of nicknames and he played through what seemed to be a pretty severe injury for a stretch. In last year’s regular season finale, an effort was made to get him over 600 yards for the season and to a $250,000 contract incentive.

Lions leaving door open to re-signing Josh Reynolds

At the league meetings Tuesday morning, via Justin Rogers of the Detroit News, Campbell said the Lions have maintained contact with Reynolds.

The re-signing of Donovan Peoples-Jones appeared to be an acknowledgement by the Lions that Reynolds wouldn’t be back. Talking about Peoples-Jones, Campbell is confident a full offseason in the system will allow him to make an impact with a bigger role.

“He’ll have a better understanding of what we’re doing (when) we go into camp,” Campbell said. “And so I think what it does it just gives us somebody that we know can play the position. He’s a bigger-body guy, too, so he’s a little different than anybody we’ve got.”

In eight games for the Lions last season, after being acquired from the Browns at the trade deadline, Peoples-Jones played just 72 offensive snaps with five receptions. If Reynolds is not back, he has a path to a bigger role next season. If Reynolds is eventually back, the move to re-sign Peoples-Jones, within the idea he’s a “rising player” now blocked from a full ascension, will look a little odd.

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Dan Campbell Says Extending 2 Key Players Are Priorities For The Lions

After finishing with a 9-8 record to conclude the 2022 NFL regular season and come just short of making the NFL playoffs, the Detroit Lions came into the 2023 campaign with arguably the most hype of any team in the league, as everyone expected Dan Campbell and company to make a big jump.

Despite dealing with all the pressure of being expected to take two steps forward, the Lions were able to live up to expectations and then exceed those expectations, with the team going on to win the NFC North division title and punch their ticket to the postseason.

Fortunately for Detroit, the team was able to keep playing at a high level in the playoffs with the team beating the Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers on their way to making it to the NFC Championship Game for the first time in franchise history.

Unfortunately, the San Francisco 49ers proved to be too much to handle in the next round, and Detroit went home empty-handed, but the future is bright for the Lions, especially if they can secure the future of arguably the team’s two best players on offense.

According to Kyle Meinke of MLive, the Lions are currently working on contract extensions with star quarterback Jared Goff and star wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Securing the long-term futures of Goff and St. Brown is definitely a step in the right direction for Detroit, as the offense flows through both these players weekly.

Hopefully, for the sake of the Lions franchise, Detroit can continue to be a legitimate title contender in the NFC moving forward.