Detroit Lions: 5 Cut candidates sitting on roster bubble
By Samuel Teets
4. Reggie Ragland, LB
Reggie Ragland’s career is complicated. He entered the NFL as a highly-anticipated second-round pick by the Buffalo Bills in 2016. Unfortunately, the Alabama product tore his ACL and missed his entire rookie season. The team changed coaches in 2017, and Ragland found himself on the trade block.
The Kansas City Chiefs eventually traded for Ragland, hoping he could take over for the aging Derrick Johnson. Ragland experienced mixed success in Kansas City, and he only played 21 percent of the team’s defensive snaps in 2019 despite appearing in 14 games.
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Ragland signed a one-year deal with the Lions this offseason. There are plenty of other linebackers who could lose their spots this fall. Former college standouts Austin Bryant and Jason Cabinda aren’t guaranteed anything, but Ragland is battling for his roster spot.
3. Wes Hills or Ty Johnson, RBs
Kerryon Johnson played well during his rookie season, averaging 5.4 yards per carry and 64.1 rushing yards per game. However, injuries continue hounding the third-year Auburn product. Inconsistent play also severely damaged Johnson’s averages last season, which eventually led to Detroit drafting Georgia’s D’Andre Swift with the 35th overall pick.
Swift joins a crowded backfield that already features Johnson and Bo Scarbrough. Detroit activated Scarbrough from the practice squad last year, and the former seventh-round pick didn’t disappoint. He averaged 62.8 rushing yards per game and should find himself on the final roster this fall.
Detroit’s growing backfield puts Wes Hills and Ty Johnson in difficult situations. Hills only appeared in one game for the Lions last season, and he’s in the final year of his current deal. As a sixth-round pick from 2019, Johnson is entering the second year of his rookie contract. As a rookie, he produced 382 yards from scrimmage.