The first week of NFL free agency is wrapping up and the Detroit Lions were one of the league's quieter teams. They did bring in four new players, but they also got 10 guys back and lost six players. After a week of thinking about all the moves, It's time to do some grading. Here's the Lions report card after the first week.

New Lions

CB D.J. Reed

You have to give some serious kudos to Brad Holmes on this one. Inside one hour, the Lions lost Carlton Davis to the Patriots on a $60 million deal and then turned around and signed Reed to a $48 million deal. Reed is of equal or greater value to the Lions and they got him at a significantly reduced value. Superb work from Holmes. 

Grade: A

DT Roy Lopez

The Lions needed some interior defensive line help and they got it in  Lopez. He's not much of a pass rusher, or at least he hasn't been since he came into the league, but he is a good space eater and run stuffer. The thing that drags his grade down a little is that the Lions already have that in DJ Reader. Maybe this grade will change over time. 

Grade: B

LB Grant Stuard

Not much to dislike on this one. The Lions parted ways with Jalen Reeves-Maybin a couple of weeks ago and they went out and found their replacement with another pretty good linebacker who is great on special teams and can add some help on defense. But did the Lions really need another linebacker?

Grade: B-

QB Kyle Allen

Welcome to question time with the Detroit Lions. That's all this signing is going to bring for a while. Allen has been a starter in the NFL and he's been a good QB2 as well, but he's also been a guy who was buried at QB3 pretty recently. Fans love Hendon Hooker, but do the Lions? What does Detroit see in Allen? It's hard to believe he's just a camp guy. If he was, did they need to sign him during free agency? They could have waited till July if they were going to do something like that. 

Grade: B-

Returning Lions 

DL Levi Onwuzurike

This was always going to be an interesting name to watch because a lot of teams seemed to be interested in Onwuzurike, but maybe there were some questions about the medicals of it all. He had a big year in 2024 and that should continue on. For the Lions to both get him back here and get him at about $15 million less than the projection, what a score. 

Grade: A+

Edge Marcus Davenport

On one hand, I get it. This guy is pretty good when he's healthy. Nobody will ever dispute that. On the other hand, I don't get it because this guy is never healthy and he's constantly shown you that. At least the risk is a super cheap one. 

Grade: D+

LB Ezekiel Turner

Not going to lie, I don't get this one. Turner had a pretty good start with the Lions with a big tackle coming on Jordan Love in a win over the Packers. But he got beat up by the Bills and then shredded by the 49ers and Bears. It just felt like there was no way he'd be back at that time. Yet here we are. Maybe we're judging three bad games too harshly. 

Grade: C-

LB Anthony Pittman

It was actually surprising the Lions let Pittman out of the building in last year's free agency. People don't pay a ton of attention to this guy because he's mostly a special teamer, but he's good at his job and the Lions made the right move by skipping the tender and going right for a new deal. Don't let him leave again.

Grade: A

LB Trevor Nowaske

A big fan of this one for sure. Nowaske showed some real promise as a SAM linebacker in Derrick Barnes' absence. Now that Barnes is back, the Lions have depth at that spot again and a guy who can rotate in and do some damage. He's also a good hand on special teams.

Grade: A

Quick grades

• Craig Reynolds: Can someone tell me at what point the Lions will unleash Sione Vaki? Grade: C
• Dan Skipper: Having a good swing tackle is definitely a good thing. You do wonder what this means for Giovanni Manu though. Grade: B
• Myles Adams: I'm definitely intrigued by what Adams can be for the Lions. Grade: A
• Michael Niese: Will the Lions ever actually put this guy on the field? Grade: C-

Lost Lions 

G Kevin Zeitler

This was the one guy the Lions needed to make sure they kept to keep the offensive line playing at a top level. They couldn't do it. You can't blame them too much because he wanted to be with family, but maybe you up the offer to keep him here? 

Grade: F

Edge Za'Darius Smith 

Ok, if I'm grading this one just by what's happened after this first, week, I don't like it a whole lot. Freeing up cash was good, doing nothing with that cash feels like maybe you didn't need to make this move. Maybe this grade changes over time. We're just reacting to the first week at this point. 

Grade: D

DB Ifeatu Melifonwu

Tremendous finish to the 2023 season, but it took him a while to get to that point and then he suffered back-to-back injuries in 2024. Would have liked to maybe see where things went with him, but totally understand the move. 

Grade: B

CB Carlton Davis

Davis was good in 2024, but that injury showed how much they could live without him. Amik Robertson balled out in his absence and then the Lions got a sweet deal with Reed. It just never made sense to bring Davis back. 

Grade: A

LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin

Still a bit surprised by this one since the Lions just signed him to a new deal ahead of last year's free agency. He did spend most of the season hurt and he's now in his thirties though. Still, this guy was an All-Pro in 2023. 

Grade: C

CB Kindle Vildor

It's an F. What a horrible mistake by the Lions. In all seriousness, Vildor caught a lot of flak from Lions fans, but he was a solid CB4 for Detroit and now he's going to get a chance to be more for the Bucs. Good for him. 

Grade: C

Top 10 free agents who remain available for the Detroit Lions after four days of free agency

The first week of free agency is wrapping up here on a Friday. The Lions have made four moves. They've signed cornerback D.J. Reed, nose tackle Roy Lopez, linebacker Grant Stuard and quarterback Kyle Allen.  As we enter the weekend, here's the top 10 players left for the Lions:  Edge Azeez Ojulari This is a […]