A major shakeup is happening for the Detroit Lions as the team announced on Wednesday that team president Rod Wood will be retiring.

Here’s what we know at this point. Wood will be retiring before the 2026 season, but will stay on until his replacement is found. The Russell Reynolds Associates firm will help the Lions conduct their search for their next president. We don’t quite know what the expectations are going to be for the job.

What’s really important to factor in here is that this is not necessarily a move that requires someone who is a great football mind. Wood was infamously not that. Wood did not pick the players on this team or have much to do with the format of the team. His job consisted of things like Ticket sales, pricing strategy, sponsorships, marketing, branding, fan engagement, revenue growth, and budgeting. He also oversaw Ford Field, and his biggest thing was helping Sheila Ford get the franchise on the straight and narrow after years of dysfunction.

With that said, it doesn’t mean that the person they hire doesn’t have to be football forward, and it doesn’t mean they have to be from outside of the NFL. The Lions may also opt to do what some other teams have done and have a president of football operations and a president for the business side of things. Here are three candidates to keep an eye on.

Chris Spielman, Lions special assistant to the owner and CEO

We’ll start with someone who is a football forward and someone who Lions fans are probably going to want to take the job. The thing about Spielman is that he’s already very high up in the franchise. He’s not grabbing Ford’s coffee and setting her meetings.

When Ford took over as owner, there was a calculated effort to find and surround herself and Wood with people who knew football. Something the Lions just hadn’t really had much of in the front office beforehand.

Spielman assisted Ford and Wood in the interview process for general manager and head coach, and had some say in the hiring of Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell. he is trusted within the organization at the highest level possible.

The only real concern here is that Spielman doesn’t have any experience in the other realms that Wood did. That is, unless they were grooming him for this role over the last five years.

Peter O’Reilly, EVP, Club Business & League Events for the NFL

A lot of times, these types of jobs are filled by people who work within the league. O’Reilly oversees the NFL’s sponsorships, revenue growth, and the league’s international growth, among other things. He works hand in hand with every team in the league and has been a big part of the NFL’s brand growth and commercial strategy.

He was also the director of the NBA for many years. This is a strong business background that fills this job really well. The only thing is, he’s never worked specifically for one team before. Does he want to do that?

Catherine Raiche, Browns assistant general manager and vice president of football operations

Raiche has a ton of background in the league. Before her time with the Browns, she was the vice president of football operations for the Eagles. Before the NFL, she was in the CFL as the director of football administration for the Toronto Argonauts.

Raiche brings salary cap expertise and the football expertise that could really help surround Ford with the football knowledge she craved once she took over. Raiche has a leg up over Spielman because she’s dealt with the numbers and the money. She’s also already had very high positions within the league and helped build an Eagles team that went to the Super Bowl.

Detroit Lions News

The Lions are going to have to be very picky when it comes to edge rusher this offseason

Brad Holmes and the Lions can’t fall into the trap some teams are going to fall into at edge

Mike Payton