3 Lions who could be traded instead of cut before Tuesday’s cutdown and what Detroit could get back

Everyone is trading right now, the Lions might get in on this

Mike Payton — Detroit Lions Beat Writer
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Anyone else notice there are a lot of trades happening in the NFL this week? Just Wednesday, there were four. There’s a theme to these trades as well. For the most part, these are players that teams were likely going to cut and then decided to see what they could get instead.

Why would a team trade for a player they know another team is going to cut? Because they want that guy, and they don’t want to have to fight the rest of the league for him on the waiver wire or in the free agency market.

With that in mind, here are three players the Lions could look to trade instead of cutting before Tuesday’s cutdown.

Hendon Hooker

Hendon Hooker’s time in Detroit hasn’t gone great, and there are a lot of reasons to believe he could get cut on Tuesday. I know it’s easy to look at how he’s played this summer and wonder why any team would trade for him instead of signing him, but quarterbacks are viewed differently in this league. They almost get a pass or a longer leash. That’s why there will be interested teams out there. If Detroit can get something back for the former third-round pick, it should do it.

What Lions can get: 2026 Conditional sixth-round pick. (The condition likely being that Hooker stays on the roster all year, and if he doesn’t, this turns into a seventh-round pick.)

Tim Patrick

I know it’s a bit surprising to see Patrick on this list, and his inclusion doesn’t guarantee that he’s getting cut. But when you look at this receiving corps, it’s not hard to see how Isaac TeSlaa jumps him for the WR3 spot and how Jackson Meeks is a younger version of him. I don’t want to see Patrick go, but this is how the Lions could also get Dominic Lovett on the 53-man roster. Then, they could have a strong variation of receivers instead of three versions of the same type.

What the Lions can get: 2026 sixth-round pick

Isaac Ukwu

This is a bit of a swing since many second-year undrafted guys don’t get traded. However, Ukwu has looked good, and there will be teams that want him if the Lions roll with Nate Lynn, which seems likely. It’s not hard to imagine a team trading something small for him to get them on their roster.

What the Lions could get: 2026 seventh-round pick.

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