Detroit Lions expected to sign former fifth-round pick with blazing speed as they continue addressing linebacker injuries
Detroit is reportedly preparing to add another linebacker after signing K.J. Britt. Owen Pappoe brings exceptional speed and special-teams production, but his limited defensive experience raises questions about his role.
The Detroit Lions need linebacker help, and everyone knows it. On Monday night, the Lions signed K.J. Britt and then on Tuesday, the Lions brought in Owen Pappoe for a visit. Now CBS’ Matt Zenitz is reporting that the Lions are expected to sign him.
Lions expected to sign Owen Pappoe to practice squad
As Zenitz notes, Pappoe is a former fifth-round pick, and he’s played 50 games in the NFL with two starts. He started this season with the Titans, but they released him after Week 1.
The first thing that stands out about Pappoe is his athleticism. This is a guy who ran a 4.39 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, which was the fastest time among linebackers in his draft class. That speed is certainly intriguing for a Lions team that could use some additional athleticism at linebacker right now. The problem is that it hasn’t really translated into a significant defensive role in the NFL. He’s played just 341 defensive snaps over his career, including only 96 in 2025. He’s primarily been a special teams player, although Arizona did occasionally use him in its speed packages on third down.
That’s probably where the Lions see the most immediate value in Pappoe. He played 373 special teams snaps in 2025 and recorded 16 special teams tackles, which was the second-most on the Cardinals. That’s a pretty good number, and it’s something Detroit can certainly use. As far as the defense goes, I wouldn’t look at this as the Lions finding someone who is going to step in and replace Jack Campbell. This is more about adding some much-needed depth to a linebacker room that’s suddenly looking pretty thin. Pappoe has the speed to potentially help in coverage situations, but there just isn’t enough evidence from his NFL career to suggest he’s going to be anything more than a rotational player at this point.
Detroit Lions News