The first Detroit Lions preseason game is in the books, and with Week 4 of training camp underway, it’s a good time to take a stab at predicting what the Lions’ depth chart will look like in Week 1 against the New Orleans Saints.

There are some surprises here. Some of them might sound crazy. But everything we’ve seen through camp and Thursday night’s preseason opener points in this direction. Let’s jump right into it.

Offense

Greg Dortch starting over Isaac TeSlaa at outside receiver

I know this might sound crazy. A month ago, I would have probably thought I was insane for writing it. But TeSlaa has had a rough camp, and it didn’t help matters on Thursday night when he had a rough game against the Bengals. This isn’t a one-bad-night situation. It has been bad all around for the last going on four weeks now. He’s got to turn it around. There’s still a lot of camp left, and he needs to make something happen. He’s not getting cut or anything like that. I just can’t see a world where he’s starting right now.

Juice Scruggs at center, Christian Mahogany at left guard

With Cade Mays out, I’ve got Scruggs starting at center. Seth McLaughlin played pretty well in his preseason debut for Detroit, and I do have the Lions keeping him. But Scruggs only missed Thursday night because of a minor soft tissue injury; the team has said he should be back soon. Once he’s back, I expect him to jump right in with the first team and take that job back.

At left guard, it’s Christian Mahogany’s job at this point. Miles Frazier lost it a week or two ago. It’s been all Mahogany doing first-team reps, and they’ll throw Frazier in there every now and again, but Mahogany has separated himself.

RB3

I’ve also got Jacob Saylors in that third running back spot. I don’t see the Lions carrying more than three running backs, though maybe they will when Sione Vaki gets healthy for special teams reasons. And at backup quarterback, I’ve got Dobbs, though I’m still not totally sold on the idea that Detroit isn’t going to take another look at what other quarterbacks are out there.

Defense

Position	Player 1	Player 2	Player 3
LDE	Aidan Hutchinson
LDT	Tyleik Williams	Levi Onwuzurike
RDT	Alim McNeill	Tyler Lacy	Skyler Gill-Howard
RDE	DJ Wonnum	Derrick Moore	Ahmed Hassanein
WLB	Devin White	Malcolm Rodriguez	Damone Clark
MLB	Jack Campbell	Joe Bachie
SLB	Derrick Barnes
LCB	Rock Ya-Sin	Nick Whiteside	Ennis Rakestraw
SS	Chuck Clark	Thomas Harper	Kerby Joseph
FS	Avonte Maddox	Brian Branch
RCB	D.J. Reed	Khalil Dorsey
NB	Christian Izien	Roger McCreary	Keith Abney II

D.J. Wonnum starting opposite Aidan Hutchinson at edge

Derrick Moore has been dealing with some injury stuff, a groin issue the team has said isn’t too serious, and he could potentially be back as early as Saturday. But even if Moore hadn’t been injured, I still would have thought Wonnum makes more sense as a starter. The plan I’ve always thought of is that Wonnum starts and plays on first and second downs, the running downs, and then you bring in Moore on passing downs because he’s a better pass rusher. Eventually Moore will get better at stopping the run, and you could play him every down. That’s the hope.

Behind them, you’ve got Skyler Gill-Howard, Tyler Lacy, Ahmed Hassanein, and Levi Onwuzurike as backup interior defensive linemen and edge rushers. These guys are going to do everything. They’ll kick inside, kick outside, do it all. It’s a versatile bench for this defensive line.

Devin White takes the Will linebacker job

At will linebacker, I’ve got Devin White starting over Malcolm Rodriguez. The guy has only been here about two weeks, but he took that job almost immediately. He’s looked so good. There are some questions about his coverage ability, and you hope he doesn’t get burned a lot, but it’s his job to lose at this point. I don’t think he’s going to lose it.

Secondary: Christian Izien wins nickelback, Chuck Clark and Avonte Maddox start at safety for Week 1

For starting cornerbacks, I’ve got D.J. Reed on one side and Rock Ya-Sin on the other, with Izien at nickelback. I really thought Roger McCreary was going to win that nickelback job, but he’s just been fine. Not as good as I thought he’d be. Izien, on the other hand, has looked really good in that spot, and I think he plays there instead of playing safety.

At safety, I’ve got Clark and Maddox starting Week 1. You see Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch on this depth chart, and they didn’t lose their starting jobs. I don’t see them starting the season on PUP at this point. A lot of what Dan Campbell is talking about leads to the idea that both of them are going to return to practice about halfway through camp, which would be next week. That doesn’t mean they’ll start Week 1. Campbell has already alluded to the idea that they probably won’t be there for the opener, but they could potentially be there by Week 2 or Week 3. You don’t want to put them on PUP and wait four weeks. You keep them on the roster, and whenever they’re ready, they’re ready. Maybe they’ll be healthy scratches for the first game or two, and then when they’re ready, you put them on the field together.

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