The Detroit Lions are heading into free agency in a few weeks, and we plan to get fully into the 2026 class soon. Still, with five years of the Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes era out of the way, it’s a good time to look back on every signing that the Lions have made with Holmes and see how some of these have worked out. We’ll grade each one of them. Let’s jump into it.

2021

LB Alex Anzalone

Anxalone signed a one-year deal worth $1,75 million, and he had a pretty decent 2021 season. Good enough to get another deal in 2022 and then another in 2023. Anzalone spent five years with the Lions and was a multi-time captain. Now, in 2026, it would seem that we’ve come to the end of Anzalone’s time in Detroit.

Grade: A-

WR Kalif Raymond

Raymond was an interesting signing at the time because he had seemingly struggled for the four teams he was at before he came to Detroit. Along with Anzalone, Raymond was Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell seeing a player who had more in him than what previous teams had seen. He’s spent five years with the Lions and put up two All-Pro seasons. Like Anzalone, this might be the end for him, too.

Grade: A+

RB Jamaal Williams

The Lions only got two years out of Williams, but they were two pretty memorable years. Especially in 2022, when he set the franchise record for touchdowns. Jahmyr Gibbs would later break that record in 2024. Williams left the Lions after the 2022 season and hasn’t been the same since.

Grade: B-

LB Shaun Dion Hamilton

Hamilton played just one year for the Lions and intended to play a second. After getting cut in 2022, he joined the coaching staff. He got promoted to linebackers coach ahead of the 2025 season.

Grade: C+

• WR Breshad Perriman: The Lions signed Perriman to a one-year deal worth $3 million. He never played a regualar season game with the Lions. He was cut before the season started. Grade: F.
• WR Tyrell Williams: He was supposed to be the Lions’ WR1 in 2021. He instead suffered a bad concussion at the start of Week 1, and he never played in the NFL again. Grade: F
• QB Tim Boyle: He spent two seasons in Detroit, and neither of them was very good. Grade: D
• Edge Chares Harris: He had a strong 2021 season with 7.5 sacks, but he was never able to get back to that after dealing with injuries in 2022. He lasted one more year. Grade: C-.
• K Randy Bullock: Never played a regular-season game with the Lions. Grade: F.
• TE Josh Hill: Never played a regular-season game with the Lions. Grade: F.
• CB Corn Elder: Never played a regular season game with the Lions: Grade: F.

Final thoughts

2021 doesn’t look great, but keep in mind that after the debacle that was the Matt Patricia era, nobody wanted to come to Detroit. Despite that, the Lions did get multiple players who put forth strong contributions and a couple of guys who spent half a decade with the team. Cumulative Grade: C-.

2022

WR D.J. Chark

It was only one year with the Lions, but Chark made the most of it. He started 10 games and then parlayed the 2022 season into a bigger deal with the Panthers. The Lions would draft Jameson Williams. That’s worked out pretty well.

Grade: B-

S Deshon Elliott

Elliott had a pretty solid one-year stop in Detroit. It’s always been a little confusing that the Lions didn’t bring him back. Then again, they wound up drafting Brian Branch. So it all worked out. Elliott has been solid for the Steelers.

Grade: C+

• TE Garrett Griffin: Never played a regular season game for the Lions: Grade: F.
• LB Chris Board: Was a decent depth linebacker for one season. Grade: D.
• CB Mike Hughes: Started six games for the Lions and played fairly well as a depth guy. Grade: C-.
• LB Jarrad Davis: This actually happened. After the Lions parted ways with him in 2021 and he spent a season with the Jets, he came back for training camp and spent the season on the practice squad. Grade: D-.

Final thoughts

The Lions are still earning trust at this time. You start seeing the next year that things really start to change. But the Lions got some value out of what they got. So they get another passing grade. Cumulative Grade: C-.

2023

RB David Montgomery

Montgomery has been very good for the Lions. There’s no doubt about it. This might actually be Holmes’ best signing. Now we wait to see what’s going to happen with his future, but the thing that makes the most amount of sense is that Montgomery stays.

Grade: A+

CB Cameron Sutton

This one did not work out at all. He was supposed to be a solid signing, and the moment it happened, it seemed like the way to go. But then he had a bad 2023 season and followed that up with some legal issues that included him fleeing from the police and going to the Lions facility during that time. He was released promptly.

Grade: F

S C.J. Gardner-Johnson

Tore his pectoral muscle in Week 2, and when he came back, it did not go well. There was some entitlement, and a bad breakup followed. With that said, he did play ok in the games that he actually did play in Detroit.

Grade: C-

OL Graham Glasgow

Bringing back Glasgow really paid off. He’s been a starter for Detroit in the last three seasons, and while things might be over now, he played really well in 2023 and handled his business in 2024 as well.

Grade: B+

• LS Jake McQuaide: Started the 2023 season and helped the Lions get to the NFC Championship game. Grade: B.
• CB Emmanuel Moseley: Tore his ACL after just two snaps. The Lions brought him back in 2024, and he was injured again. It sadly never worked out. Grade: F.
• WR Marvin Jones: Jones wound up retiring midway through the season. Grade: D
• CB Mac McCain: Never even made it to training camp with the Lions. Grade: F.
• LB: Jalen Reeves-Maybin: Had an All-Pro season in 2023. Grade: B+

Final Thoughts

A pretty good class for the Lions. They got multiple starters, and some of these guys are still with the Lions as we speak. This group also helped the Lions get within a good half of football of making it to the Super Bowl. Cumulative Grade: B-

2024

CB Amik Robertson

It’s sort of a tale of two halves kind of thing. Robertson was so good in 2024, but struggled in 2025. Now we wait to see if he’s back in 2026. At this point, I’m on both sides of the fence with that. On one hand, depth is good; on the other, maybe the Lions should consider a near full rebuild at cornerback.

Grade: B-

DL DJ Reader

Reader never returned to the elite level he had achieved in Cincinnati, but he still played well in both seasons in Detroit. He’s a guy that you can’t blame the Lions for bringing back in 2026, but you can also understand the want to get younger on the interior.

Grade: B

G Kevin Zeitler

A very good signing for the Lions in 2024. He started all year long until an injury kept him out of the playoffs, but not bringing Zeitler back might have been one of Holmes’ biggest misses ever.

Grade: B+

K Jake Bates

The Lions made the right move to grab the best kicker out of the UFL. While his 2025 season was a bit of a down year, the Lions are in good shape with him right now. They’re one of the few teams that won’t have to cycle through a bunch of different guys in 2026.

Grade: B+

Edge Marcus Davenport

This has not worked out at all. It was a good idea for depth, but it was a horrible idea to consider him for a starting role. At the end of the day, Davenport played just 10 games for the Lions in two seasons. They would be insane to try this for a third year.

Grade: F

• Edge Mathieu Betts: It was a cool idea, but the CFL game just didn’t translate to the NFL. Grade: D.
• DT Kyle Peko: Had a promising start to the year, but a season-ending injury ended his time with the Lions. Grade: D.
• S C.J. Moore: The Lions brought him back after his suspension was lifted, but he never returned to the player he was before that. He was cut before the season started. Grade: F.

Final thoughts

Not a bad haul of free agents at all. These guys helped the Lions win 15 games in 2024 and would have potentially won a Super Bowl with them had Detroit not suffered a ton of injuries. Cumulative Grade: B

2025

CB D.J. Reed

Reed played really well before the injury. He struggled after coming back. The jury is still out on Reed. Let’s see how he does in a full season. Until then, I have to give a middling grade.

Grade: C+

NT Roy Lopez

Lopez is a guy the Lions should make sure they bring back in 2026 because he had a solid year for Detroit. Especially down the stretch when he was getting sacks and stuffing runs. This was quietly a really good move.

Grade: A-

CB Rock Ya-Sin

A really good depth piece who was thrust into a starting role and didn’t skip a beat. If I were Brad Holmes, I would strongly consider bringing him back in 2026 as a depth piece if you’re not trying to rebuild the position.

Grade: A-

• LB Grant Stuard: Wound up being a good special teams guy, but never had the impact we thought he could have on defense or as a fullback. Grade: C-
• QB Kyle Allen: Came in and stole the QB2 job right out from under Hendon Hooker. He looked really good in camp. Let’s see if he’s back in 2026. Grade: B.
• TE Kenny Yeboah: Never played a regular-season game for the Lions. Grade: F
• S Avonte Maddox: A really good depth guy who played both safety and cornerback. It would be a shock to see him back in 2026. Grade: B

Final Thoughts

This one is really graded universally bad because of the guys the Lions didn’t sign, and I fully get that, but if we’re strictly grading based on what the Lions did do, this is not a bad class. They got something out of everyone. Cumulative Grade: B

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