NFL analyst believes the Lions should trade Taylor Decker to the Chiefs, why it's not the worst idea in the world, and what they could get for him
There are a lot of trades happening in the NFL right now, and more could be coming once free agency opens on the 10th. The Detroit Lions may have found their perfect player to trade for in Trey Hendrickson, and we'll see if that happens. There's been a lot of talk about who the Lions […]
There are a lot of trades happening in the NFL right now, and more could be coming once free agency opens on the 10th. The Detroit Lions may have found their perfect player to trade for in Trey Hendrickson, and we'll see if that happens.
There's been a lot of talk about who the Lions could trade for, but what about who they could trade away? Robert Mays from The Athletic has an idea.
"Another guy I'd mentioned with Kansas City and just teams that need a left tackle in general, I'd sniff around Taylor Decker if I were one of these teams as a trade candidate. Yeah, he's getting a little older. This team (Lions) has spent big on a lot of extensions. Recently, they traded up for that fourth round developmental left tackle last year, (Giovanni) Manu, so they've got some guys potentially in the pipeline. It might be a little bit quick for that, because I think he was really a developmental player when they traded for him…
But that's a call I would make if I was a team that needed a left tackle here, and I swung and missed on Ronnie Stanley, just because it feels like there's going to be a moment where they might have to move on from Decker, given the price tag and given his age, with all the other things that they're having to spend money on here over the next couple years, they would save 22 million against the cap next year if they traded for 2026 if they traded Taylor Decker. Now, so it's just, it's a phone call I would make if I wanted these teams."
First off, it's really hard to see the Lions making this move because Decker has been a big part of this team for the last nine seasons and he is beloved by the franchise, the coaching staff and the players. Personally, I see Decker retiring before I see a trade happening.
With that said, Mays is right. Decker is going to be owed a lot of money going forward. He has a cap hit over $20 million in 2025, 2026, and 2027. The Lions will have some need for extra cash soon when they have to find a way to extend Aidan Hutchinson, Brian Branch, Kerby Joseph, Jahmyr Gibbs, Jack Campbell and Sam LaPorta.
But should the Lions do it right now? This is a team that's on the verge of a Super Bowl run, and to do this move would likely mean they'd either have to move Penei Sewell to left tackle or they would have to be ready to go with Manu. Of course, the Lions could also find themselves in a good spot in the draft and maybe wind up with a Grey Zabel or Kelvin Banks.
The other thing is that if the Lions do it now, they're paying $16.5 million in dead cap. It actually makes way more sense to do it after the 2025 season when that dead cap number gets cut in half.
What could the Lions get for Decker if they were to trade him? Judging by recent trades, Decker's play and age, the Lions' best bet would likely be getting a fifth-round pick for Decker. That's not too bad at all. Still, I don't see this one happening.
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