By all accounts, based on what has not been done to add someone, the Detroit Lions seem perfectly content to replace Josh Reynolds from within. Jameson Williams is being counted on to emerge in his third season, but he's the Lions' No. 2 wide receiver and we're talking replacing Reynolds as the No. 3 guy.
We looked at the best internal options for the Lions to replace Reynolds. Since then, part of what head coach Dan Campbell (via SI.com) had to say about one of those options, second-year man Antoine Green, didn't shine a great light on him.
"He (Green) had a little bit of an injury last week, so we didn’t get to really see him. He’ll be back up doing a little bit of individual and stuff, so it’s hard to say. That progress is on hold because we weren’t able to get him out there last week. But certainly, we like the player and there’s enough – let’s see what happens in camp. He’s another guy, let him go compete.”
That's hardly a complete indictment of Green, who is simply an unknown quantity after not playing much as a rookie last year. But Campbell's comments do reflect the broader question marks around every Lions' wide receiver not named Amon-Ra St. Brown. Yes, there are questions about Williams until we see him get it done consistently in games.
The Lions don't seem overly compelled to make a notable addition at wide receiver. On a national scale plenty of outlets feel like the lack of proven depth at the position could hold them back, and that's not necessarily the wrong idea
So, on the flip side of the internal options to replace Reynolds, of which there may only really be two good ones, let's rank some potential external options.
Ranking potential external options for the Lions to replace Josh Reynolds
5. Russell Gage
Gage missed all of last season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after suffering a knee injury around this time last year. The Buccaneers had reworked his contract to make 2024 an option, which they did not pick up and he remains a free agent.
During his first year in Tampa, 2022, Gage had 51 catches and five touchdowns in 13 games. The previous two seasons, with the Atlanta Falcons, he had 72 (2020) and 66 catches (2021) respectively. If he's healthy, now 28 years old, some of that ability should still exist.
Gage is in no position to be choosy with where he signs, should any opportunities come. If the Lions did call to bring him in for a look in training camp, which is a huge 'if', there's a non-zero chance he shows enough to stick.
4. Treylon Burks
Due in significant part to injuries, Burks has simply never gotten on-track with the Tennessee Titans since being a first-round pick in 2022. In 22 career games, he has 49 catches for 665 yards and a touchdown. He also seems to be the odd-man out in the Titans' wide receiver corps now, with Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd added this offseason to join DeAndre Hopkins.
Hopkins staunchly praised Burks publicly, suggesting no one in the Titans' locker room has given up on him. Head coach Brian Callahan has tried to deny a lack of faith in Burks, but comments this week confirm the reality for a first-round pick of the previous regime who has been bumped down the depth chart.
"He's going to have to contribute," Callahan said Tuesday after Burks got reps as a gunner. "You know you only get so many hats on game day, and if he's one of those guys on game day, we're going to have to find a place for him. Guys like him should be great special teams players on top of it, just because of his size and speed. And so the gunner thing is something I think he's very capable of doing, there might be some more roles for him in the other phases, as well."
Burks clearly needs a change of scenery. Which isn't to say he'll turn into a star elsewhere, that ship has almost surely sailed. But the physical tools that made him a first-round pick presumably aren't gone, and it's not as if the Titans have had a great quarterback situation.
Burks is a dictionary definition of a low-risk (low-cost) potentially high-reward acquisition. The Titans would do well to get anything for him, and they may take just about anything for him.
3. JuJu Smith-Schuster
As of this writing, Smith-Schuster is still a New England Patriot. But there's been plenty of talk in about him as a cut candidate. After an injury-hampered first season with the Patriots (29 catches for 260 yards and one touchdown in 11 games), and even without the ability to clear cap space, it makes a lot of sense for a team that's looking to reset with younger players.
Smith-Schuster had a fine season with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2022 (78 receptions for 933 yards and three touchdowns). Chalk that up to the Patrick Mahomes effect if you want, but as Mike Payton of AtoZ Sports noted he brings a lot of the same qualities to the table that Reynolds did/does. New England also had an awful pass offense last year, which deserves mention.
Payton also noted how the Rams, with Lions' general manager Brad Holmes as their director of college scouting then, showed a lot of interest in Smith-Schuster heading into the 2017 draft. The Steelers took Smith-Schuster seven picks before they took Cooper Kupp, so it worked out in the end.
Smith-Schuster should have multiple suitors if/when the Patriots let him go, including a potential reunion with the Steelers. The Lions could easily be in that mix too.
2. Michael Thomas
As long as the NFL's single-season record holder for receptions is still available and the Lions are perceived to have a level of need at wide receiver, a match will be put out there. Lions head coach Dan Campbell was on the Saints' staff when Thomas was his healthiest, happiest and at his most productive, which makes the tie an easy one to propose.
Bleacher Report's David Kenyon did so recently, on the premise of the Lions being able to benefit greatly from a late free agent addition at wide receiver.
"In fairness, yes, the market is reasonably thin at receiver. It's true that none of Michael Thomas, Hunter Renfrow or Mecole Hardman are guaranteed to make a major impact.
"Detroit can afford the risk, though—and the position's current outlook is practically begging for the Lions to take one."
2019, when Thomas set the NFL single-season record for receptions with 149, feels like longer ago than that somehow. He has also only played 20 games over the last four seasons due to ankle, foot and knee injuries. The Saints, as well expected, released him in March.
Thomas, 6-foot-3, 212 pounds, fits the physical and skill set profile the Lions still don't quite have at wide receiver. He's the best available free agent wide receiver at this point, it's just a matter if he can find a fit somewhere with the overriding question of if he can stay on the field for any sustainable stretch.
If the Lions start to question the path they've taken at wide receiver and he is still avaiable, Thomas could see Detroit as a nice landing spot.
1. Tee Higgins
Until his contract situation is resolved, up to and including actually signing his franchise tender, Higgins is theoretically available. The Bengals don't seem at all inclined to engage in talks on a long-term deal, with reports no discussions have been had in basically a year.
With the extra cap space they've cleared (once official) tied to voiding Cameron Sutton's $10.5 million salary for this year, the Lions have plenty of room to take on Higgins' $21.8 million franchise tag for this year. A move to get him would arguably give them the most dangerous offense in the NFL, with a wide receiver trio of St. Brown, Higgins and Jameson Williams. Keeping Higgins beyond 2024 wouldn't necessarily be out of the question either.
The Bengals may be losing leverage by the day. Higgins is literally not able to be at voluntary OTAs or any offseason work, since he's not technically under contract right now. He can just choose to stay away. The two sides have until July 15 to reach a long-term deal, but as noted that's got a very slim chance of happening.
Cincinnati could rescind the franchise tag, which would make Higgins a free agent with naturally fewer options than if he had just been allowed to hit the open market in March. Which given the way the Bengals have handled players they franchise tag lately, is probably the point. Essentially, "you'll sign the tender and play for us, or you won't play for anyone this year."
Until something changes for him, and maybe even after (if) he signs the franchise tender, Higgins stands as the most interesting external option for the Lions to replace Reynolds. Not necessarily the most likely, if that route is even pursued, just the most interesting and without question the best.
