The Detroit Lions find themselves in an interesting spot on the defensive side of the ball as the NFL prepares for free agency to begin.
The team has some very talented pieces on that side of the ball with two of the league’s best safeties and an edge who is currently the favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year next season.
All of that talent is the product of a concerted effort from the organization to invest in that side of the ball.
Unfortunately, that investment hasn’t really panned out for them yet at one particular position.
They’ve struggled at cornerback despite making a trade for Carlton Davis and drafting a pair of corners last year.
Now Davis is heading for free agency and their two young corners remain question marks.
With their issues at the position, the team is expected to take a look at some free agent options this offseason and they could end up targeting a player with some Super Bowl experience.
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In an article predicting one free agent each NFL team would target, USA Today’s Jacob Camenker predicted the Lions would pursue San Francisco 49ers cornerback Charvarius Ward.
Ward isn’t just coming off of a down year. He is coming off of his worst season since his rookie year.
The 61.5% completion percentage and 7.5 yards per target allowed were the his worst marks since 2018.
That might not deter the Lions from pursuing him.
Throughout this offseason, much of the focus on the Lions has been on them landing talent on the edge who they can partner with Aidan Hutchinson.
The focus should probably actually be on the cornerback position.
There is plenty of talent out there at edge between free agency, the draft, and stars potentially being traded.
Cornerback is a much thinner position.
There are few viable options available in free agency who could potentially be the Lions’ CB1. There also won’t be a ton of options for them by the time they pick in the first round of the draft either.
Ward obviously comes with some concerns after his disappointing 2024 season, but he should still be in his prime and he has proven he could play at a high level in the past.
The Lions should be ready to make a strong push for Ward to take care of their remaining questions at cornerback and give themselves some more stability at the position in 2025.
