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The Lions have re-signed 25-year old LB Ashlee Palmer to a 1-year deal. Palmer played in all 16 games for the Lions last year and he had 8 tackles. Palmer has now played in 32 games in his first two years with the Lions and he has 63 tackles, 1 sack, 4 tackles for a loss, 5 forced fumbles and 1 pass defensed. This was a good move for the Lions as Palmer is a decent backup LB.
The Lions have re-signed 27-year old inside linebacker Stephen Tulloch to a 5-year deal. Tulloch played in 16 games for the Lions last year and he had 111 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 3 sacks, 3 fumble recoveries, 5 passes defensed and 2 interceptions. Tulloch has now played in 96 games in his first six years in the NFL and he has 568 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 19 tackles for a loss. 8 fumble recoveries, 17 passes defensed and 4 interceptions. This was a smart move for the Lions as Tulloch is a rock in the middle of the defense.
The Lions have signed 24-year old CB Jacob Lacey to a 1-year deal. Lacey played in 15 games for the Colts last year and he had 72 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 6 passes defensed and 1 interception (which he returned for a TD). Lacey has now played in 43 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 221 tackles, 5 interceptions (2 returned for TDs), 21 passes defensed, 5 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery. This was a good pickup for the Lions as Lacey will replace Eric Wright in the starting lineup in 2012.
The Lions have re-signed 27-year old DT Andre Fluellen t0 a 1-year deal. Fluellen played in 13 games for the Lions last year and he had 11 tackles and 1 forced fumble. He has now played in 51 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has 45 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 1 pass defensed and 1 tackle for a loss. This was a good move for the Lions as Fluellen will provide depth on the interior of the D-Line in 2012.
The Lions have re-signed 38-year old punter Ben Graham to a 1-year deal. Graham played in 7 games for the Lions last year and he punted the ball 28 times for 1,235 yards (44.1 avg). He also had 3 touchbacks (10.7%) and pinned the opposition inside their own 20-yard line 10 times (35.7%). Graham has now played in 96 games in his first seven years in the NFL and he has punted the ball 462 times for 20,413 yards (44.2 avg). He has also had 39 touchbacks (8.4%) and he has pinned the opposition inside their own 20-yard line 160 times (34.6%) of the time. This was a good move for the Lions as Graham punted well for them last year.
The Lions have re-signed 32-year old QB Shaun Hill to a 2-year deal. Hill played in 2 games for the Lions last year and he completed 2 of 3 passes (66.7%) for 33 yards without a TD pass or pickoff (103.5 QB Rating). Hill also carried the ball 1 time for -1 yard. Hill has now played in 13 games (10 starts) in his first two years with the Lions and he has completed 259 of 419 passes (61.8%) for 2,719 yards with 16 TD passes and 12 INTs (81.4 QB Rating). Hill has also carried the ball 23 times for 122 yards (5.3 ypc) so far with the Lions. Hill is only 3-7 (30%) as a starting QB with the Lions, but it hasn’t been because of his play. This was a good move for the Lions as Hill is one of the better backup QBs in the NFL.
The Lions have re-signed 34-year old OT Jeff Backus to a 2-year, $10 million dollar deal. Backus played in 16 games (all starts) for the Lions last year. He has now played in 176 games (176 starts) in his first 11 years with the Lions. Backus is very dependable, as he has never missed a game in his NFL career. It was smart for the Lions to bring back Backus to work on Matt Stafford’s blind side.
The Lions have re-signed 29-year old safety Erik Coleman. Coleman played in 4 games for the Lions last year and he had 2 tackles. Coleman has now played in 111 games in his first 8 years in the NFL and he has 606 tackles, 35 passes defensed, 10 interceptions, 11 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks, 4 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery. Coleman will be a backup for the Lions once again in 2012.
The Lions have signed 26-year old WR Calvin Johnson to a 7-year, $132 million dollar contract extension that will keep him a Detroit Lion through the 2019 NFL season. Johnson played in all 16 games for the Lions last year and he caught 96 passes for 1,681 yards (17.5 avg) with 16 TD grabs. He also carried the ball 1 time for 11 yards. Johnson has now played in 76 games in his first five years with the Lions and he has caught 366 passes for 5,872 yards (16.0 avg) with 49 TD grabs. He has also carried the ball 19 times for 167 yards (8.8 ypc) with 1 TD run so far for the Lions in his career. This was an outstanding move for the Lions, who suddenly have a very bright future.
The Lions have released 31-year old TE Will Heller. Heller played in all 16 games for the Lions last year and he caught 6 passes for 42 yards (7.0 avg). Heller played in 48 games in his three years with the Lions and he caught 39 passes for 375 yards (9.6 avg) with 4 TD grabs. This is not a big loss as the Lions are a passing team now and Heller is best at run blocking. He shouldn’t have a problem finding a new job for 2012.
UPDATE: (3/23/2012) – The Lions re-sign Will Heller to a 1-year deal.