11 months ago
Breaking down what the Lions have in their 11 undrafted free agents
By this point, most Detroit Lions fans are familiar with the seven players added during last month's NFL draft.
So, ahead of rookie minicamp, which begins Friday, let's spend some time diving into Detroit's 11 undrafted free agents. It'll be difficult for any of them to make the 53-man roster, but not impossible; the Lions, despite being loaded last season, had three UDFAs (long snapper Hogan Hatten, safety Loren Strickland and receiver Isaiah Williams) make the initial unit coming out of training camp.
Here's a breakdown of each UDFA, along with some discussion about the path for them to make Detroit's roster.
Keith Cooper Jr., DE, Houston
2024 stats: 46 tackles (nine for loss), 29 pressures, 3½ sacks
Breakdown: Aside from a couple of defensive backs we'll touch on later, Cooper (6-foot-5, 280 pounds) is the only defender on this list. The Lions are loaded at defensive tackle and linebacker, but they had some room for a defensive end. Cooper, a three-star recruit in the Class of 2021, started his college tenure with three seasons at Tulane (he posted 65 pressures and 10½ sacks with the Green Wave) before transferring to Houston. Five of Detroit's DEs — Aidan Hutchinson, Marcus Davenport, Josh Paschal, Al-Quadin Muhammad and Ahmed Hassanein — should feel confident about landing a roster spot. If Cooper can come in just behind them at No. 6, he's got a chance, though it's no guarantee.
More: Dan Jackson's rise from Georgia walk-on to NFL draft pick shows why he's a fit with Lions
Leif Fautanu, OL, Arizona State
2024 stats: 14 starts, 10 pressures allowed
Breakdown: Few players have left college with more experience at center than Fautanu (6-2, 315 pounds), who recorded 3,613 snaps at the position across 55 games (54 starts). Fautanu spent four seasons at UNLV before he hit the portal and landed at Arizona State, where he helped lead ASU to the College Football Playoff last season as a steady presence along the interior of the offensive line. Pro Football Focus had Fautanu with a 67.3 grade as a run blocker in 2024, but his mark as a pass blocker (80.9) ranked 29th among 152 qualified centers. The Lions have their starting center with Frank Ragnow, but they can always use depth behind him. Offensive guard Graham Glasgow is Ragnow's current backup, followed by Michael Niese and 2024 UDFA Kingsley Eguakun.
Gavin Holmes, CB, Texas
2024 stats: 14 tackles (one for loss), three pass deflections
Breakdown: Another prospect who's college career includes stops at two programs, Holmes (5-11, 185 pounds) got his start at Wake Forest ahead of his transfer to Texas. The former three-star recruit is a true outside cornerback, with nearly 93% of his 1,749 defensive snaps coming out wide. Holmes was never on the hook for allowing a touchdown in his time with the Longhorns, per PFF, and he had a solid passer rating against of 76.8 in his two seasons with the team. He also logged 321 snaps on special teams at Texas, with most of that coming on kickoff coverage (177) and punt returns (122). His path to the roster includes making a difference on special teams while also jumping over some of Detroit's depth on the outside.
Zach Horton, TE, Indiana
2024 stats: 21 receptions, 189 yards, four touchdowns
Breakdown: Horton (6-4, 254 pounds) is known more as a blocker than anything else, but he had his moments — eight career games with 30 or more receiving yards, including a career-best 116 yards against South Alabama in 2023 — as a pass-catcher, too. Team success followed the tight end throughout his time in college, with James Madison compiling a 31-7 record during his three seasons with the school and Indiana going 11-2 in 2024 after he followed head coach Curt Cignetti to the Hoosiers. If there's one spot on Detroit's roster where a UDFA has a clear path to a roster spot, it's tight end. Sam LaPorta and Brock Wright are the top couple of options at the position, but nothing beyond that is guaranteed.
Jakobie Keeney-James, WR, UMass
2024 stats: 50 receptions, 839 yards, six touchdowns
Breakdown: If you're looking to bet on a prospect with upside, Keeney-James (6-1, 195 pounds) is your guy. He wasn't invited to the NFL Scouting Combine, but he crushed his workouts at UMass' pro day, turning in the above-average numbers in the 40-yard dash (4.37 seconds) and vertical jump (40½ inches). Only two receivers at the combine — Miami's Sam Brown Jr. (41½ inches) and Iowa State's Jaylin Noel (41½ inches) — had better verticals, and neither were as fast as Keeney-James, though Noel's 4.39-second sprint was close. Like most early-career receivers, Keeney-James will have to make his mark on special teams to make the roster. His physical tools should put him in a position to get that done, and his height makes him a candidate to serve as depth as a receiver on the outside.
More: Lions mailbag: What does structure of Kerby Joseph's contract say about cap strategy?
Ian Kennelly, DB, Grand Valley State
2024 stats: 64 tackles (one for loss), three interceptions
Breakdown: Unranked by the 247Sports Composite coming out of Eisenhower High School in Shelby Township, Kennelly (6-2, 205 pounds) redshirted his first season at Grand Valley State before landing a starting role in the secondary in 2021. He earned All-GLIAC honors as a member of the first team in '23 and '24, and he finished his time with the Lakers with 180 tackles, 19 pass breakups and eight interceptions, including three picks in GVSU's first four games last season. The Lions have their two starting safeties, in Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch, but Kennelly should have an opportunity to compete with Dan Jackson, Morice Norris and Strickland for the right to play behind the talented tandem at the top of Detroit's depth chart.
Jackson Meeks, WR, Syracuse
2024 stats: 78 receptions, 1,021 yards, seven touchdowns
Breakdown: It took a transfer from Georgia to Syracuse for Meeks (6-2, 210 pounds) to have a breakout season, but he got it done with the Orange in 2024. Meeks, the nephew of former Lions defensive end and potential free-agent target Za'Darius Smith, had an average depth of target of 9.9 yards last season, and he was able to haul in 21 of his 35 contested-catch opportunities. Impressively, 55 of Meeks' 78 receptions (70.5%) went for a first down. He's got his work cut out for him to make the roster with Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Tim Patrick, Kalif Raymond and third-round rookie Isaac TeSlaa presumably ahead of him, but perhaps he could be this year's version of Isaiah Williams.
Mason Miller, OL, North Dakota State
2024 stats: 16 starts, 17 pressures allowed
Breakdown: Most of Miller's work at North Dakota State came at right tackle (1,845 career snaps at the position), but he showed some versatility in 2023 by logging 697 reps at left guard across 11 games. For his career, Miller (6-7, 305 pounds) is credited with allowing 53 total pressures, including 11 sacks, in 1,110 pass-blocking opportunities. An interesting note: Trent Fraley, the son of Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley, was NDSU's center last season, and he started started 16 games alongside Miller. The Lions are deep both at tackle and guard, but Miller will try to latch on as depth.
Caden Prieskorn, TE, Ole Miss
2024 stats: 27 receptions, 401 yards, three touchdowns
Breakdown: Prieskorn (6-6, 255 pounds) has been a big-play threat for the last three seasons, averaging nearly 14 yards per reception on his 105 catches since 2022. An Orchard Lake St. Mary's product who committed to Memphis and later transferred to Ole Miss, Prieskorn offers the pass-catching chops the Lions may be looking for in a backup. Wright is solid as a receiver — he's caught 26 of his 30 targets over the last two seasons — but he doesn't stretch the field like Prieskorn potentially could. Shane Zylstra, a converted wide receiver who is a receiving threat in his own right, will try to stave off Prieskorn and others challenging for TE3, including free-agent acquisition Kenny Yeboah.
More: These prospects with Michigan connections have signed as UDFAs, earned minicamp invites
Kye Robichaux, RB, Boston College
2024 stats: 184 touches, 788 yards from scrimmage, 11 total touchdowns
Breakdown: The Lions are returning their four top running backs from last season (Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery, Sione Vaki and Craig Reynolds), so it'll be challenging for Robichaux (6-foot, 217 pounds) to make the active roster, though not impossible; Reynolds is a respected veteran, but he's one a one-year deal with no guaranteed money. Robichaux's testing numbers at Boston College's pro day suggest he has impressive explosion — namely, he had a vertical jump of 39 inches — but his results in the 20-yard shuttle (4.44 seconds) and 3-cone drill (7.33 seconds), as well as his time the 40-yard dash (4.67 seconds), suggest he may lack some agility.
Anthony Tyus III, RB, Ohio
2024 stats: 253 touches, 1,352 yards from scrimmage, 11 total touchdowns
Breakdown: Tyus (6-1, 226), another Michigan native, was a workhorse for the Bobcats last season, leading the Mid-American Conference in rush attempts (237) and rushing yards (1,215). He tested similarly to Robichaux, flashing his explosion with a solid vertical (33½ inches), but he also lacked agility, posting the same time as Robichaux in the 20-yard shuttle and coming in a tenth of a second slower in the 3-cone drill. Tyus, however, did show he can hit some home runs as a runner, logging 15 rushes of 15 or more yards last season. The Lions may not have a role to be had on the active roster, but there could be an opening on the practice squad, given Jermar Jefferson's departure. If that's the case, the battle between Robichaux and Tyus will be one to watch.
rsilva@detroitnews.com
@rich_silva18
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Breaking down what the Lions have in their 11 undrafted free agents
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