Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes and assistant GM Ray Agnew spoke to the media on Wednesday, just days after establishing the team’s 2026 53-man roster. The topics discussed were extremely wide-ranging, so here are the five biggest takeaways from the 25-minute session.
Note: I will not be including Holmes’ comments on the Terrion Arnold situation in this article. We have a separate story for those quotes.
Wide receiver room could still shift—and why they moved on from Greg Dortch
The Lions professed confidence and excitement for how deep the wide receiver room was this offseason, so it was certainly a bit surprising to see them keep just four on the 53-man roster—even if they kept three more on the practice squad. Holmes admitted that’s a little light at the position, but certainly seemed to imply that there could be some shifting at that position coming.
“Four is obviously a little bit on the lighter side. That’s just where we’re at right now today, currently,” Holmes said. “But I do like the different flavors in that room.”
One guy Holmes was quick to mention was Tom Kennedy, who currently resides on the practice squad. It certainly sounds like he could be in for a 53-man roster elevation, especially as the most likely candidate to be the team’s punt returner.
“He’s still part of our 69(-man roster) currently right now. He was able to add some special teams to his repertoire. He kind of did a little bit of that last year. But we all know the versatility that he has,” Holmes said.
One player that most expected to land on the 53-man roster was Greg Dortch—who himself said he was surprised by his release. Holmes didn’t provide many details, just noting the competition in the room.
“We wanted to add as much competition as possible this whole offseason,” Holmes said. “And, look, when you add as much competition as possible—I thought it was a fierce competition—it adds more discomfort, but it also entails harder decisions. So that’s really all that was.”
They still expect Isiah Pacheco to play this year
One surprising development from roster cuts was the placing of backup running back Isiah Pacheco on injured reserve, which will hold him out for at least four games. The news comes a week after Dan Campbell revealed Pacheco is dealing with a back injury. Holmes noted that the team is still excited to get him down the line, while not providing any sort of timeline.
“He’s steadily feeling better, and he’s doing everything that he can to get back, and we’re excited to get him back when he’s healthy,” Holmes said.
When asked if they still expect him back this season, Holmes said yes, but was a little more ambiguous.
“Yes, that’s the hope.”
Detroit could have placed Pacheco on IR at cutdowns and still would have him available to play after four games. But Holmes said the decision to wait a few days was based on the information they had at the time.
“With the information that we had, that’s why we decided to do it when we did it,” he said.
Happy with offensive line progress, but LG competition could be ongoing
I asked Holmes about the status of the offensive line, which was obviously a priority for this team to figure out prior to the season. Holmes said he was “really excited about that group.” Specifically, he’s been very happy with the progress of rookie right tackle Blake Miller.
“He’s gotten better and better and better every single day, which is kinda what we expected,” Holmes said. “So we like where he’s at.”
But what was more interesting was what he had to say about the left guard position. Christian Mahogany is the presumed starter based on how things played out in training camp, but it certainly sounds like Ben Bartch could still contend for that starting position.
“We all know that Christian Mahogany has starter-level ability. He’s shown that,” Holmes said. “But we wanted to increase the competition there. I know Bartch hasn’t been out there as much, but when he was out there, he was good. He performed well, he just wasn’t able to be out there as much. I would say last week, with the practices, the scrimmage, and that preseason game, he earned his spot.”
Sam LaPorta, Brian Branch still part of long-term plans
The Lions have previously stated their interest in getting long-term deals done with Sam LaPorta and Brian Branch. However, injuries have complicated matters—whereas Detroit has already extended Jack Campbell and Jahmyr Gibbs, two players drafted the same year.
On Wednesday, Holmes reiterated that he wants both LaPorta and Branch to be part of this team’s long-term plans.
“We still want to keep those guys around. Those plans haven’t changed,” Holmes said. “There’s a couple factors that we’ve still got to sort through, but in terms of us wanting those guys around, absolutely. Hopefully we can get that done.”
Increasing pass rush was a clear priority… and the 1 UDFA Holmes had to have
One of the most interesting takeaways from the Lions’ roster cuts was how much they prioritized pass rushers like Skyler Gill-Howard and Mekhi Wingo over space-eating run defenders like Chris Smith. That was clearly not a coincidence. On two separate occasions, Holmes reiterated that it was a specific goal this offseason to improve their pass rush.
“There was an emphasis—we wanted to add more juice and more ability to get after the quarterback,” Holmes said.
That was reflected at several points in the offseason. The Lions signed DJ Wonnum in free agency, drafted Derrick Moore in the second round of the NFL Draft, and they even made it a priority with their undrafted free agent period.
Holmes told a story about Eric O’Neill, the only UDFA that ended up making the 53-man roster. Signing players after the draft can be a bit chaotic, with multiple people within the organization making calls to secure deals. But with O’Neill, he was one of the highest priorities, so Holmes stood right next to director of college scouting Brian Hudspeth while he talked to the defensive end.
“When you get into undrafted free agency, there’s always a handful of guys that you want to make sure that you really get for various types of reasons, and Eric O’Neill was one of those guys,” Holmes said.
As for what he brings to the Lions, Holmes said it was everything—from athleticism to grit.
“He’s a very high-motor player. He’s very instinctive,” Holmes said. “He’s a better athlete than his numbers may indicate, and he gets the most out of himself. He’s just one of those guys that we knew he was going to fit right in here in terms of what we’re about from a culture standpoint, and he took advantage of his opportunities.”