It has been an eventful start to the offseason in the NFC North, with plenty of news and turnover. Dan Campbell is one of only two head coaches to return to the division this season, giving the Detroit Lions a little bit of stability. Still, the organization must now make the right Detroit Lions free agency moves, bringing in the right free agents to take another step forward.
Below, we will look at the Lions’ cap space to see how much they have to spend. However, teams can now manipulate the cap to sign nearly any player they would like. We will also go over other Detroit Lions free agency information, including their own 2022 free agents and define what each type of free agent is.
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Detroit Lions Cap Space | NFL Free Agency
As of March 8th, the Detroit Lions cap space ranks near the top of the NFL. They have roughly $26.5 million in cap space. This will make it easier to re-sign the Detroit Lions free agents they want. They will also be able to spend a little bit on the open market to fill obvious areas of need.
Detroit Lions Free Agents 2022
The following are the 2022 Detroit Lions free agents as of March 8th.
| Player | Pos | 2022 Team | Type | Snaps |
| Tracy Walker | S | UFA | 77.30% | |
| Charles Harris | EDGE | UFA | 76.40% | |
| Alex Anzalone | LB | UFA | 72.60% | |
| Evan Brown | C | RFA | 68.50% | |
| Kalif Raymond | WR | UFA | 67.30% | |
| Dean Marlowe | S | UFA | 61.30% | |
| Matt Nelson | RT | ERFA | 61.30% | |
| Nicholas Williams | IDL | UFA | 54.60% | |
| Jalen Reeves-Maybin | LB | UFA | 54.00% | |
| Josh Reynolds | WR | UFA | 42.20% | |
| Jack Fox | P | ERFA | 37.40% | |
| Scott Daly | LS | ERFA | 29.50% | |
| Brock Wright | TE | ERFA | 27.30% | |
| KhaDarel Hodge | WR | UFA | 22.30% | |
| Tommy Kraemer | LG | ERFA | 21.60% | |
| Tim Boyle | QB | UFA | 16.30% | |
| Jessie Lemonier | EDGE | ERFA | 14.10% | |
| C.J. Moore | S | RFA | 13.80% | |
| Tom Kennedy | WR | ERFA | 13.50% | |
| Bobby Price | S | ERFA | 13.30% | |
| Josh Woods | LB | Lions | Signed | 9.90% |
| Ryan McCollum | C | ERFA | 9.20% | |
| Jalen Elliott | S | ERFA | 8.10% | |
| Riley Patterson | K | ERFA | 7.50% | |
| Shane Zylstra | TE | Lions | Signed | 7.40% |
| Anthony Pittman | LB | ERFA | 6.70% | |
| Will Holden | LT | RFA | 6.40% | |
| Mark Gilbert | CB | ERFA | 4.10% | |
| Juju Hughes | S | RFA | 2.50% | |
| David Blough | QB | RFA | 0.40% | |
| Joel Heath | IDL | UFA | 0.00% | |
| Jason Cabinda | FB | Lions | Signed | 0.00% |
| Godwin Igwebuike | S | ERFA | 0.00% | |
| Tyrell Crosby | RT | UFA | 0.00% | |
| Rashod Berry | TE | ERFA | 0.00% | |
| Shaun Dion Hamilton | LB | UFA | 0.00% |
Defining the Type of NFL Free Agents
Unrestricted Free Agents
An unrestricted free agent (UFA) can freely talk to or sign with any team after the start of the new league year. Any player with four or more accrued seasons in the NFL can be a UFA.
The net loss and gain of UFAs for a team are used to calculate the next season’s compensatory draft picks, but no other compensation is available to a team that sees a player leave as a UFA.
Restricted Free Agents
A player must have three accrued NFL seasons to be a restricted free agent (RFA). Before the new league year begins, a team can place one of three tenders on a restricted free agent (first, second or original-round tender). Essentially, this gives the player the option to return to the team on a one-year deal.
The RFA is allowed to seek deals with other teams, but the tendering team (original team) has the opportunity to match the offer and keep them. If the tendering team doesn’t match the offer, the signing team may need to give a draft pick according to the level of tender used on the player.
Exclusive-Rights Free Agents
Exclusive-rights free agency (ERFA) is only eligible to players who have two or fewer NFL seasons accrued. Teams can use an ERFA tender to any of these players before the start of the new league year, and it stops the player from negotiating contracts with other teams. The player can sign the tender, which is a one-year deal at their position’s minimum salary, or they can negotiate for a longer extension.
Finally, RFAs or ERFAs who do not receive a tender before the league year begins become “street free agents.” Street free agents have the same rights as UFAs, but they are not counted in the compensatory pick formula.
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