Now that the Lions have their rookie class in the fold and pieced together an initial 90-man offseason roster, let’s take a look at the depth chart, while offering an early projection on how the team might look heading into the 2024 season:

Quarterback (2)

In >> Jared Goff, Hendon Hooker

Work to do >> Nate Sudfeld

Thoughts>> Not only are the Lions set at starting quarterback for years to come after getting an anticipated contract extension done with Goff this week, but the team also has the luxury of a high-ceiling backup. After having veteran Teddy Bridgewater serve as the insurance policy last year, the team is expected to fully commit to Hooker as the No. 2 option in 2024.

A Heisman front-runner before a knee injury prematurely ended his senior season at Tennessee, Hooker completed 68.9% of his passes for 6,080 yards, 58 touchdowns and just five interceptions his final two college seasons. He added another 1,050 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground, highlighting valuable dual-threat ability. After missing most of his rookie season rehabbing his injury, he gives us a reason to watch this preseason.

There’s not a lot of value in carrying a third QB on the 53-man roster, especially after an offseason rule adjustment allows for a practice squad elevation to serve as a team’s emergency third option. Sudfeld, who was the team’s backup in 2022 prior to tearing his ACL last August, would be a strong fit for that role, given his familiarity with the offense.

Running backs (4)

In >> David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs, Sione Vaki, Craig Reynolds

Work to do >> Jermar Jefferson, Zonovan Knight, Jake Funk

Thoughts >> There’s no mystery at the top of the depth chart, where Montgomery and Gibbs operate as a potent one-two punch. In their first season together, the tandem combined for nearly 2,400 yards from scrimmage and scored 24 touchdowns.

The backfield intrigue is the No. 3 spot, where the Lions added a strong challenger to the incumbent Reynolds, who has done well in the role the past two seasons. Vaki, who primarily played safety in college, captured the attention of the team’s evaluators as a fill-in running back at Utah last season, when he racked up 317 yards on 42 carries and another 203 yards with 11 receptions. Beyond his natural playmaking ability, he’s a standout special teams performer. That’s a recipe that could eventually push the rookie past Reynolds on the depth chart and potentially off the roster.

For now, it feels like there’s room for both, particularly given there’s not currently a fullback on the roster requiring a spot. Plus, with changes to the kickoff format designed to sharply increase returns, there’s added need for competent special teams performers.

Wide receivers (6)

In >> Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Kalif Raymond, Donovan Peoples-Jones, Antoine Green, Isaiah Williams

Work to do >> Maurice Alexander, Daurice Fountain, Tom Kennedy, Tre’Quan Smith, Kaden Davis, Jalon Calhoun

Thoughts >> The top four spots are near locks, with Peoples-Jones capable of replacing a good chunk of what was lost from Josh Reynolds’ departure in free agency. Anther one or two jobs will be earned through the remainder of the offseason program. We’re going to give the initial edge to developmental upside.

Green, a seventh-round draft pick last year, didn’t do much as a rookie. He saw a little more than 100 snaps, catching a single pass for 2 yards. He did show some blocking prowess as the season progressed — which won’t hurt his cause with this coaching staff — but more than that, general manager Brad Holmes recently praised Green’s progress behind the scenes.

As for Isaiah Williams, a roster spot is admittedly purely speculative without seeing a single practice with the veterans. But there’s something to be said for the significant contract guarantees that were given to the undrafted talent out of Illinois. He checks a lot of the boxes you want from guys at the back end of the roster, from work ethic to consistency to leadership.

Among those we initially have on the outside looking in, Fountain and Smith are the most intriguing. Fountain will be entering his fourth season and managed to stick on Detroit’s practice squad for the entirety of the 2024 season. The Lions clearly see something in him. Smith, meanwhile, has a track record of pro production and a familiarity with some of the team’s coaches from their overlap in New Orleans.

Tight ends (3)

In: >> Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright, James Mitchell

Work to do >> Shane Zylstra, Parker Hesse, Sean McKeon

Thoughts >> With reasonably good health, the record-shattering LaPorta and recently re-signed Wright should continue to eat up most of the weekly workload for Detroit. Mitchell, a fifth-round choice in 2022, picked up the scraps last year, averaging around five snaps per game prior to Wright missing time with an injury.

Mitchell presumably maintains the inside track for the third job, in large part because of the offensive potential the team saw in him coming out of Virginia Tech. But he won’t go unchallenged. When healthy, Zylstra has shown a nose for the end zone on the practice field. Meanwhile, Hesse, who signed after a successful tryout at the team’s rookie minicamp last weekend, would give the team a bigger-framed blocking option with extensive special teams experience.

Offensive line (10)

In: >> Taylor Decker, Penei Sewell, Kevin Zeitler, Graham Glasgow, Frank Ragnow, Colby Sorsdal, Christian Mahogany, Kayode Awosika, Dan Skipper, Giovanni Manu

Work to do >> Michael Niese, Connor Galvin, Netane Muti, Matt Farniok, Duke Clemens, Kingsley Eguakun, Bryan Hudson

Thoughts >> Despite losing Jonah Jackson in free agency, the Lions were able to keep their O-line the unquestioned strength of the roster by re-signing Glasgow and adding Zeitler, a former first-round pick and 2023 Pro Bowler. The team also continued to stockpile young depth to combat its aging starting lineup, using draft picks on Manu and Mahogany.

The biggest question as they put together the room ahead of the 2024 season is how many pieces will they keep, particularly along the interior? Currently, there’s a good chance the team will carry three backup guards into the season, with Awosika being the most proven of the bunch, while Sorsdal and Mahogany were drafted with developmental purpose.

Meanwhile, at tackle, it’s highly unlikely the team will feel Manu is ready for game action to begin the upcoming season. So a need for a reliable backup behind Sewell and Decker remains. Maybe a young piece like Galvin can stake a claim for that job with a strong preseason, but until proven otherwise, it’s the veteran Skipper’s to lose.

Defensive line (10)

In >> Aidan Hutchinson, Marcus Davenport, Alim McNeill, DJ Reader, Josh Paschal, John Cominsky, Levi Onwuzurike, Mekhi Wingo, Brodric Martin, James Houston

Work to do >> Mathieu Betts, Mitchell Agude, Kyle Peko, Chris Smith, Nate Lynn, Isaac Ukwu

Thoughts >> The Lions made a massive upgrade along the interior of the defensive front with the signing of Reader this offseason, but the team is still looking for someone to step up on the edge, opposite Hutchinson.

The team added Davenport, a former first-round pick who had nine sacks in 2021 before injuries sapped his production the past two years. He’ll enter a mix with Paschal and Cominsky, a pair who fell short of expectations in 2023, and Houston, who is coming back from a broken ankle that derailed his ability to show his rookie success was sustainable.

The dark horse in that competition is Betts. He was the CFL’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player in 2023 after tallying 18 sacks for British Columbia. How that success ports to this level for the 29-year-old remains to be seen, but the door is open for him to command a roster spot and playing time with a strong offseason.

Detroit’s interior depth is also littered with question marks. Onwuzurike was finally healthy in 2023, but he didn’t see much playing time in his third season. Still, he had a bigger workload than Martin, a third-round pick last year. Drafted as a developmental project, Martin spent much of his rookie year as a healthy scratch, so it will be interesting to see how much more prepared he is for a role this year. Finally, there’s Wingo, a Day 3 draft pick out of LSU. He’s on the small side for the position at 6-foot and 291 pounds, but the team likes the way he gets after the quarterback.

If any of them struggle to secure their spot, Peko, the recently signed eight-year veteran, will be waiting in the wings to take a job.

Linebackers (5)

In >> Alex Anzalone, Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes, Malcolm Rodriguez, Jalen Reeves-Maybin

Work to do >> Steele Chambers, DaRon Gilbert

Thoughts >> The Lions are shaping up to be lighter at off-ball linebacker than they were last year after special teams standout Anthony Pittman left in free agency. Additionally, the team lost a potential replacement for that role when the Arizona Cardinals claimed Trevor Nowaske off waivers in late December.

Defensively, the Lions should still have plenty. Usually requiring just two on the field in most personnel packages, Anzalone remains an every-down player, with Campbell and Barnes splitting most of the remaining snaps. Rodriguez and Reeves-Maybin round out the room as reliable depth and high-level special teams contributors.

For Chambers and Gilbert, a pair of undrafted rookies, special teams will be their ticket. If either one proves to be a ball-seeking missile on kickoff and punt coverage, they could make a case to fill Pittman’s spot on the roster.

Defensive backs (10)

In >> Carlton Davis III, Terrion Arnold, Emmanuel Moseley, Amik Robertson, Ennis Rakestraw Jr., Brian Branch, Khalil Dorsey, Kerby Joseph, Ifeatu Melifonwu, C.J. Moore

Work to do >> Steven Gilmore, Kindle Vildor, Craig James, Brandon Joseph, Chelen Garnes, Loren Strickland, Morice Norris

Thoughts >> The addition of four cornerbacks, plus the pending return of Moseley from injury, could make it difficult for Gilmore and Vildor to maintain their roster spots from last year. Dorsey has a better shot to stick from that bunch simply because of his special teams ability, both as a gunner on punt coverage and as a kickoff returner.

Detroit is still seemingly light on safety, even following the re-signing of Moore after the NFL lifted his gambling-related suspension. That potentially speaks to the confidence the team has in Branch being more of a moveable piece in his second season. But if there’s a strong desire to keep him locked into his nickel role, there’s an opening for a young safety to earn a job.

At the top of that list is Brandon Joseph, a cerebral playmaker who intercepted 10 passes his final three college campaigns before spending his rookie season on Detroit’s practice squad.

Specialists (3)

In >> Jack Fox, Michael Badgley, Scott Daly

Work to do >> Hogan Hatten, James Turner

Thoughts >> It’s unlikely a rookie breaks up Detroit’s kicking battery, but Hatten is a fascinatingly high-end athlete for a long snapper, blocking a punt and recording a safety for Idaho last season. As for Turner, the former Saline and Michigan kicker, he’ll need to demonstrate more leg strength than he was allowed to show in college if he has any hope of overtaking Badgley.