The Detroit Lions came out of Sunday’s game against the Cleveland Browns with a big win, but didn’t come out completely unscathed.
The Lions suffered a pair of big injuries to their secondary, including one that could lead to a long-term absence. One insider suggests the Lions could turn to their most recent opponent to find some help, targeting Browns cornerback Greg Newsome.
Lions Could Seek Outside Help
The Lions saw cornerbacks Terrion Arnold and D.J. Reed forced to leave Sunday’s win. While the team has plenty of internal candidates to fill the potential vacancies, Jeff Risdon of USA Today’s Lions Wire suggested the team could seek a trade for Newsome.
Risdon noted that the former first-round pick is playing on his fifth-year option in Cleveland worth $13 million this year, and could make a good candidate as a one-year rental for a Super Bowl contender like the Lions.
“There have been trade rumblings in the past about Newsome, a good coverage man but one with some injury concerns of his own; he’s missed at least three games every year of his career,” Risdon wrote. “He’s not noted for his run defense, with his career-high PFF run defense grade at just 55.1 and a missed tackle rate near 20 percent.”
Risdon noted that the Lions have some limited resources they can use and may need to beat out other potential suitors for Newsome.
In terms of what the Lions can offer, Detroit does not have a third-round pick in 2026. Both the Lions‘ own pick and the compensatory pick they’ll get for Aaron Glenn being hired by the Jets are already traded (for WR Isaac TeSlaa),” Risdon wrote. “Detroit has all of its other picks in 2026, as well as an extra selection in both the sixth and seventh rounds. There will be other suitors for both Woolen and Newsome, too.”
Lions Expecting One Long-Term Injury
Reed’s injury appears to be serious, with the cornerback being carted off the field and facing a grim prognosis from head coach Dan Campbell. He told reporters on Monday that Reed could be “down for a while.”
“The good news is, this is not a season-ender. We will get him back, it looks like,” Campbell said. “That’s the good news. He’s a stud.”
Arnold is not expected to miss a long stretch, but Campbell said he could be in danger of missing this week’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
“I don’t think this is a huge thing, but the question is, is he going to be ready for this week?” Campbell said. “That would be really the question. And if it’s not this week, he should be back by next week for sure.”
Campbell hinted that the team would not be making any new additions to the roster just yet, saying the team would look to its own depth for replacements for Arnold and Reed.
“We’ve always preached, man, next man up and getting the next guys ready to go, getting them reps in practice, which we’ve been doing from camp to even now in the season, going on four weeks now,” Campbell said. “Our next guys up get real reps. They get our scheme, our work, running our plays, so they’re expected to step in and we don’t lose a beat. They know that. That’s the expectation here, and that’s the standard.”
