Lions may be able to reunite with Avonte Maddox’s former Pitt teammate

The Detroit Lions have been dealing with an injury bug since last season, when multiple defenders were down for the count ahead of their divisional round matchup with the Washington Commanders. Their safety and cornerback room diminished over time, and they began the year with a major season-ending injury to Aidan Hutchinson as the biggest harbinger of doom to the unit.

This year, the Lions are entering the season with a fully healthy slate of starters in their secondary, and with the addition of D.J. Reed . The team should be aiming to bring on as many backups on their final 53-man roster with genuine talent, though. And, one player who could be hitting the waiver wire soon is a familiar face to one of the Lions' top defenders, Avonte Maddox.

Cornerback Damarri Mathis was recently named as a potential cut candidate by NFL.com draft analyst Eric Edholm. Mathis, a former Pitt player with Maddox back in 2017, is on this list not because he hasn't played to his potential, but because the Denver Broncos are so chock full of talent in their cornerback room that he's sunken to the background.

Lions could scoop up former Pitt teammate of Maddox's

Edholm wrote of Mathis' status as a cut candidate, "This is not so much an indictment of Mathis as a player; rather, he just seems to have fallen behind some talented DBs in a loaded secondary. He started 17 games in 2022 and 2023 combined, but saw his workload dialed back significantly last season."

Mathis and Maddox were te ammates at Pitt in 2017, where the two defensive backs were on completely opposite ends of the developmental spectrum - Maddox was already a senior, about to declare for the draft, while Mathis was a freshman just getting his footing in Division I football.

Mathis played in seven games that season, recording just two total tackles. Maddox had 27 total tackles his senior year through 10 games played, along with four tackles for loss and two interceptions. Pitt is known for developing some solid defensive backs, like Maddox, Dane Jackson, and Jordan Whitehead. Mathis was also with the team under head coach Pat Narduzzi - an extremely defensively minded skipper.

Mathis had his best season in his rookie year with the Broncos, recording 65 total tackles and seven passes defended in 2022. But, Denver has acquired some nasty talent in their secondary, like defending Defensive Player of the Year Pat Surtain II, Nik Bonitto, and Riley Moss.

While Detroit works to solidify both their final roster and their practice squad, Mathis could be a sneakily solid snag off the waiver wire if he lasts until the Lions' time to pick from there this week.