Lions Free Up Major Cap Space By Releasing Veteran Defender

There's renewed optimism around the Detroit Lions after Dan Campbell led the team to a trio of wins in the final six weeks of the 2021 season. Campbell and the front office must continue building upon a promising foundation and there's no better way to do that than making smart decisions in free agency.

Detroit holds a moderate $25.8 million in cap space, and that number is about to take a big jump after it was reported the Lions will release a veteran defender.

Lions Cap Space

The Lions informed edge rusher Trey Flowers he'll be released at the start of the new league year, March 16th.

Trey Flowers News

The Lions hoped to make a splash when they signed the former New England Patriot to a five-year deal back in 2019. Unfortunately, Flowers only suited up 29 of 49 possible games and put together just 3.5 sacks in the last two years.

Flowers' release clears his $23.2 million contract while incurring a $12.9 million dead cap hit. That nets Detroit an additional $10.4 million to work with as the team looks to take another step forward next year.

There's plenty of talented edge rushers in both the upcoming NFL Draft and on the free-agent market. Some notable names the Lions could target include Aidan Hutchinson via the No. 2 pick in the draft, or free agents like Jerry Hughes and Justin Houston.

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