Eric Ebron Released by Lions; 1st-Round Pick Spent 4 Seasons with Team

The Detroit Lions announced on Wednesday that they released tight end Eric Ebron, just four seasons after making him the No. 10 overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft. 

Ebron, 24, registered 186 receptions, 2,070 yards and 12 total touchdowns in his Lions' career.

Adam Schefter of ESPN noted that the Lions had tried to trade Ebron before releasing him, to no avail, with Mike Garafolo of NFL.com adding that the Lions were never going to pay the $8.25 million Ebron was due in 2018.

Garafolo also noted that Ebron is unlikely to see that figure in free agency as well.

While Ebron has a ton of athletic ability and is a factor over the middle and after the catch, he never lived up to his status as a top-10 pick. That becomes even more clear when you consider who was drafted directly after him, as Will Brinson of CBS Sports noted: 

That doesn't mean that Ebron couldn't take positive steps in the coming years, according to Rotoworld's Josh Norris:

Ebron arguably has more upside than either of the two remaining top tight-end options in free agency, Tyler Eifert and Austin Sefarian-Jenkins. It remains to be seen if the Lions will pursue either player, but both will come cheaper than Ebron would have cost in 2018 had they kept him.

It's also possible Ebron had simply worn out his welcome in Detroit. 

As Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press wrote, "One of the franchise's most polarizing players, Ebron was booed by hometown fans  when he struggled early last season, but he ended the year up on an uptick by catching at least four passes in six of the season's final seven games."

His 2017 season, in other words, was a microcosm of both his disappointing tenure in Detroit and the tantalizing upside he's flashed at times but never consistently reached.