NFL Free Agency: Detroit Lions Most Likely to Be Cut Before Week 1

The Detroit Lions have been a roster turnover machine in the last two years.

When a new coach and administration is trying to rebuild a team that avoided the win column for 21 months, that sort of comes with the territory.

Because of that, the 2011 offseason comes with a fair amount of intrigue, and I'm not just talking about the labor situation.

We may see the least turnover in Detroit in over a decade this season, with a steady coaching staff, rock-solid starters in a majority of positions and only a handful of draft picks.

But still, as it is with any team, some guys are just plain and simply going to get cut. The list of who will change significantly as we have free agency and trades (whenever that turns out to be), but as of now, here's my best guess.

And just to lay some ground rules:

1) The players on this list have to have been with the team last year and have played a semi-significant role. In other words, Zac Robinson may very well get cut, but I can't take any pride as an analyst in predicting that.

2) Because we have no idea how free agency is going to turn out, we will just assume for the purposes of this list that all potential RFAs are still under contract.

So with that in mind, say goodbye to...

Turk McBride

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DETROIT - DECEMBER 12: Aaron Rogers #12 of the Green Bay Packers rolls out to pass as Chad Clifton #76 of the Green Bay Packers blocks Turk McBride #75 of the Detroit lions during the second quarter of the game against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on

Turk McBride did a pretty nice job as a serviceable rotational end in 2010, and he's one of the only guys on this list who won't have any trouble finding work if the Lions cut him.

Problem with McBride is, he's pretty much the fourth defensive end in a four-man rotation. Cliff Avril and Kyle Vanden Bosch are runaway starters, and Lawrence Jackson came on strong late in the season and may have surpassed him.

Of course, McBride's trouble doesn't lie with those three; it lies with the little guy pushing for his spot from behind.

I am speaking, of course, of Willie Young, the seventh-round pick from last year with the undersized body and the oversized propensity to gut-check quarterbacks. Young had a great 2010 preseason, but it wasn't enough to keep him on the 53-man roster as a rookie.

Still, Young is brimming with potential as a small speed rusher in the vein of Dwight Freeney, and if he realizes more of that potential this year, he could bounce McBride for that last DE spot.

If that happens, hopefully the Lions are able to engineer a trade to actually get something for him, as McBride is one of the only guys on the Lions roster who may hold notable value for another team.

Bryant Johnson

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MINNEAPOLIS - SEPTEMBER 26: Bryant Johnson #80 of the Detroit Lions warms up prior to the start of the game against the Minnesota Vikings at Mall of America Field on September 26, 2010 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

The moment Detroit took Titus Young in the second round of the draft, Bryant Johnson's fate was sealed.

Arguably, he was done in Detroit when he finished a healthy 2010 campaign with 18 receptions, but if he wasn't done then, he certainly is now.

While there will still be a battle in training camp for Detroit's fourth wide receiver position, expect that to come down to the young guys with potential upside. Derrick Williams (third round, 2009), Tim Toone (seventh round, 2010) and Mike Moore (UDFA, 2010) will battle for that spot.

Johnson will technically fight for the spot, too. But with Nate Burleson playing the part of "veteran," and the other guys being younger and more athletic, Johnson will be a dead man walking in training camp.

Incidentally, this puts Williams on the chopping block, as well. Though Williams was a higher-round pick, he was drafted as a WR/KR, and he's now the third option (behind Young and Stefan Logan) at best to return kicks.

Toone has a good skill set for the slot, and Moore is a possession guy with excellent run blocking skills. Both spent 2010 on the practice squad, but either could make the final roster with a strong showing in the preseason. The Lions don't appear to be heavily committed to either Williams or Johnson.

Andre Fluellen

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ARLINGTON, TX - NOVEMBER 21: Jon Kitna #3 of the Dallas Cowboys breaks the tackle of Andre Fluellen #96 of the Detroit Lions and runs 29 yards for a fourth quarter touchdown at Dallas Stadium on November 21, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. The Cowboys defeated

Exhibit A: Andre Fluellen failing to sack Jon Kitna.

Exhibit B: The Lions should, as they did in 2010, take four defensive tackles into the season.

Exhibit C: Ndamukong Suh, Nick Fairley, Corey Williams, Sammie Hill.

The prosecution rests.

Jordon Dizon

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PITTSBURGH - AUGUST 14: Jordon Dizon #57 of the Detroit Lions walks off the field with the help of trainers after injuring himself during the preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on August 14, 2010 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (

Jordon Dizon never really got his big shot to show he could fit in a defense he wasn't meant for.

Sadly, that's not for lack of trying. The 2010 season was supposed to hold his big shot as a reserve linebacker for DeAndre Levy. And he would have gotten playing time, since Levy was hobbled for most of the season.

Unfortunately, Dizon tore up his knee in the preseason, and his audition to stay with the team ended before it began.

The good news for Dizon is that Gunther Cunningham seems to like him, and the Lions do not currently have a strong candidate to run the middle linebacker position behind Levy. If Dizon is displaced, it will undoubtedly have to do with the Lions' actions via free agency or trades.

Still, if the Lions bring in anybody capable of playing middle linebacker short of a UDFA afterthought, expect it to put Dizon's roster spot in danger. Luckily for him, the free-agent class is particularly weak at linebacker this year, so he might actually earn another year's worth of work.

But don't doubt that he'll be spending most of the preseason looking over his shoulder.

Aaron Brown/Maurice Morris

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DETROIT, MI - JANUARY 02: Maurice Morris #28 of the Detroit Lions tries to get around the tackle of Jared Allen #69 of the Minnesota Vikings at Ford Field on January 2, 2011 in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit won the game 20-13. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty

Maurice Morris and Aaron Brown share a slide here before one of them is definitely gone, and one is definitely staying.

I don't know who just yet, though the current state of things certainly points toward Morris staying and Brown leaving.

Two weeks ago, I would have said that was undeniably the case. But the arrival of Mikel Leshoure has muddled the situation just a bit. See, before the Lions drafted Leshoure, Morris was the only player on the roster resembling a between-the-tackles runner.

Obviously, that is no longer the case. The Leshoure/Jahvid Best power/speed combination has been established, so now the Lions have to make a decision on reserves.

But who will Detroit want to keep on the roster? Brown, who plays more like Best? Or Morris, who plays more like Leshoure? They can't keep both, since Stefan Logan is likely to take up a RB position.

Of course, this discussion takes us to the curious case of...

Jerome Felton

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ARLINGTON, TX - NOVEMBER 21: Jerome Felton #45 of the Detroit Lions fumbles the ball during the third quarter as Jason Hatcher #97 of the Dallas Cowboys attempts to catch the ball at Dallas Stadium on November 21, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. The ball was re

Jerome Felton's heart must have dropped into his stomach when he saw the Lions trade up to select Mikel Leshoure.

Felton was hoping that 2011 would be his chance to show his worth in the short-yardage game.

Fullback is a rapidly disappearing position in the NFL, and the ones remaining are meant to do three things: lead block, catch a handful of passes out of the backfield and be short-yardage bruisers.

Felton isn't great at the first two and didn't get a lot of action in the third. With nobody else on the roster sporting even a similar skill set, Felton figured to see an expanded role as a short-yardage back in 2011.

That was until the Lions drafted the thunderous 230-pound Leshoure in the second round.

Now, with no explicit need for a blocking fullback, and a young back on the roster who can handle both short-yardage situations and pick up seven yards on 1st-and-10, Felton's tenure with the Lions is in serious jeopardy.

Zack Follett

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EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 17: Zack Follett #49 of the Detroit Lions is taken off the field on a stretcher after being injured on a punt return against the New York Giants at New Meadowlands Stadium on October 17, 2010 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

If Zack Follett's career ends in Detroit, it will be of his own doing.

Well, sort of.

Follett is still uncertain as to his own future after a frightening neck injury that saw him get carted off the field last season. His doctors have told him he can continue to play, but they also noted that there isn't much space left between his injured disk and his spinal cord.

In other words, another injury to the same area could result in permanent paralysis.

That's a heavy decision for a 23-year-old to make. Do you continue playing the game you love, even with heightened risk of serious permanent injury? Or call it a career after two short years, health intact?

Follett has a contract waiting for him in Detroit, but whether or not he takes it is his call. Fans and coaches alike would love to see him playing in Honolulu blue again, no question.

But nobody wants to see him become a new generation's Mike Utley.