Aside from the AFC South and NFC East, the Lions will play six games against their NFC North division rivals, plus two additional games against the Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints. So let’s take a look at each of these five teams and see what changes they’ve made heading into 2016.
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings’ offense is going to look a little different this year.
| 2015 Offensive Starters | Proj. 2016 O Starters | ||
| Pos. | Player | Pos. | Player |
| LT | Matt Kalil | LT | Matt Kalil |
| LG | Brandon Fusco | LG | Alex Boone |
| C | Joe Berger | C | John Sullivan |
| RG | Michael Harris | RG | Brandon Fusco |
| RT | TJ Clemmings | RT | Andre Smith |
| TE | Kyle Rudolph | TE | Kyle Rudolph |
| WR | Mike Wallace | WR | Laquon Treadwell |
| WR | Stefon Diggs | WR | Stefon Diggs |
| WR | Charles Johnson | WR | Charles Johnson |
| RB | Adrian Peterson | RB | Adrian Peterson |
| QB | Teddy Bridgewater | QB | Teddy Bridgewater |
The retirement of RT Phil Loadholt means the team will look to Andre Smith and possibly second year tackle TJ Clemmings to hold down the edge opposite Matt Kalil.