The Detroit Lions have 13 players scheduled to become unrestricted free agents (UFAs) in March. They will do their best to try and retain the players they want back before the free agency period opens, but that’s not always possible as players often want to test their market value.
It would be surprising to see the Lions retain all their UFAs and therefore ranking them in order of perceived preference is a valuable exercise. Below is my preferred order of rankings and not necessarily how the team views these players.
Tracy Walker, FS, starter
One of the most valuable players on the Lions defense, Walker played some of his best football as a professional in 2021, closing out the year with a game-sealing interception and an NFC Defensive Player of the Week recognition.