Wojo asks John Morton about Dan Campbell’s aggressive style of coaching.
Wojo asks John Morton about Dan Campbell’s aggressive style of coaching.
The Detroit Lions have made some adjustments to their roster following rookie minicamp.
Three minicamp tryouts — tight end Luke Deal (Auburn), wide receiver Malik Taylor (Ferris State) and defensive lineman Raequan Williams (Michigan State) — have signed to the active roster. Tight end Caden Prieskorn (Ole Miss), an Orchard Lake St. Mary’s product who was brought onto the the team as an undrafted free agent following last month’s draft, was waived.
Williams went undrafted in 2020 and signed with the Eagles. He spent two seasons in Philadelphia before making stops with the Jaguars (2022) and Panthers (2022-23), though he never appeared in a game for Jacksonville or Carolina. Williams notched 160 tackles (30 for loss) and 11½ sacks in his time with the Spartans.
Taylor collected 2,091 receiving yards at Ferris State. He signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a UDFA in 2019 before going on to spend time with the Green Bay Packers (2019-22) and New York Jets (2022-24). Deal, meanwhile, has been at Auburn for the last six seasons. He’s known more as a blocker than he is a pass-catcher.
Lions have extra roster spot
The Lions are now up to 91 players on their active roster, but they won’t have to do any trimming to get back under the 90-man limit.
That’s because sixth-round pick Ahmed Hassanein, who on Friday signed his rookie deal, qualifies for a roster exemption through the NFL’s International Player Pathway (IPP) program. To qualify, a player’s citizenship and principal place of residence must be outside of the United States and Canada, according to the NFL, and they must not have more than two years of high school experience in the U.S.
Hassanein was born in the U.S. but moved to Egypt when he was 6 years old. He returned to California with his brother at 16 years old, and he played two seasons at Loara High School in Anaheim before he went to Boise State and racked up 24 sacks for the Broncos.
If Hassanein makes it on Detroit’s 53-man roster following training camp, he will no longer be exempt from counting against the team’s limit. If the Lions waive him, however, he can return as a 17th member of Detroit’s practice squad. NFL teams are typically limited to 16 players on a practice squad.
Peoples-Jones to New Orleans
Donovan Peoples-Jones is signing with the New Orleans Saints after trying out for the team during rookie minicamp, according to the NFL’s transaction wire.
A Detroit native who played at Detroit Cass Tech before a three-year collegiate tenure at Michigan, Peoples-Jones spent 2024 on the Lions’ practice squad. People-Jones, who was originally acquired in a deal with the Cleveland Browns at the trade deadline in October 2023, appeared in eight games with the Lions in ’23, tallying 58 yards on five catches.
Peoples-Jones collected 1,327 yards and 14 touchdowns on 103 catches in his career with the Wolverines. He was selected by the Browns in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft. His most successful season in Cleveland came in 2022, when he hauled in 61 receptions for 839 yards and three scores.
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