The Detroit Lions need pass rush help, and to this point in free agency they haven’t made a notable addition to move the needle there. There’s still plenty of time for something to happen, but having more options to add someone, particularly an edge rusher, is a good thing.
To that end, as had been somewhat expected amid all their roster turnover, ESPN’s Adam Schefter has reported the San Francisco 49ers are releasing defensive end Leonard Floyd.
Floyd spent one season with the 49ers after signing a two-year deal with them in free agency last offseason. While Pro Football Focus was not very complementary of his work (No. 102 in overall grade among edge rushers), he did have 8.5 sacks (second on the team, a half-sack behind Nick Bosa) with 44 pressures (according to PFF) and eight tackles for loss. He fell just short of making it five straight seasons with at least nine sacks, and he has not missed a game since the 2017 season.
In the category of “bet you didn’t know”, over the last five seasons (2020-2024) just six players in the league have more sacks than Floyd’s 48: T.J. Watt, Trey Hendrickson, Myles Garrett, Nick Bosa, Haason Reddick and Micah Parsons.
Leonard Floyd should automatically be on the Lions’ edge rusher radar
Floyd (240 pounds) doesn’t fit the physical profile the Lions tend to favor in edge players. But he does play the run pretty well (ignore dismal PFF grades), and unlike recent re-signee Marcus Davenport he doesn’t miss games. At 33 years old around the time next season starts (Sept. 8), Floyd is probably best used as a part of a rotation. But he can absolutely be a productive piece of an edge rusher rotation somewhere, and he should have several suitors.
Despite worry about lack of early free agency action from a segment of fans, the Lions have plenty of options to add a veteran edge rusher. Floyd can be, and should be, added to the list rather easily.