Lions table talks with Ndamukong Suh until end of season

The Detroit Lions have tabled contract talks with defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and will not resume them until the end of the season. Lions general manager Martin Mayhew remains confident that a deal will get done after the season.

The Detroit Lions have ended contract talks with defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and will not resume them until after the season, Lions president Tom Lewand told reporters Monday.

Martin Mayhew, the Lions' general manager, remains confident that a deal will get done after the season. 

Suh is entering the final year of his rookie contract and has a salary cap hit of $22.4 million this season. On Sunday, new head coach Jim Caldwell said he was optimistic the Lions would be able to re-sign Suh to a long-term deal. 

Mayhew said it was the team's decision to table the talks, and Lewand said that while the timing of the deal has changed, he's still optimistic it gets done.

Neither Mayhew nor Lewand ruled out using the franchise tag on Suh to retain him for 2015. The one-year tag would cost $26.7 million, or the team could let the 27-year-old become a free agent.

More: Lions take wide receiver Golden Tate off PUP list

Suh had 48 tackles and 5.5 sacks in 16 starts for Detroit last season. 

GALLERY: SUH'S CONTROVERSIAL MOMENTS

Ndamukong Suh's Controversial Moments

Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

In just his fourth year in the league, Ndamukong Suh has become one of the most polarizing players in the NFL.

Leon Halip/Getty Images

Before he even played his first official snap, Suh announced himself as a ferocious, if not dirty player. In an exhibition game against the Cleveland Browns in August 2010, Suh charged through the defensive line and yanked quarterback Jake Delhomme's facemask before tightening his grip and throwing Delhomme down by his head. Suh was fined $7,500 for the hit.

Damian Strohmeyer/SI

Suh has a history with Bears QB Jay Cutler, starting with a nasty forearm shove, during a game in December 2010, that was deemed a blow to the head and cost the defensive tackle $15,000. Replays later showed that Suh actually hit Cutler above the shoulder pads and below the neck, but the hit was still deemed a fineable offense.

John Biever/SI

Bengals QB Andy Dalton received a rude and highly illegal welcome to the NFL by Suh when the then-rookie had his helmet ripped off in the 2011 preseason opener. The hit, similar to the one Suh put on Delhomme, earned him a $20,000 fine. Suh was none too happy about the response as he would tweet: "$20,000REALLY???!!"

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Suh was voted the dirtiest player in a Sporting News poll of 111 players on 31 teams. Suh won in a landslide over the Steelers' James Harrison.

Charles Rex Arbogast/AP

In a November 2011 game, Suh ripped Cutler's helmet off while taking the quarterback down.

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In a Thanksgiving game against the Green Bay Packers in 2011, Suh became tangled up with Packers guard Evan Dietrich-Smith and eventually stamped the lineman after standing up. The act earned Suh a two-game suspension without pay and sullied his reputation in the press and throughout the league.

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In an October 2012 game against the Chicago Bears, Suh laid a controversial but decidedly legal hit on quarterback Jay Cutler, a player that he has terrorized in the past. Suh chased Cutler to the sidelines before grabbing his shoulder pad and violently driving the quarterback into the ground. The NFL determined not to fine Suh for the hit.

Paul Sancya/AP

Suh was fined $30,000 for kicking Houston quarterback Matt Schaub during a Thanksgiving Day game on Nov. 22, 2012. After Suh was taken to the ground, his foot swung toward Schaub and hit him in the groin area.

Leon Halip/Getty Images

During the 2013 season opener, with 14:09 left in the second quarter, Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder threw a pick to Detroit outside linebacker DeAndre Levy, who appeared to take it to the house for a touchdown. However, Ndamukong Suh negated the score when he put a clearly illegal block on Minnesota center John Sullivan (inset). The NFL levied a $100,000 fine against Suh for the low block.

- Molly Geary