Lions' 2020 Salary Cap Spending by Position

Breaking down the Lions' 2020 salary cap spending by position group

Detroit Lions general manager Bob Quinn has been working on the roster now for four full years, and is going into his fifth season with the team. 

Obviously, things have not exactly worked out the way Quinn probably envisioned when he was hired in 2016. 

Whether it's due to coaching, roster talent, free-agent acquisitions, draft selections or other factors, the Lions have progressively gotten worse under Quinn’s guidance.

With the potential salary cap reduction in years to come to offset the profit losses in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a new strategy for roster construction may be necessary. 

Fortunately, the Lions are in good shape this year and next in terms of open cap space.

When looking at where the Lions are currently allocating their salary cap resources in comparison to other organizations, you can get a decent idea for which positions Quinn has prioritized. 

Cheap draft picks also play a role as well, but the breakdown is rather interesting nonetheless. 

Using Spotrac’s salary cap figures, the Lions are spending the most money at the defensive back position. 

Over 19 percent of the Lions' cap space is dumped into the DB room. 

Yes, they also have more players in the defensive backfield than at any other position. 

However, the Lions are still spending the seventh-most money of any NFL team in the secondary. 

It’s the only position group that ranks in the top 10 in terms of money in juxtaposition with the rest of the league. 

Even with quarterbacks Matthew Stafford and newly acquired backup Chase Daniel having sizable contracts, the Lions still aren’t paying top-10 money on the position -- relative to the rest of the league in 2020. 

For a full breakdown of the money spent by the Lions per position group, check out the two charts below.

As you can see, Quinn and the Lions have spread out their money fairly well to each position group.

There are no real big outliers at any position. 

Quinn has mentioned how he wants a team with few weaknesses, and there isn't one position group he has neglected. 

All the players he has brought in haven't necessarily lived up to their billing. But, it's not for a lack of trying.

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