Pros and Cons of Lions Signing S Eric Reid

Logan Lamorandier dives into the pros and cons of the Lions signing free-agent safety Eric Reid

It’s that time of the season where every NFL fanbase asks if player “x” should be brought in to help boost their team. 

This time around, let’s look at the pros and cons regarding the Detroit Lions possibly adding free-agent safety Eric Reid.

Pros

First off, at one point in time, Reid was one of the top safeties in the game. 

The San Francisco 49ers drafted him in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft for a reason. 

Reid’s career got off to a really hot start. 

He was selected to the Pro Bowl in his rookie season, after picking off four passes and breaking up 11 more.

In his career, he has 98 starts, 11 interceptions, three forced fumbles and 519 combined tackles in his seven years in the league -- pretty solid production.

Being just 28 years old, you would imagine there is still plenty left in the tank.

After five years in San Francisco, Reid could only muster a one-year, $2 million deal with the Carolina Panthers in 2018. 

However, after the 2018 season, the Panthers subsequently inked Reid to a three-year deal worth more than $22 million. 

Unfortunately, that relationship didn’t last long. 

In a rather surprising move, the Panthers released Reid this offseason -- just one year into his new three-year extension.

Considering he is still a free agent at this point in the year, his price tag shouldn’t be all too high.

Cons

Obviously, the Panthers were not too fond of Reid’s 2019 play and enough so, that they were willing to eat $5 million in dead cap space.

According to Pro Football Focus, Reid’s 2019 season was the worst of his career. 

He graded out at 46.6 -- the third-worst graded safety in the NFL of those who played at least 20 percent of snaps. 

Even more concerning, he had the lowest coverage grade of any NFL safety. That’s not what the Lions need at this point.

Actually, the Lions don’t necessarily need a safety at all. 

Yes, it never hurts to add more talent and depth to the roster, but Detroit general manager Bob Quinn has invested in four safeties already. 

Quinn drafted both Tracy Walker and Will Harris in the third round, recently traded for former New England Patriots free safety Duron Harmon and signed Jayron Kearse in free agency.

Unless Reid comes dirt cheap and with the understanding he is fighting for a roster spot, there is no reason for the Lions to add a player who has struggled recently at a position that is far from their biggest need.

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