ALLEN PARK — According to Tuesday’s transaction wire, the Detroit Lions will welcome three free-agent defensive backs for trials, including the best defensive back in the Canadian Football League this season.
Defensive end Mathieu Betts, as well as cornerbacks Thomas Graham Jr. and Jace Whittaker, had their tires kicked. That is consistent with this team’s inability to find reliable defensive line and secondary performance this season.
This season, Aidan Hutchinson and Alim McNeill have been the Lions’ main defensive linemen. With regards to applying pressure, Hutchinson has been operating alone, as McNeill is still sidelined due to a knee ailment.
In his few outings, 36-year-old Bruce Irvin has been a sparkplug. However, he has already missed a trip due to an ankle ailment, so it is difficult to rely on
him for regular output. Josh Paschal has improved significantly in the last few games, and the Lions may find use for his inside-outside flexibility as they strive to find the perfect lineups.
After playing a key role for the BC Lions the last two seasons, Betts is now the CFL’s most outstanding defensive player. Over the course of 18 games last season, Betts recorded 18 sacks and 4 forced fumbles. Compared to his seven-sack breakout season for the BC Lions in 2022, that was a significant improvement.
At the 2019 East-West Shrine college football showcase, the defensive end was again shown. Before moving up to the CFL, Betts played for the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent, making it to the last round of cuts.
The Bears selected Graham in the sixth round of the 2021 draft out of Oregon. He played for the Cleveland Browns for a portion of the previous season after spending the first two of his career in Chicago. He made 11 appearances in games.
Whittaker signed a contract with the Arizona Cardinals in 2022 as an undrafted rookie out of Arizona. This past season, he survived camp with the Washington Commanders but was cut during the last round of cuts. Like Graham, Whittaker contributes on special teams and played the most defensive snaps of his career in the previous season. And because Khalil Dorsey started at cornerback for the Lions last week and is now more involved in the defense, that may be helpful.
