Levi Onwuzurike has overcome significant challenges to become an important part of the Detroit Lions defense. But just how important is Onwuzurike to Detroit?<\/p>\n
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We’ll discover during free agency.<\/p>\n
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Onwuzurike, who was positioned almost equally between end and tackle on the Lions defensive line in 2024, is a free agent without restrictions. Keeping him in the den won\u2019t be affordable.<\/p>\n
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The salary estimates for Onwuzurike differ, suggesting that no one truly understands his market worth. Two well-respected sources, Over The Cap and PFF, both estimate that Onwuzurike will sign a contract worth between $8 million and $8.5 million annually. At the same time, Spotrac estimates Onwuzruike’s market value to be only $4.5 million annually. Justin Rogers predicts a contract worth $15 million annually.<\/p>\n
The variance in those salary forecasts is connected to Onwuzurike\u2019s availability issues following his lumbar fusion surgery, a procedure from which no known player has ever come back. Yet, after being absent for all but 10 games over two years, Onwuzurike stood out as a unique source of availability on Detroit’s defense in 2024. He topped the defensive line in snaps, achieving a career-best 1.5 sacks and 30 QB pressures, according to PFF.<\/p>\n
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Those are impressive figures for a player with positional flexibility, yet not indispensable. Given the remarkably talented defensive line class, it is highly feasible to expect similar production and DT\/DE versatility on Day 2 of the draft. There are Day 3 candidates who can provide more as a pass-rushing tackle, if that\u2019s the priority.<\/p>\n
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It\u2019s difficult to imagine the Lions agreeing to the lower-end market rate estimates, even with the recent increase in the salary cap.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Levi Onwuzurike has overcome significant challenges to become an important part of the Detroit Lions defense. But just how important is Onwuzurike to Detroit? We’ll discover during free agency. Onwuzurike, who was positioned almost equally between end and tackle on the Lions defensive line in 2024, is a free agent without restrictions. Keeping […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"yoast_head":"\n