4 free agents the Lions should sign to win the Super Bowl in 2024
By Mark Powell
The Detroit Lions 2023-24 season ended in miserable fashion, as they blew a three-score halftime lead against the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The Lions coaching staff showed their youth and inexperience, in particular Dan Campbell, whose decision to go for it rather than restoring a three-score advantage in the third quarter spurred a San Francisco comeback. The rest was history.
Nonetheless, Detroit's offseason is off to a flying start, as coveted offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has opted to stay in Motown rather than take a head coaching job this coming season. Johnson's departure feels inevitable at some point, but the Lions can rid his coattails for at least one more year.
The Lions have unfinished business, and Johnson -- like the majority of this team -- views the 2024 season as Super Bowl or bust. To make that dream a reality, Detroit's offseason must go according to plan. There is no addition by subtraction for this Super Bowl contender, as Campbell, Brad Holmes and Co. hope to set the Lions up well enough to bring home the organization's first ever Lombardi Trophy.
4. Lions should bring back C.J. Gardner-Johnson, despite his failed trash talk
The Lions secondary was a weakness throughout the 2024 season, but C.J. Gardner-Johnson was not a primary reason why. CJGJ is well known for his trash talk, as he took aim at Baker Mayfield and then Deebo Samuel in back-to-back weeks, Gardner-Johnson came up large against Mayfield, as he recorded an interception in the Divisional Round. He wasn't as lucky in the NFC Championship, however, with Samuel having a decent game despite entering the contest injured.
Gardner-Johnson had a game-worst PFF grade, the majority of which came while guarding Samuel. However, as SideLion Report's Brad Berreman notes, Gardner-Johnson can typically back up his words:
"More often than not, C.J. Gardner-Johnson's trash talk gives him a layer of belief and empowerment that radiates to his teammates...This time around he landed on the wrong side of it, as he also tempted the football gods by dismissing the 49ers and declaring victory in the second quarter."
With Gardner-Johnson set to be a free agent after this season, he remains a vital part of the secondary.