INDIANAPOLIS – Detroit Lions General Manager Brad Holmes addressed a multitude of topics during his press conference on Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine inside Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Holmes said the team gave Taylor Decker time to reflect but wanted clarity before the new league year, and he framed roster planning around a single budget that forces trade-offs between retaining players and signing free agents.
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Holmes said the team respects players’ need for space after a long season and will work to achieve “clarity” within the next few weeks as the new league year approaches.
“Yeah. I mean, obviously, Taylor, he’s earned the right to have as much space as he needs to reflect on, you know, a long season. And we respect him. We give him that. But, obviously, you know, with the start of the new league year coming, obviously, you want as much clarity as possible. So, within these next couple of weeks, you know we’ll make sure that we have that clarity.”
Taylor Decker
Decker didn’t need much time to make his decision as he announced on Tuesday (Feb. 24) via his Instagram, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Here am I; SEND ME! #Year11.”
→ Detroit Lions OT Taylor Decker announces NFL future via Instagram post ahead of year 11
Roster budget
Holmes repeatedly framed decisions around a single roster budget, saying that money spent retaining current players reduces what’s available for external free agents and can change year to year.
“You don’t have two separate budgets, right? It’s only one budget. It’s only one pot, right?
And so when you take the philosophy of draft, develop, and retain, right? Well, the more you let’s take the word retain.
Well, the word retain means pay. You’ve got to pay money. Alright? So, if there’s one budget, you don’t have your own retain player budget and then a separate external free agent budget. Now, you can splice it up within that one budget.
This is how much you want to use to retain your own players. This is how much you want to use for external free agents. But the more you retain, the smaller that budget becomes.”
Detroit Lions General Manager Brad Holmes
Draft approach
Holmes said the draft approach won’t change materially, but free agency and any contract restructures could alter the team’s spending flexibility.
“It doesn’t really affect, really I would say the draft for sure. We always kind of take the same approach with the draft.
But you know, the only thing from a free agency standpoint, you know, that might change certain things.
But just, we have to make sure that we’re prepared. We have to make those decisions on if we do any kind of restructuring or any kind of stuff.
But uh but those decisions will affect the next decision in terms of uh how much available finances you’ll have to spend.”
Detroit Lions General Manager Brad Holmes
David Montgomery
Holmes confirmed ongoing “in-house” dialogue with representatives for running back David Montgomery and said the club wants him back if he wants to return.
“Yeah, look, I’ve been in touch with David’s agent and his representation. Uh, obviously, look, we’d love David. He’s a great player. Uh, we’d love to have him. You know, I kind of want to put last year in the rear view and just move forward, but obviously, you know, a player has to want to be at a certain place as well. So those conversations are still fluid, and then we’ll just kind of see how it goes.”
Montgomery, 28, posted a photo on Instagram on Dec. 5, 2025, with the caption: “God grant me humility and gratitude and relieve me of selfishness and fear. #Blessed.”
The post appeared innocent, but a fan commented, urging him to request a trade due to his limited playing time compared to teammate Jahmyr Gibbs.
The fan wrote, “I love you, bro, but you should request a trade. The way they’re treating you and glazing Gibbs is atrocious. Look what happens when we don’t use you. We lose.”
Montgomery appeared to like the comment, fueling speculation about his dissatisfaction.
It looks like he may have unliked it.
Following that, Montgomery shared a photo of his jersey in his locker on his Instagram story, without any caption, adding to the intrigue.
The Lions have enjoyed success over the past two seasons with the running back duo of Gibbs, nicknamed Sonic, and Montgomery, known as Knuckles.
Their strong running game helped Detroit achieve a 15-2 record and secure the No. 1 seed in the conference during the 2024 season.
Last season, Montgomery carried the ball 158 times for 716 yards (4.5 YPC), eight combined touchdowns, and 24 catches for 192 yards through 17 games.
His standout performance came in Week 3 against the Baltimore Ravens, where he rushed for 151 yards and two touchdowns on just 12 carries.
In 2024, Montgomery had 185 carries for 775 yards and 12 touchdowns, along with 36 receptions.
His first season with the Lions in 2023 saw him rush 219 times for 1,015 yards and 13 touchdowns, plus 16 catches.
However, Montgomery’s usage has dropped significantly this season.
Montgomery is under contract with Detroit through the 2026 season, with a base salary of $5.49 million.
The Lions could potentially trade him by June 1, 2026, saving $3.5 million in cap space—if Montgomery indeed wants to leave.
Injuries
On injuries and recoveries, Holmes said the team’s medical staff is in regular contact with players and expects clearer updates “in another month or so.”
“Players are doing everything they can to get as healthy as possible. Um, you know, we haven’t put a hard timeline or deadline, but we’ve been in regular communication with our medical staff.
Our medical staff has been in regular communication with the player, obviously working with them.
So, I know that they’re on track to get as healthy as possible. But I think in like another month or so, then we’ll obviously know a lot more.”
Detroit Lions General Manager Brad Holmes
Speaking of injuries, All-Pro safety Kerby Joseph on Tuesday, Feb. 17, shared several posts on his Instagram story, including one showing his knee during acupuncture treatment with 17 needles visible.
→ Detroit Lions star posts picture of knee on social media. Fans are very concerned
Offense
Holmes praised recent coaching continuity, calling the addition of offensive coordinator Drew Petzing and retention of most staff “the best of both worlds.”
“Well I think what excites me is that it wasn’t that we didn’t have to endure the turnover that we had to endure the previous year. I mean, that’s hard, man. Like that’s a challenge. Now, when you have success, you have to be prepared for those challenges as well. But to get the OC that we were able to get , but not having this wholesale turnover. That was kind of the best of both worlds.”
Holmes said core players like Sam LaPorta, Gibbs, and Jack Campbell remain the focus for retention talks, but reiterated that paying to retain reduces flexibility elsewhere.
“They’re both doing everything they can to get as healthy as possible,” Holmes said. “Those are all players that you ratted off that we see as key pieces that we want to keep around for a long time.”
On evaluating rookie centers and other offensive-line needs, Holmes said the team will add competition and depth via both draft and free agency, and that choosing a center or left tackle prospect can be complicated.
“You’ve got to handle a lot of information, and so you know there’s uh there’s some rookies that have been able to handle it.
But you know it’s just you just got to find the right one and uh whether it’s day one or day two or day three if you find the right one you can, but obviously you know the really kind of obvious way is a player that’s already done it already to give you a little bit more comfort."
Detroit Lions General Manager Brad Holmes
On player wellness and psychological support, Holmes offered condolences over the recent tragic death of Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Rondale Moore and said psychological recovery after injury is as important as the physical side.
“Extremely sad to hear that news, and just give my condolences to his family. That was tragic to hear.
But just saying on the topic of just injuries from a psychological standpoint, look, I think the the the the easier lens from the outside is like, okay, a player suffered an injury, he’s he’s down or he’s he’s not available.
But that’s where I was talking about the person that asked about the NIL question and the college players coming in.
It’s the same thing with players with injuries is that we have to put an incredible amount of resources into player wellness, which we do.
We have that as a high priority player wellness in terms of you know making sure that we’re keeping that player engaged, and you know making sure that that player is getting all the services and resources available to him, because you’re exactly right. It’s not just a physical. It’s the psychological component that’s probably even more important to you.”
Detroit Lions General Manager Brad Holmes