One of the reasons the Lions were so high on veteran free agent defensive tackle Roy Lopez last offseason was because Detroit played against him Week 3 in the 2024 season when Lopez was with Arizona. Then Lions center Frank Ragnow raved about Lopez's game and the difficulty he gave him all afternoon in that contest.
Lopez ended up signing a one-year contract in free agency with the Lions last offseason and he played an important rotational role in the center of Detroit's defensive line alongside DJ Reader, Tyleik Williams and Alim McNeill.
Lopez finished the season with 30 tackles, four tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, five quarterback hits and a pass defended playing in 39 percent of the defensive snaps (425) for the Lions' defense this season. He ended up being the highest graded Lions interior defensive linemen by Pro Football Focus this season.
Entering unrestricted free agency once again this offseason, Lopez said he learned so much in Detroit under run game coordinator and defensive line coach Kacy Rodgers and the veteran players in the room. His preference would be running it back and re-signing with Detroit, as long as he fits into the team's plans for the 2026 season.
"For sure, this place has been great for me," Lopez said last week. "My lady loves it, so that's nice. It's been good for me, man. It's been good in the fact of it's such a great room I've been a part of. Being able to see routines on a weekly basis, whether it's Hutch (Aidan Hutchinson) and DJ (Reader) or whether it's Alim (McNeill). It's changed my career."
Lopez was a starter in Arizona his first four years in the league and said coming to Detroit and being part of a veteran rotation was key for his game at this point in his career.
"The biggest thing that I got to learn was people's routines," he said. "I got to learn patience. You see the game different. This is my fifth year and every year, I was a starter. I got to learn behind DJ, the way he sees the game. The way he sees blocks, and I got to incorporate that to my style of play. I got to learn so much from Alim, from Hutch, from DJ. I'm a true believer you can continue to grow and get better at football."
Lopez was a nice fit in the middle of Detroit's defense and will likely have interest from other teams coming off the highest graded season of his career by PFF in 2025.
But Lopez likes Detroit, his family likes it here and if it works out financially, he seems like a good candidate to re-sign given his experience, production and fit here with the Lions.
