Lions Officially Announce Roster Cuts To 53 Players

August 26, 2025

The Detroit Lions officially announced that they have trimmed their roster down to 53 players at Tuesday’s deadline.

The Lions released the following players:

DE Ahmed Hassanein (waived with injury settlement)
DL Myles Adams
OL Trystan Colon
WR Tom Kennedy
OL Netane Muti
LB Anthony Pittman
OL Dan Skipper
WR Malik Taylor
DE Mitchell Agude
CB Luq Barcoo
WR Ronnie Bell
OL Gunner Britton
DL Keith Cooper
CB Allan George
LB DaRon Gilbert
S Erick Hallett II
QB Hendon Hooker
TE Zach Horton
RB Deon Jackson
OL Zack Johnson
WR Jakobie Keeney-James
S Ian Kennelly
DE Nate Lynn
DL Brodric Martin
WR Jackson Meeks
CB D.J. Miller
OL Mason Miller
OL Michael Niese
S Morice Norris
TE Gunnar Oakes
CB Tyson Russell
RB Jacob Saylors
TE Steven Stilianos
S Loren Strickland
DE Isaac Ukwu
CB Nick Whiteside

In addition, the Lions placed LB Ezekiel Turner on injured reserve, placed OL Miles Frazier, DL Alim McNeill, and LB Malcolm Rodriguez on the physically unable to perform list, and placed DE Josh Paschal on the non-football injury list.

Hooker had been competing for the primary backup job but had been losing ground to journeyman QB Kyle Allen. Now he gets the chance for a change of scenery, like HC Dan Campbell suggested recently.

Hooker, 27, opted to transfer to Tennessee after spending the first three years of his career at Virginia Tech. He started two seasons for the Volunteers and was in the thick of the Heisman race in 2022 before tearing his ACL.

The Lions selected Hooker with the No. 68 overall pick in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. He signed a four-year, $5,719,022 rookie contract that includes a $1,159,289 signing bonus.

In 2024, Hooker appeared in three games for the Lions and completed six of nine passes for 62 yards.

During his college career at Virginia Tech and Tennessee, Hooker completed 66.9 percent of his passes for 8,975 yards, 80 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions throughout five seasons and 45 games played. He also rushed for 2,079 yards and 25 touchdowns.