Lions cut 2 wide receivers as roster begins to trim down to 53

The Detroit Lions cut two wide receivers from its team Monday as the roster downsizes to 53 early this week.

One of the wide receivers was a standout during his rookie camp tryout and the other had a disappointing training camp and preseason with Detroit, to say the least.

Wide receivers Kaden Davis and Donovan Peoples-Jones are the victims of the first cuts by the team as the Lions will have to trim down to 53 by Tuesday at 3 p.m. CT. The roster cuts were first reported by NFL insider Jordan Schultz on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Davis, 25, had shown flashes of potential this preseason, including a 61-yard touchdown reception against the Kansas City Chiefs.

He finished with five catches for 96 yards in three games this preseason.

Davis is entering his third NFL season but has yet to officially appear in a regular season game.

The reason for 6-foot-1 pass-catcher not making the team most likely has to do with Detroit looking for a bigger bodied receiver, as they already have smaller, slot-like receivers in Kalif Raymond and roster-hopeful Isaiah Williams.

Davis could still return to the team's practice squad, if he isn't picked up by someone else of course.

The Lions are Davis' third NFL team he's worked with, as he signed as an undrafted free agent with the Denver Broncos in 2022 and spent the 2023 season on the Arizona Cardinals' practice squad.

In 2023, Davis put up 416 all-purpose yards in five games for the USFL's Michigan Panthers.

Peoples-Jones wasn't a surprising roster cut but for many fans it would have been surprising to hear before training camp started.

The wideout was traded to the Lions last season from the Cleveland Browns that also included a sixth-round 2025 draft pick.

The 25-year-old will likely get picked up by another team due to his experience in the NFL already, but it was a preseason to forget with the Lions. In fact, it was a team in Peoples-Jones' career to forget about altogether, as he made five catches for 58 yards in eight games last season with Detroit.

In three preseason games, Peoples-Jones only caught 2 passes for 31 yards.

His best season came in 2022, when he tallied 61 catches for 839 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns with Cleveland.

Peoples-Jones fit the profile of a big-bodied receiver but failed to stand out amongst the rest of the position room.