Detroit Lions release Jamie Collins after failing to find trade partner

After failing to find a good enough trade, the Lions released the veteran linebacker.

The Detroit Lions announced on Tuesday that they have released veteran linebacker Jamie Collins.

The move comes after Detroit announced last week that they would be moving on from Collins to play their younger linebackers. Lions head coach Dan Campbell expressed confidence that they would find a trade partner last week, even saying that talks had already begun.

“We’ve got suitors right now,” Campbell said. “So, certainly, we’re hoping to have this done sooner than later, but we’re not necessarily putting a timetable on it either.”

Unfortunately, it looks like teams have decided that they would rather test their luck on the free agency market.

Because Collins is a veteran, he does not go on the waiver wire and is now free to sign with whichever team he wants. As for the Lions, they will still take on $5.3 million in dead cap for Collins this year, and $6.33 million next year thanks to an offseason restructure that spread some of Collins’ signing bonus over three voided years in the future to create some immediate cap space. All those prorated bonuses accelerate and hit next year’s cap.

On Sunday, the Lions made Collins inactive for their game against the Baltimore Ravens. Fourth-round rookie Derrick Barnes and veteran Jalen Reeves-Maybin split time in his place. To help Detroit’s depth at linebacker, the Lions also signed Josh Woods from the Chicago Bears’ practice squad last week.