Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh is scheduled to become a free agent this offseason and many think that he could be on his way out of Detroit. Suh's base salary this year is $12.55 million with a cap hit of $22.4 million. He is one of the best defensive players in the NFL and a main reason why the Lions have the top-ranked defense in the league. Re-signing him will prove to be one of the most costly moves in recent memory.
However, that does not mean that the Lions are resigned to watch him go. The Detroit Free Press' Josh Katzenstein believes that Detroit cannot afford to let Suh walk.
"Instead, we've learned this year that Suh is the Lions' most important player. For that reason, I remain among the minority of people who think Suh will re-sign with the Lions after hitting free agency in 2015 because they simply cannot afford lose him," Katzenstein wrote. "And Suh and his representation know this, which is why the Lions couldn't sign him with their top-secret highest bid before tabling negotiations in July.
"It's difficult to imagine a defensive tackle making $16 million per season, but Suh continues to show why he's worthy of a historic contract. Not to mention his rookie contract paid him $12.9 million annually on average, which gave him an incredible amount of leverage even before he became a first-team All-Pro in 2010 and 2013."
Katzenstein also notes that the "NFL's salary cap will increase to $145 million in 2015, which would give the Lions $12 million more in cushion a year after Suh is counting $22.4 million against the cap."
Other NFL observers do not see re-signing Suh as a realistic option for the Lions.
"The franchise number will be too high for the Lions to take that risk [tag him with intention of trading him] - and then no team is going to want to trade for that cap number," ESPN's Michael Rothstein wrote. "It's going to be either a new deal or free agency for Ndamukong Suh. If Detroit did franchise him, it would be a silly move because of the potential cost."
Suh has 23 tackles and 3.5 sacks so far this season.
