![Jacksonville Jaguars safety Daniel Thomas (20) hauls in a pass while running routes during the seventh organized team activity at the Miller Electric Center in Jacksonville, Fla. Monday, June 2, 2025. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_2648,h_1489/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/55/01k3nta6xavj8xp4q7j9.jpg "Jacksonville Jaguars safety Daniel Thomas (20) hauls in a pass while running routes during the seventh organized team activity at the Miller Electric Center in Jacksonville, Fla. Monday, June 2, 2025. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union]")
Around the same time the news broke that the Jacksonville Jaguars had traded for wide receiver Tim Patrick, it was reported that one of the players they just released on cutdown day has found a new team.
Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports that former Jaguars safety Daniel Thomas is signing with the Detroit Lions one day after getting released.
Former Jaguars safety Daniel Thomas is signing with the Lions
A fifth-round pick in 2020, Daniel Thomas was mostly known for his special teams prowess during his five-year stint with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Last year, he recovered a muffed punt against the Houston Texans.
Thomas ended up appearing in 71 games with four starts for the Jags, logging 71 tackles, one interception, and two passes defensed. His lone career pick came against the Pittsburgh Steelers in his rookie season.
1st career interception‼️ God is good🙏❗️Thanks for the J’s Ben I need them 😂🏈‼️#beenhadthejays pic.twitter.com/3Z0giAQ4h2
— daniel thomas (@gamechanger021) November 24, 2020
And below is a clip where Thomas excels as a gunner in a game against the Baltimore Ravens back in 2023.
In fact, that same year, the former Auburn Tiger got a two-year extension to stay with the Jaguars. However, he became a victim of the numbers game after Jacksonville added rookies Caleb Ransaw and Rayuan Lane in the 2025 draft.
In fact, the Jags might've felt comfortable cutting ties with Thomas precisely because Lane played special teams for the Navy and is expected to carve a niche in that phase of the game right off the bat. It also didn't hurt that Jacksonville freed up nearly $2 million in cap space when they released the veteran safety.
Related: 5 prominent players the Jaguars can trade after cutdown day
Losing Daniel Thomas doesn't hurt the Jaguars much
Before cutdown day, the Jags had a logjam at safety, and Daniel Thomas was always going to have trouble sticking around. Aside from rookies Caleb Ransaw and Rayuan Lane, Jacksonville also had Eric Murray, Andrew Wingard, Darnell Savage, and Antonio Johnson in the fold.
Like Thomas, Wingard, and Johnson can contribute on special teams, but they can also start if called upon. Simply put, both of them offered more value than Thomas.
The good news is that Daniel Thomas quickly found a new home, and it's easy to see why. The Detroit Lions got a superb gunner, one who can also provide depth behind Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph. His addition to the Detroit safety room will come in handy after rookie Dan Jackson landed on Injured Reserve.