Lions Reportedly Sign Quarterback Ricky Stanzi To Practice Squad
By Ashley Scoby
@AshleyScoby
According to Houston Chronicle reporter Aaron Wilson, the Lions have signed their third (practice squad) quarterback: Ricky Stanzi, who was drafted in 2011 out of Iowa.
At Iowa, Stanzi went 26-9 as a starter, which was second all-time at the school. He set a school record for consecutive games with a touchdown pass (21) and was third all-time at Iowa in career touchdown passes (56), passing yards (7,377), pass attempts (907) and total offense (7,373). In more bizarre statistics, Stanzi is the only Iowa quarterback to start three games against Joe Paterno-led Penn State teams and win all three. He was also the third-ever Big 10 quarterback to start three bowl games and win all of them.
Stanzi was drafted in the fifth round of the 2011 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs, where he competed as a backup, and then was released in 2013. He has also spent time in Jacksonville, Houston and New York (Giants) as a practice squad player. Stanzi has never taken a snap in an NFL game.
The Lions were on the hunt for a practice squad quarterback after they cut Kellen Moore this weekend and he decided to sign with the Cowboys' practice squad instead of Detroit's.
This year will be the first season under general manager Martin Mayhew's reign that the Lions will keep only two quarterbacks on the 53-man roster. Starter Matthew Stafford and backup Dan Orlovsky are the only two quarterbacks on that roster.
