The Lions are willing to trade Alphonso Smith and have shopped the cornerback to at least one team, according to a source. Smith, a second-round draft pick by Broncos in 2009, was traded to Detroit for tight end Dan Gronkowski.

The Lions are reportedly set to make Calvin Johnson the wealthiest wide receiver in the NFL. He is about to enter the final year of his rookie contract, which comes with a salary cap number of about $22.5 million. NFL Network insider Jason La Canfora reported earlier this month that the organization would like to restructure Johnson's contract to avoid the major salary cap hit. "We'll see where it goes, but we'll certainly work toward trying to get it done and get it done quickly," said agent Bus Cook. "Hopefully we can get something done in the next few weeks."

Cliff Avril will consider holding out if the Lions decide to place their franchise tag on him. Detroit could do so instead of negotiating a long-term deal with the defensive end. "There's a lot of different possibilities, and that's one of the possibilities -- not showing up," Avril said. "But we don't know. That's not the plan, obviously. But there's a lot of different possibilities, and that's definitely one of them." The Lions can use the franchise tag on Avril to keep him off the market with a one-year deal for the average of the five highest-paid defensive ends as soon as Monday or as late as March 5. "I don't want to be franchised," Avril said. "That's basically what I got last year. The (restricted free-agent) tender was basically the same thing. I just want security and longevity."

Cliff Avril doesn't want the team's franchise tag placed on him, but he hopes to remain with the Lions. Detroit can use the franchise tag on the defensive end to keep him off the market with a one-year deal for the average of the five highest-paid at his position. Avril's agent, Brian Mackler, says talks are moving "very slowly" with the Lions.

Lions running backs Jahvid Best and Mikel Leshoure are both on track to participate in the team's offseason program after season-ending injuries last season. Best was placed on season-ending injured reserve in November after he couldn't shake the lingering effects from a concussion he sustained Oct. 16 against the 49ers. Leshoure, the team's second-round pick who was expected to compliment Best, missed the entire season after tearing his Achilles' tendon during training camp.

Randy Moss plans to return to the NFL next season and on at least one occasion on the website Ustream he compared himself to Calvin Johnson. "Am I better deep threat than Calvin Johnson? I don't know," Moss said. "That's going to be interesting to see this year." Moss retired from the NFL after a rocky 2010 season when he played for three teams (the Patriots, Vikings and Titans), caught 28 passes and was both traded (by New England) and released (by Minnesota). Johnson led the NFL in receiving yards and scored 16 touchdowns last year, seven shy of Moss' record total for a receiver in 2007.

The Lions have begun the process of signing Calvin Johnson to a long-term contract. Detroit president Tom Lewand says the team has already started contract discussions with the representatives of Johnson, who is under contract through the 2012 season. "Calvin's under contract for this year," Lewand said, referring to next season. "He's obviously somebody that we want to keep around for a long, long time. We've been in discussions with him, we'll continue those, but as I said, he's under contract for 2012, so he's not going anywhere. We'll continue to work with him. The good news there is that he's really expressed an interest in staying."

Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh has ranked fourth on a Forbes list of the most-disliked athletes. Suh, who four months ago led a Forbes poll of the most-liked players in the NFL with an appeal score of 71 percent, placed fourth with a score of 51 percent disliked. The poll, conducted by Nielsen and E-Poll Market Research, found Eagles quarterback Michael Vick and Tiger Woods at the top of the list with scores of 60 percent disliked.

Larry Fitzgerald, who is the NFL's highest-paid wide receiver, believes that the honor should belong to Detroit's Calvin Johnson. "He should, he's at the top of the game right now," Fitzgerald said. "He's an extremely, extremely impressive talent. To be around him, he's a really down-to-Earth guy." Fitzgerald has an eight-year, $120 million deal with the Cardinals. Johnson is coming off the best season of his career with 96 catches for 1,681 yards and 16 touchdowns.