ALLEN PARK -- When the Detroit Lions finished with a 4-12 record, players faced more than just another losing season.

Many will be confronted with losing their jobs this offseason.

Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, receiver Calvin Johnson, linebacker Stephen Tulloch and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh are veterans who will not receive pink slips after the Super Bowl, but Lions general manager Martin Mayhew is considering a major roster overhaul this offseason.



"Yeah, I think there is a possibility there (to extremely revamp the roster)," Mayhew said. "I think one of the reasons we wanted to get everybody back (last season) is because we were coming off a season where we had some success. Obviously, coming off this season, we want to look at everything that we're doing.

"Like I said, from a front office standpoint, a coaching standpoint and a players standpoint. Obviously, we're not doing well enough, and you should expect to see some changes on our roster."

Those sentiments are opposite of Mayhew's thoughts heading into this season.

Mayhew's team was coming off a 10-6 playoff year, but he made re-signing his players Detroit's biggest offseason priority. Detroit re-worked Calvin Johnson's contract, which was essential for salary cap relief, plus re-signed Tulloch. The front office did not actively pursue any high-priced free agents who could improve their team, especially in the secondary, and Detroit returned 21 of 22 starters.

Detroit's GM was so confident prior to this season, he predicted his team would eventually win a Super Bowl. Mayhew now admits he may have overestimated the talent on his roster.

"I think that's quite possible," Mayhew said. "I certainly thought we were going to get some better performances. If you look at our defense, who on our defense played better than they did last year? Probably Ndamukong. Of the 10 starters that we brought back, probably Ndamukong is the only guy that played noticeably better. Some guys flatlined, and some guys were injured and didn't play or didn't play as well.

"We didn't get the performances. It doesn't mean that those guys aren't talented. I don't know if it was overestimating the talent, but we didn't get the performances. Individual performances make the unit better, and we didn't get the individual performances from guys."

The easiest way to purge a roster is by eliminating high-priced contracts, but Mayhew will not base his decisions on finances.

"It's not about money, it's about performance," Mayhew said. "Guys that performed well this season, that played well, those guys are in different situations than guys that didn't perform well. When you win four games, you're looking for your underperformers. That's really what it's about.

"We've got to get better, obviously. We're the fourth-best team in a four team division. We didn't beat anybody in the division the whole season, so clearly, we're not good enough, and we've got to make some changes."