The Lions, as has become general manager Martin Mayhew's way, moved smartly and quietly to rebuild the back seven of their defense.

First they signed outside linebacker Justin Durant, who played the last three seasons in Jacksonville. He's coming off a down season (55 tackles) but he's only 25 and he fits well with the Lions' 4-3 scheme.

While they dreamed of landing cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha and made a pitch to cornerback Johnathan Joseph, they contentedly settled on former Browns cornerback Eric Wright. He, too, is coming off a down season, though coach Jim Schwartz believes that was overplayed in Cleveland.

"He had a couple of bad moments, but from what we saw on film, he had another solid season," Schwartz said.

Late Sunday, Mayhew re-signed cornerback Chris Houston, an unrestricted free agent who started 15 games for the Lions last season.

The big get, though, came Sunday morning when they reached a one-year deal with former Titans linebacker Stephen Tulloch ($3.25 million, $1.8 million guaranteed).

Before the lockout, the Lions also signed strong safety Erik Coleman.

So although they didn't sign any marquee names (other than Tulloch), they significantly upgraded their defense.

Last season, they aligned like this: middle linebacker DeAndre Levy, outside linebackers Zack Follett, Julian Peterson; cornerbacks Chris Houston, Jonathan Wade, free safety Louis Delmas and strong safety C.C. Brown.

This season, they project this way: middle linebacker Tulloch, outside linebackers Durant and Levy; cornerbacks Houston and Wright (or Alphonso Smith or Aaron Berry), free safety Delmas, strong safety Coleman.

The Lions also signed unrestricted free agents Rashied Davis (Bears), defensive back Maurice Leggett (Chiefs), offensive guard Dylan Gandy (Lions), placekicker Dave Rayner (Lions), quarterback Drew Stanton (Lions), safety John Wendling (Lions) and defensive tackle Quinn Pitcock (Colts, 2008).

The team also re-signed their own restricted free agents fullback Jerome Felton and defensive tackle Andre Fluellen, as well as exclusive rights free agents wide receiver and return man Stefan Logan, cornerback Prince Miller, outside linebacker Ashlee Palmer, offensive tackle Corey Hilliard and linebacker Caleb Campbell.

The Lions are still working to re-sign restricted free agent and starting defensive end Cliff Avril.

Durant said one of the things that sold him on Detroit was its fearsome defensive line. Durant, 25, said he'd been eyeing the Lions since the first day he knew he was going to be a free agent. "Who doesn't want to play behind a line that has guys that are going to draw double teams and that's going to leave running lanes open for you to fill in and make plays," he said. "That's the perfect situation for me."

Wright comes to camp with a resume similar to Chris Houston's when he joined the Lions before 2010. Houston, after a promising start, lost his job in Atlanta but was revitalized playing in the Lions' system. Wright, who had eight interceptions in his first three seasons, fell off last season and lost his job, as well. "It's a brand new start," Wright said. "I'm just glad to be here and start fresh. From a defensive standpoint we have something special, a great front and potentially (great) on the back end."

CAMP CALENDER
Aug. 1 was the first day of padded practice. Tuesday, Aug. 2 was the first two-a-day session.

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