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New Lions wide receiver Tay Martin.

The Detroit Lions are signing a former UFL standout to their receiver room after officially shutting down one of their rookie wide receivers for the 2026 season.

According to the team’s official transaction wire, the Lions signed former Columbus Aviators wide receiver Tay Martin to their 90-man offseason roster in a series of roster moves on the final day of their mandatory veteran minicamp on Wednesday, June 17.

Martin finished with the third-most receptions (42) and seventh-most receiving yards (483) in the UFL during the 2026 season, leading the Aviators in both categories. The 6-foot-3, 183-pound wide receiver has also played games for the San Francisco 49ers, Tennessee Titans and Washington Commanders since he went undrafted in 2022.

The Lions also signed two other former UFL wide standout receivers — Lucky Jackson and Tarik Black — along with Martin in a slew of roster changes to their receiving corps.

The three new additions should help the Lions to offset the loss of fifth-round rookie receiver Kendrick Law, who tore his ACL earlier this month at OTAs. The Lions placed him on injured reserve in a corresponding roster move on June 17, ending his season.

Kendrick Law Tore ACL in Non-Contract Drill at OTAs

The Lions caught an unfortunate break with Law when the 22-year-old wide receiver suffered a season-ending ACL tear in a non-contact drill during their June 4 practice.

Law was the only wide receiver that the Lions had selected in the 2026 draft, trading up 13 spots in the fifth round to add him to the offense and coveting his after-catch ability. Now, he must spend the entire 2026 season logging mental reps and diving into the recovery process, which typically takes between nine and 12 months for torn ACLs.

“It’s part of it. Harsh reality, but he’ll get it out of the way early, have his whole career in front of him,” Campbell told reporters on June 4. “Hate to start with that, that’s a bit of a negative, but everybody else is doing good. Everybody else is improving.”

Lions Taking Chances at WR After Kendrick Law Injury

The Lions took a hit when they lost Law — the No. 168 overall pick in the 2026 draft — from their receiver room in the midst of OTAs. While the former Kentucky wideout was unlikely to win an immediate role with the Lions offense, he was in line to potentially win a top backup role behind Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams and Isaac TeSlaa.

Since Law’s injury, though, the Lions have taken a few chances on lesser-known wide receivers and added them to their roster in preparation for next month’s training camp.

Not only did the Lions sign the three former UFL wide receivers on June 16, but they also added an intriguing undrafted rookie in Kyre Duplessis two days after Law’s injury.

Duplessis and Law walked similar career paths at the college level. Both struggled to break through as regular contributors in their initial programs before transferring to new schools as seniors in 2025 and finally finding roles that led to real production.

Duplessis actually almost outdid Law’s entire career production during his lone season at Delaware in 2025, securing 60 receptions for 824 yards and five touchdowns. Law’s production also spiked in 2025, but he finished with 883 career receiving yards and just four receiving touchdowns over his four seasons split between Alabama and Kentucky.

Now, that does not mean that Duplessis will step into Law’s void and immediately push for a depth spot in the Lions’ 2026 receiving rotation, but it does add intrigue to camp.