"The Lions have plenty of major free-agent decisions to make this off-season, and most center on Cliff Avril, Jeff Backus, Stephen Tulloch and Eric Wright.

One that's under the radar is long snapper Don Muhlbach?

After eight mostly anonymous seasons, Muhlbach will be an unrestricted free agent in March. He changed agents this past fall, leaving Jordan Solomon for David Dunn, and said he wants to re-sign with the only team he has known.

"This is a great place, and I'd love to be here," Muhlbach said a day after the season ended. "But just let the guys that figure it out figure it out."

Muhlbach would appear to be in the team's near-term plans. He's dependable, has a good rapport with kicker Jason Hanson, and won't break the budget. But in a salary-cap world, there's no telling what the future holds.

The Lions have worked their practice-squad tight ends as backup long snappers in recent years, and if they need to trim corners to get deals done with Avril, Tulloch and others, Muhlbach's salary could be an easy place to start.

Hanson saw the Lions release longtime holder, punter Nick Harris, last fall in favor of rookie Ryan Donahue. And while he'd like to see Muhlbach return, he said he won't be consulted on the decision."