The insight typically comes after the NFL Draft, more often than not. It’s when the GM feels comfortable revealing his process. Clips from pre-draft meetings are shared with the masses. There are few remaining secrets.
But while we wait for draft weekend to unfold, and for the Detroit Lions to reveal their takeaways from visits and meetings with the players they drafted, what can we make of the list already out there for the public?
Our friends at Pride of Detroit have assembled a helpful list, tracking the prospects with whom the Lions have reportedly met. It includes players who sat with the team at the NFL combine, prospects in town for the team’s local day and players who traveled for a top-30 visit. While some visits will inevitably be kept close to the vest, the Lions drafted a handful of players on last year’s public list of visitors, including linebacker Jack Campbell, tight end Sam LaPorta, defensive back Brian Branch and quarterback Hendon Hooker.
So, then, let’s dive into this year’s tracker and see what we can find.
Player visits
Prospects ranked in the top 125 of Dane Brugler’s big board who have met with the Lions:
NumberPositionPlayerSchool
10
CB
Terrion Arnold
11
CB
Quinyon Mitchell
15
WR
Brian Thomas Jr.
29
DT
Johnny Newton
30
CB
Kool-Aid McKinstry
32
Edge
Marshawn Kneeland
35
Edge
Darius Robinson
40
OT
Kingsley Suamatia
41
WR
Roman Wilson
43
DB
Mike Sainristil
49
CB
Ennis Rakestraw Jr.
51
DT
Ruke Orhorhoro
60
DT
Mike Hall Jr.
61
CB
Andru Phillips
76
WR
Xavier Legette
77
RB
Blake Choir
82
Edge
Bralen Trice
84
S
Malik Mustapha
93
WR
Devontez Walker
102
WR
Caelen Carson
117
CB
Nehemiah Pritchett
Corners, corners, corners
Of those 21 prospects, a third were corners. Granted, that’s not entirely surprising. It’s a position of variance. Do you want a man coverage corner? A zone-oriented corner? An outside guy? A nickel? A combination? A dawg mentality? A lot to consider.
The caliber of cornerback prospect interviewed suggests the Lions are casting a wide net. They’ve met with Terrion Arnold and Quinyon Mitchell, the consensus top corners in the class. They’ve met with Michigan nickel Mike Sainristil, who might not be a perfect on-field fit but plays with the mentality they’d like. They met with Day 2/3 prospects like Caelen Carson and Nehemiah Pritchett. They’ve even met with CFL cornerback Qwan’tez Stiggers.
We’ll see what the Lions end up doing, but GM Brad Holmes won’t take a corner he isn’t in love with early just because people are tying him to one.
“I think at the owners’ meetings, there were questions asked about drafting an outside corner,” Holmes said last week. “No, we draft the right football player we’re convicted on. If the outside corner was the right football player we’re convicted on, then we would take that player. We don’t really get anchored on positions.”
Defensive tackle on the way?
The Lions fortified their defensive tackle room in free agency, adding a quality veteran in DJ Reader. Reader, who signed a two-year deal with the Lions, is a space-eater who should make life easier for Alim McNeill and Aidan Hutchinson. But he shouldn’t be viewed as a long-term fit.
The Lions could double down on defensive tackle in the draft, and it seems like they’ve considered the possibility. Detroit met with Illinois prospect Johnny Newton at the combine, and he’s a fit in the first round. Missouri’s Darius Robinson has more than enough versatility to kick inside to defensive tackle when called upon. Elsewhere, they’ve met with Clemson’s Ruke Orhorhoro and Ohio State’s Michael Hall Jr., both viewed as Day 2 picks. The Lions also brought in a sleeper in Northern Iowa prospect Khristian Boyd, who garnered some buzz from the East-West Shrine Bowl. And the team also got a chance to see Toledo’s Judge Culpepper, Northern Illinois’ James Ester and Auburn’s Justin Rogers at its local day.
Something to monitor.
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WRs could soon welcome a new talent
One thing that stood out at the combine: The Lions were doing their homework on the wide receivers.
As the week unfolded, it was revealed that LSU’s Brian Thomas Jr., South Carolina’s Xavier Legette and North Carolina’s Devontez Walker met with the Lions. Back then, it felt like the Lions had a type. All three are viewed as future X receivers with intriguing size/speed combos. Since then, they’ve met with Michigan’s Roman Wilson (a speedy slot) and even Oregon State’s Anthony Gould, listed at 5-foot-8. So, maybe not.
Regardless of the tools/skill set the Lions are looking for at wide receiver, it would make sense to add one in a receiver-heavy draft like this. Josh Reynolds is now in Denver, and the Lions could welcome a young talent on a rookie contract during a competitive window.
We did a live 7-round Lions mock draft on the pod today, with a trade down from 29.
Lions get 35, 66 and 104 from the Cardinals. Cardinals get 29 and 73.
Here’s how it went 😬
Full video here: https://t.co/pPiqbSYSnR pic.twitter.com/5zQIrAgWEC
— Colton Pouncy (@colton_pouncy) April 23, 2024
What to make of lack of O-lineman meetings?
For a team oft-linked to offensive linemen, the Lions have been relatively quiet in terms of publicly reported meetings. Maybe that’s because the offensive linemen speak toward the back half of the NFL combine, when a lot of reporters go home and “did you meet with” questions start to dwindle. But there simply hasn’t been a ton of news.
The Lions met with BYU tackle Kingsley Suamataia at the combine. A former five-star prospect and the cousin of Lions right tackle Penei Sewell, Suamataia makes a ton of sense if the Lions are looking for an athletic tackle who needs a year to develop. He could step in as a long-term option if Taylor Decker departs in free agency next offseason, though Decker is a key locker-room figure and expressed his desire to remain with the team.
At the Lions’ local day, they met with Michigan prospects Karsen Barnhart and Trevor Keegan. And they hosted CFL lineman Giovanni Manu on a top-30 visit.
With Holmes talking openly about the importance of the offensive line, and the Lions having future needs there, you have to think they’ll be in on some. It’s a deep class with something for everyone.
Do the Lions have a type at edge?
From what has been publicly reported, the Lions have met with only three edges ranked among Brugler’s top 125: Robinson, Western Michigan’s Marshawn Kneeland and Washington’s Bralen Trice.
Is there anything to take away from this? Maybe not. This isn’t a deep edge class, and if the Lions have interest in more of the higher-end guys like UCLA’s Laiatu Latu or Florida State’s Jared Verse — one they’d need to trade up for — they could simply be keeping their intentions close to the vest. But of this group, Robinson, Kneeland and Trice are all highly productive dudes who win with effort and power. None is a true speed rusher. Holmes made sure to mention James Houston factoring into the edge room at the owners’ meetings, so perhaps the Lions expect him to be a top contributor this year.
Additionally, the Lions also met with William & Mary’s Nate Lynn, Houston’s Nelson Caesar, Troy’s Javon Solomon, LSU’s Ovie Oghoufo and Michigan’s Jaylen Harrell.
The Lions met with Blake Corum, but would they really spend a Day 2 pick on another running back? (Junfu Han / USA Today)
Best of the rest and final thoughts
While the positions above usually come up when discussing the Lions, there are a few positions worth talking about from the list of visits/meetings.
• The Lions met with Michigan RB Blake Corum, who’s thought of as a Day 2 pick. That feels unlikely given the Lions’ strong 1-2 punch in David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, but could the Lions add a late-round back like Missouri’s Cody Schrader? He reportedly visited Allen Park and is viewed as a fifth-round prospect.
• The Lions reportedly meet with a handful of safeties during the process: Wake Forest’s Malik Mustapha, UCLA’s Jordan Anderson, Oklahoma’s Reggie Pearson and Utah’s Sione Vaki. While Mustapha is the only top-125 safety prospect, the Lions could use some depth, so a late-round prospect with special teams upside could make sense.
• The Lions’ linebacker room is in good shape, but the team has met with some potential late-round/UDFA prospects like Indiana’s Aaron Casey, Michigan’s Michael Barrett and Eastern Michigan’s Chase Kline. Anthony Pittman is gone, so there could be an opening for a special teams linebacker.
• The Lions have Jared Goff, Hooker and Nate Sudfeld at QB, but there’s always room for training camp depth. The only QB who has been tied to the Lions is Northern Iowa’s Theo Day, formerly of Michigan State. He has a big arm and settled in after transferring, but isn’t viewed as much more than a UDFA.
• I don’t know if the Lions are going to trade up in the first round for a player, but if they do, my money would be on Arnold. He’s Nick Saban’s favorite Alabama player. He’s wired the right way. He can play inside and outside. He’s a former teammate of Branch, Gibbs and Jameson Williams and the Lions brought him in for a top-30 visit. A fit if there ever was one. Just might depend on the asking price.
(Top photo of Darius Robinson: Peter Aiken / Getty Images)
2024-04-24 13:40:01
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