By all reports, the city of Detroit put on a great show for this year’s NFL Draft. I did not go as I was content to watch on TV. An interesting draft for the Lions. They were very aggressive trading picks, making four deals during the draft, moving up every time. The experts usually say trading down is smarter, but this Lions roster is strong and ready to win now. You probably wouldn’t be able to fit 10 to 12 rookies onto this team, so I can live with Brad Holmes trading up multiple times, even if I don’t love dipping into the 2025 picks. The Lions signed OT Penei Sewell and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown to well deserved contract extensions in the week leading up to the draft. They will still try to get an extension done with QB Jared Goff this summer. As for the draft, the Lions ended up making six picks, of which 3 were offense and 3 were defense. Let’s look at the picks:

1.24 (24) CB Terrion Arnold, Alabama. I mentioned corner as a position of need in my report last month, but I didn’t mention Arnold because I don’t think anyone thought he would be there at 29. With the first 14 picks being offensive players, it meant the defensive players were sliding a bit and Holmes pounced, trading up from 29 to 24 to get Holmes. Many thought Mitchell from Toledo was the best corner in this draft but Detroit said Arnold was their top rated corner. The Lions continue to draft Alabama players high (J. Gibbs, J. Williams, B. Branch in recent drafts) and Arnold will have every chance to be a starter week 1. I wouldn’t expect a Sauce Gardner type of impact right away, but he has a great attitude and should improve the pass defense.

2.29 (61) CB Ennis Rakestraw, Missouri. Unlike Arnold, I did mention Rakestraw in last month’s report as a possible option at 29. His stock fell a bit as he slid into round 2 and the Lions surprised many by doubling up at the corner spot. I sure didn’t expect another corner when this pick went on the clock, but I don’t hate it. Quality depth at corner is always needed.

4.26 (126) OT Giovanni Manu, OT British Columbia. This guy is huge and the Lions will surely be patient and allow him time to develop. His competition level in Canada was well below NCAA division I football but he showed enough athletic ability in workouts that the Lions felt this was worth giving up a 2025 3rd rounder.

4.32 (132) RB Sione Vaki, Utah. This was a head scratcher simply due to the fact that this guy played more safety than running back at Utah, and most draft boards had him projected as a safety. So there was some initial confusion from many fans watching when the TV broadcasts of the draft listed him as a safety on the screen. But the Lions announced him as a running back. His experience on defense will make him a perfect fit for special teams. He might even get a shot as a kick returner as teams try to find guys that work best under the new rules. I wouldn’t expect him to have a big role on offense unless Montgomery or Gibbs gets hurt.

6. 13 (189) DT Mekhi WIngo, LSU. 6.34 (210) OG Christian Mahogany, Boston College. I am lumping these two picks together as they are depth in the trenches so there isn’t much fantasy impact. What was more interesting at this point of the draft were the positions the Lions didn’t pick. There was a run on kickers in round 6 with three of them going between picks 203 and 212. But the Lions were not part of the round 6 kicker run. Expect them to continue going for it frequently on fourth downs. The Lions also did not draft a receiver which surprised me a bit. I thought they could dip into the pool of veteran free agent receivers after the draft, but a bunch of those guys have been getting scooped up so the Lions must feel happy with what they have, at least for now.

UDFA (skill positions only): WR Isaiah Williams, Illinois. WR Jalon Calhoun, Duke. TE Isaac Rex, BYU. K James Turner, Michigan. Please note that as of this writing the Lions have not officially announced their UDFA signings so these have been compiled based on various sources. Williams is the guy to watch. He was projected as a guy that could have been a late round pick and the Lions are giving him a decent signing bonus. He could work his way onto the roster given the questionable depth at receiver. Calhoun is more of a longshot. Rex has good size but he turns 26 in August so he is very old for a rookie. Turner is probably not much of a threat to Michael Badgley where a drafted kicker would have been.

That’s it for this month. The Lions have 86 players on their roster at the moment (including the UDFAs), so they have roster room and cap room to work with. I would expect some veteran free agents to be added as spring progresses. I will be back next month with a new report including a look at the schedule and any other news that develops from the OTAs and minicamps.

End.