With the 29th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Lions select....

[Cody_Russell]

Recently saw a notable mock with the Raiders moving up to #29 for Penix Jr. Maybe it was The Athletic’s mock. If the Lions run out of 1st RD graded players and they receive interest, definitely some sense to it. QB needy teams love that 5th year option and it’s something to be mindful of with Nix and Penix Jr.

Sadly, Lions fans in attendance on Thursday would be disappointed in a trade down.

[El Axe]

Yep, that was Dana Brugler's Mock. Lions got 44 & 77 for 29. Zach Frazier fell to them at 44.

44 is a little lower than I'd prefer. My ideal set of trades moves back from 29 and up from 61 to get two picks in the late 30s early 40s.

Players like Morgan, Suamataia, Frazier, Darius Robinson, Kneeland, McConkey, Rakestraw & Melton are all in that area. All should be day 1 contributors and long-term quality starters.

Holmes has already apologized for the possibility that he'll trade out of the 1st round, lol.

[whatever_gong82]

Paywall article from yesterday's Freep.

NFL draft preview: New kickoff rules put added emphasis on return ability



Dave Birkett
Detroit Free Press



Free Press sports reporter Dave Birkett takes a position-by-position look at the top prospects and biggest Detroit Lions needs in the 2024 NFL draft. This is the third in an eight-part series:


The NFL’s new kickoff rules have given the Detroit Lions something different to consider in this year’s draft.

Lions general manager Brad Holmes said Thursday the team has had “a lot of discussions about” how recent changes to the kickoff rule will impact the personnel teams need for their kick cover and return units.


Teams still will kick off from their own 35-yard line, but beginning this fall, the coverage unit will line up at the receiving team's 40-yard line while return teams must align at least nine men in the setup zone between the 30- and 35-yard lines.

Two return men can be in the landing zone between the goal line and 20-yard line, but no one other than the kicker and return men are allowed to move until the ball is fielded or hits the ground.

Kickoffs in the NFL for 2024 season.jpg

“I think we’re still in the, let’s call it, exploratory stages in terms of a personnel standpoint,” Holmes said. “We have an idea of what we think is going to be the right fit. So it has tweaked it a little bit, especially on the return aspect. You might be looking for a different kind of returner than you have been in the past, and vice versa on the other side, on your actual kickoff team. Trying to find your kickoff team and your return unit, does that body type change? Does that type of player change? Does the movement skills change? So we’ve had a lot of discussions on that.”



Holmes did not specify what personnel changes he foresees on the play, but one feeling shared by several NFL teams is that, with less ground to cover on the play, big safeties and linebackers will replace some of the cornerbacks who populated the kick cover unit in the past, while more dynamic one-cut runners with elite vision and explosiveness will fill the return position.

Holmes previously told the Free Press teams might employ extra kickers on their practice squad, too, because that position could be more involved with tackling.


“I was talking to a GM the other day and he was going through the process of pulling returns on guys from like their freshman year,” NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. “Like the stuff that we used to do a lot of in scouting that you really haven’t had to do over the last few years as the return game has kind of diminished, but now they’re like, ‘OK, well, we’re close on these two corners. Well, this one actually was a kickoff returner two, three years ago.’

“They’re going back and watching all those returns because now that has a little bonus to it, a little added value.”



The Lions have had one of the NFL’s best overall special teams units in recent years, but have not employed a true kick returner under Holmes.

Running backs Godwin Igwebuike and Justin Jackson led the Lions in kick return yards in 2021-22, and Craig Reynolds split time there with cornerback Khalil Dorsey last season.


Several running backs in this year’s draft doubled as dangerous return men during their college careers, including Clemson’s Will Shipley, Purdue’s Tyrone Tracy Jr., Texas’ Keilan Robinson and Marshall's Rasheen Ali.

Shipley averaged 26.6 yards per return in his three-year Clemson career. Tracy earned third-team All-Big Ten honors as a return specialist last season (behind defensive backs Cooper DeJean of Iowa, a potential first-round pick, and Daequan Hardy of Penn State). Robinson had a 95-yard kick return touchdown last season and scored on a blocked punt return in 2022. And Ali had just five career kick returns, but took one back 97 yards for a touchdown.

Will Shipley of Clemson.jpg

“I think there’s teams and decision makers that want to be ahead of the curve a little bit and view (the kick return) as that can be a difference-making play, and something that we haven’t seen in terms of how this is set up,” Jeremiah said. “I’m fascinated to see it and I think it’s going to help separate a lot of ties between players and it’s also going to be easy sell for college teams now with some of these premier young players that they have to convince them that, ‘Hey, you can add to your value by being a returner for us.’ So I think that’ll be fun as well.”

Shipley, Tracy, Robinson and Ali project as mid- to late-round picks in a running back class that lacks the top-end talent of last year’s group.


The Lions took Jahmyr Gibbs with the 12th pick of last year’s first round, four spots after the Atlanta Falcons took Bijan Robinson. Robinson and Gibbs were the first two backs to go in the first half of the first round since Saquon Barkley in 2018.

Jonathon Brooks, the consensus top running back in this year’s class, is projected as a Day 2 pick after tearing his ACL late last season; Michigan’s Blake Corum could go in the second or third round as well.


NFL draft preview: Running backs

On the Lions' roster: Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery, Craig Reynolds, Jermar Jefferson, Zonovan Knight, Jake Funk.


Dave Birkett’s top 3 RB prospects: 1. Jonathon Brooks, Texas; 2. Blake Corum, Michigan; 3. Trey Benson, Florida State.

Other players with Michigan ties: Elijah Collins, Oklahoma State (Michigan State, U-D Jesuit); Mike Herzog, Hillsdale; Harold Joiner III, Michigan State.


Day 3 sleeper who could interest Lions: Rasheen Ali, Marshall.

Recent Lions draft picks at RB: 2023 — Jahmyr Gibbs (first round); 2022 — none; 2021 — Jermar Jefferson (seventh round); 2020 — D’Andre Swift (second round); Jason Huntley (fifth round). 2019 — Ty Johnson (sixth round).



Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on X and Instagram at @davebirkett.

[whatever_gong82]

Paywall article from last night's News.

Lions 2024 draft preview: Even after overhauling position group, CB remains a top need



Justin Rogers
The Detroit News




Over the next several days, leading up to the 2024 NFL Draft, we’re taking a position-by-position look at the Detroit Lions’ roster and evaluating how the team might address each unit. Today: Cornerbacks.

▶ Current roster: Carlton Davis III, Amik Robertson, Emmanuel Moseley, Brian Branch, Khalil Dorsey, Steven Gilmore, Craig James

▶ Short-term need: Seven out of 10



▶ Long-term need: Nine out of 10

▶ Top prospects: Terrion Arnold, Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, Nate Wiggins, Kool-Aid McKinstry



▶ Day 2 options: Ennis Rakestraw, T.J. Tampa, Kamari Lassiter, Max Melton

▶ Late-round considerations: Kris Abrams-Draine, Nehemiah Pritchett, Qwan'tez Stiggers, Khyree Jackson, Willie Drew


▶ Analysis: For all the things that have gone well with Detroit's three-year rebuild, the team has struggled to get its cornerback position right. This offseason, for the second year in a row, the team is overhauling the room, and there's an expectation general manager Brad Holmes will continue the remodel via the draft.



Last year's makeover involved giving up on the No. 3 pick in the 2020 draft, Jeff Okudah. After injuries, including a torn Achilles in 2021, limited him to 10 games his first two seasons, the final first-round pick of the previous regime just wasn't able to live up to the lofty expectations of where he was drafted.

To replace the void in the starting lineup, the Lions signed Cam Sutton to a three-year, $33 million contract in free agency. The addition of the smart and savvy veteran felt like a safe swing for stability, but the move didn't pan out as planned. A complementary piece to Pittsburgh's defense, he struggled with tougher assignments in Detroit, allowing a horrendous 113.9 passer rating against when targeted in coverage last season.



The structure of his contract was going to give Sutton a chance to rebound in 2024, but that was negated by a weeks-long avoidance of an arrest warrant for domestic violence allegations, leading to his abrupt release last month.

Even prior to the release, and unrelated to the off-field issues, Holmes was building a contingency plan. The GM made a trade for a more-proven No. 1 option, sending a draft pick to Tampa Bay for Carlton Davis III. Additionally, the team signed Amik Robertson from Las Vegas and re-signed Emmanuel Moseley, who saw just two snaps prior to suffering a torn ACL in his first season with the Lions.



On paper, it looks like a clear upgrade. Whether Robertson or Moseley emerge as the second starter, the secondary should be in a better place with Davis and slot corner Brian Branch, who is coming off a stellar rookie campaign.

But there's a lingering need for outside depth, and the long-term picture remains shaky. Davis has just one year remaining on his contract, Moseley only re-signed for a year, and Robertson's two-year pact is structured in a way that he'll need to quickly establish his value to stick for the back half.



While unlikely, it's not inconceivable all three are off the roster before the 2025 season.

It adds to the urgency of finding a quality cornerback in this draft, one who can hopefully be part of the impressive foundation Holmes has already built. And it's not outlandish to think every corner prospect is in play for the Lions.



That's not to say Detroit could have its choice of any of the top options at pick No. 29. Rather, Holmes' track record has shown the GM is willing to trade up for a player he covets. In 2022, the Lions moved from pick No. 32 to No. 12 to snag wide receiver Jameson Williams. They'd likely be looking at a similar-sized jump up the board to snag whomever they might view as the top CB in this class, whether that's Arnold, Mitchell or DeJean.

If the Lions sit tight, McKinstry is the most likely to still be on the board, in part because he's recovering from a broken foot discovered during his medical evaluation at the combine. Fortunately, he was able to quell some concerns about his speed at Alabama's pro day, where he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.47 seconds.



Assuming the medical prognosis is good, you're talking about a technically proficient cornerback who allowed just 47.9% of the throws his direction to be completed during his college career.

If the Lions miss out on the top group, or opt to go a different direction in the first round, there are Day 2 options worthy of consideration. That said, they might not want to let the board come to them with their second pick not scheduled until No. 61 overall.



Rakestraw, who was projected to the Lions in some early mock drafts, lacks elite size or athletic traits, but he has a playing style that melds well with Detroit's identity. So does Lassiter, a ferocious tackler who needs some extra seasoning to improve his man-to-man coverage skills.

Tampa's timed speed might give pause, but he offers impressive size and quality college production while playing both man and zone. Melton, meanwhile, brings elite athletic traits to the mix, along with some quality ball production. He intercepted eight passes the past three seasons for Rutgers.



Waiting until Day 3 will make it more difficult to find a projectable starter. If available in those rounds, Abrams-Draine and Pritchett both bring extensive starting experience and desirable football character. Abrams-Draine is obviously undersized, at 179 pounds, but you have to love his ability to get his hands on the ball (34 passes defended, seven interceptions).

Stiggers is one of the draft's more fun wild cards. He never played college football, instead trying his hand at seven-on-seven indoor before going to the CFL, where he won Rookie of the Year honors in 2023 after intercepting five passes.



jdrogers@detroitnews.com

@Justin_Rogers

[whatever_gong82]

A paywall NFL Draft article from today's Freep.

NFL draft: In another loaded WR class, teams wrestle with when to select pass catcher


Dave Birkett
Detroit Free Press




The running back market has been in decline for years, and it may have hit a new low this offseason when five of the best rushers in the NFL were deemed too old, too expensive or simply not essential enough to keep.

Saquon Barkley signed with the Philadelphia Eagles after six seasons with the New York Giants, Josh Jacobs left the Las Vegas Raiders for the Green Bay Packers, Derrick Henry went from the Tennessee Titans to the Baltimore Ravens, Tony Pollard relaced Henry in Tennessee after five seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, and Austin Ekeler left the Los Angeles Chargers for the Washington Commanders.

No one blinked an eye that all five backs — four of them with multiple 1,000-yard seasons — changed teams. Running backs are among the most replaceable positions in the NFL, and capable starters can often be found in the later rounds (Pollard was a fourth-round pick in 2019) or undrafted free agency (Ekeler).


But the plight of the running back, once among the most-coveted positions in the NFL, has caused some to wonder what the future holds for another offensive skill position brimming with so many options that top producers are often found later in the draft — wide receiver.

“It’s funny you said that because I’ve just recently been thinking the same thing,” former Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager and current SiriusXM NFL analyst Mark Dominik said. “At some point, Wide Receiver 2 and Wide Receiver 3 are going to become interchangeable and you’re not going to pay those players because if there’s one position as we see every draft class, it’s wide receiver feels deep and it feels like you can go get a guy.”


Three receivers are expected to go in the first 10 or so picks of next week’s draft: Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr., LSU’s Malik Nabers and Washington’s Rome Odunze.


Beyond that upper crust of pass catchers, draft analysts agree, is a group of two dozen or so receivers who make up the deepest talent pool in this year’s draft.

LSU’s Brian Thomas headlines the next tier of receivers, and is a likely first-round pick, followed by a taster’s choice of another dozen or so prospects who could go anywhere from the first to the third round.


Last year, 14 of the 32 receivers drafted were picked on the draft’s first two days, about in line with historical norms.

“When I started doing this back in 2010 for Bleacher Report, the belief was you waited until the second round to draft wide receivers,” ESPN analyst Matt Miller said. “It was an important position, but it was one where the value really wasn’t in Round 1. There’d been a lot of Round 1 misses, a lot of Round 2 hits. Guys like, at that time, Alshon Jeffrey, Michael Thomas, DK Metcalf, A.J. Brown. There’d been this run of Round 2 receivers. Deebo Samuel was in that mix, too, and so there was that idea of wait on a wide receiver. There’s a lot of good ones, you can wait on one. That kind of got flipped on its head the last five years it feels like.



“But I do think that’s an interesting conversation now, especially as the salaries are exploding for wide receivers. It is that question of, OK, if we draft one in the top five, he’s still a value based on how much we’re paying him, but you need a lot of production from a player to justify him being a top-five pick. Wide receiver production in the first year has gotten better, certainly better than it was 10 years ago, but it’s still at I think a spot where it takes a special player like a Marvin Harrison Jr. to warrant drafting that early. So it is fascinating to see what the strategy will be.”

Last year, of the 11 receivers who caught at least 100 passes, nine were picked after Round 1 or went undrafted, including Detroit Lions leading receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, a fourth-round pick in 2021.


Of the 10 highest-paid receivers in the NFL based on average annual value, only two — DeVonta Smith of the Philadelphia Eagles and Calvin Ridley of the Tennessee Titans — were first-round picks.

That will change in the coming months when Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase get new deals, but some teams have made a habit of passing on receivers early in the draft, developing the ones they take later, then letting them walk when the money gets too big only to try and do it again.


“I look at Kansas City and everyone knew they needed a receiver last year, they wait and get Rashee Rice in the second round,” Miller said. “He becomes their leading pass catcher outside of Travis Kelce. It’ll be fun to see what Buffalo does this year at 28. We all think they need to draft a wide receiver. We’ll see what they do, if they actually draft one in the first round or if they feel like there’s better value waiting until Round 2 and maybe even taking a couple swings at that. Maybe take a guy in Round 2 and a guy in Round 4. Green Bay has had a lot of success doing that, not drafting receivers in the first round but they’ll double up or even triple up at times. They did that recently and it really, really worked for them.”



The Lions are among the teams in the market for a receiver this year, and while they won’t be in the mix for blue-chip talents like Harrison, Nabers and Odunze, they could consider one with the 29th pick of the first round.

Thomas likely will be gone by then, but Florida State’s Keon Coleman, Texas’ A.D. Mitchell and South Carolina’s Xavier Legette, who took a pre-draft visit to Detroit, are expected to come off the board in that range and would fit as complements to St. Brown and Jameson Williams.


The Lions are expected to make St. Brown one of the highest-paid receivers in the NFL in the coming months, but they let Josh Reynolds, their No. 2 or 3 receiver last year, walk this offseason without much effort to keep him, and they have another financial decision upcoming on Williams — one that may be made easier by whatever they do in this year's draft.

“As you’re constructing your roster and as these salaries for quarterbacks and tackles, defensive linemen, corners, whichever, continue to rise, someone’s going to pay, and to think you can pay Wide Receiver 2 and 3 in the $13 million, $10 million range, whatever it is, $8 million range, I think that’s going to be the position that’s hit by the salary cap squeeze,” Dominik said. “I think Wide Receiver 1, yes, all in, let’s go (pay him). But after Wide Receiver 1, I think you try to replace that position now going forward in the draft and you spend that money on other spots on your team.”


Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on X and Instagram at @davebirkett.

[Cody_Russell]

Top prospects: Terrion Arnold, Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, Nate Wiggins, Kool-Aid McKinstry

▶ Day 2 options: Ennis Rakestraw, T.J. Tampa, Kamari Lassiter, Max Melton

▶ Late-round considerations: Kris Abrams-Draine, Nehemiah Pritchett, Qwan'tez Stiggers, Khyree Jackson, Willie Drew

I was looking at lengthy draft player rankings list and
noticed that Kalen King is in this draft. Damn, totally forgot about him! King was a commonly mocked in the first half of the 1st RD back in September / October. Now he is projected to be day 3. How the mighty has fallen…

[El Axe]

NFL.com's Chad Reuter did a 7-round mock, and did unusually well with his Lions picks IMO.

https://www.nfl.com/news/seven-round-2024-nfl-mock-draft-round-1

29. Darrius Robinson, DE, Missourri
61. Ennis Rakestraw, CB, Missouri (This would be an awesome get at 61, He's B077's favorite prospect)
73. Mason McCormick, OG/C, South Dakota St (He's technically a guard, but he made all the line calls. High RAS)
164. Ainias Smith, WR/KR, Texas A&M (Slot receiver -- Smart, great hands, strong, average speed, but high YAC)
201. MJ Devonshire, CB, Pittsburgh (worst pick, but possible depth piece)
205. Sione Vaki, S/RB/KR, Utah (eats kneecaps. Played RB when team had injuries)
249. Nathan Thomas, OT, Louisiana-Lafayette (big man, good athlete, project with potential)

[jaadam4]

I was looking at lengthy draft player rankings list and
noticed that Kalen King is in this draft. Damn, totally forgot about him! King was a commonly mocked in the first half of the 1st RD back in September / October. Now he is projected to be day 3. How the mighty has fallen…

I love Kalen King and how he mirrors WR's but he ran a 4.6 40. He wasn't going in the first with that time.

I'd have no problem with the Lions drafting him though, I like his game but he's a 3rd rounder.

[jaadam4]

It looks like he ran a 4.56 at his pro day. That's a bit better but at his size and that combine time he's well outside the first.

[jaadam4]

I still can't stop watching Chop Robinson's tape. He's f'ing fast as shit with that first step but his numbers are absolutely appalling for a starting DE. I don't understand where the lack of stats are.

I'd still take him @ 29. His skill set is off the charts insane. If we continued to beef up the middle of the DL to cause chaos, Hutch and Chop would destroy. They could make our defense scary.

[chemiclord]

I love Kalen King and how he mirrors WR's but he ran a 4.6 40. He wasn't going in the first with that time.

"Allow me to reintroduce myself." - Bob Quinn

[ghandi]

Which WR in the draft has the chip on their shoulder? Thats probably the Lions pick........

[El Axe]

Which WR in the draft has the chip on their shoulder? Thats probably the Lions pick........

Ainias Smith, Texas A&M

Small, strong, smart, not fast but quick, runs through contact. Good punt returner

[Cody_Russell]

I’m changing my prediction. Final answer. You’re right that Wiggins is perhaps too skinny and not gritty enough as a fit. I was originally thinking Deshea Townsend gets his skinny version of Tyson Campbell in Wiggins. Perhaps the possibility of the Lions tweaking their DB philosophy with the new coach…

Now I’m locking:
Mikey Sainristil.

If the Lions can draft Jahmyr Gibbs at #12 and Jack Campbell at #18, why not. Give me one of the best grit/ culture fits there is that will help the crappy secondary. Move Branch around and use both. I’m a little corrupted due to listening to Sainristil’s Michigan spring game interview yesterday. He’s an awesome dude. I want him on the team.

[froot loops]

He's is definitely in the conversation, but I still think that would be a trade back scenario where he is picking in too half of the second round.