Daisy Dukes and Ennis: Meet Ennis Rakestraw JR. Lions Seond Rounder

[whatever_gong82]

If they are intent on keeping Davis, the smart thing to do would be to offer him an extension now for maybe 2 years with a nice chunk of guaranteed money. Not sure he’d take it at this point. Of course that has its risks too, if he plays more like the guy from last year than the guy from TB’s Super Bowl run. My guess is based on his level of self confidence he wants to hit the FA market again.

If he does, then Brad Holmes will simply draft another corner to replace him.

At this point, with the hit rate that all 4 NFL Drafts that Mr. Holmes has done for the team so far, I think that he'll find someone eventually.

[ghandi]

That CB room is going to be stacked this year

Davis
Amik Robertson
Arnold
Rakestraw
Moseley (if healthy)
Vildor/S Gilmore/Dorsey

DBs seem to get injured often...just when you think you have enough of them, you wont have enough of them.

[jaadam4]

If you have to wait a “few years” to figure out if the CBs you just drafted in the first two rounds are any good, here’s a news flash - they aren’t.

Yeah possibly but even the experts have shown that CBs are the one position that very from year to year. Some years guys are good to great and completely shit the next. For every Sauce Gardner there's 100's of names that won't be good that first year. Rookie CBs generally get torched and figure things out as they go

[jaadam4]

Slay emerged as a legit NFL CB in his 2nd year after a rough rookie season. He didn’t start getting the pro-bowl and all-pro nods until a couple of seaons after, but it didn’t take him long to prove he belonged.

Bro.. Isn't this what I just said? So basically it took Slay 2 years to figure out what we had in him. Thanks for proving my point. You're welcome

[whatever_gong82]

Paywall Detroit Lions 2024 NFL Draft article from The Athletic. Enjoy!!

For Lions GM Brad Holmes, chance to draft two cornerbacks was twice as nice


By Colton Pouncy
6h ago



DETROIT — Lions general manager Brad Holmes is a simple man when it comes to this draft thing. He sees a player he likes, he interviews a player he likes, he takes a player he likes.

When you’ve developed the track record Holmes has, it’s hard to argue with the practice. The Lions have truly become a best-player-available franchise. And sometimes, that approach involves doubling up on a certain position. That was cornerback this year. After trading up for Alabama’s Terrion Arnold on Thursday’s Day 1, Holmes and the Lions walked away with Missouri’s Ennis Rakestraw Jr. on Friday with pick No. 61.



He was just as ecstatic the second time around.

“I hate to sound like a broken record, but again, thrilled with how it fell tonight,” Holmes said Friday. “Obviously, Ennis was a guy we had ranked very, very high. He’s another one that we didn’t think was going to make it that far. We didn’t even know if he was going to make it out of, really, the first night. But when he was still there starting today, I didn’t think he was going to last that long.”



Two picks, two cornerbacks. That’s the quick synopsis of Detroit’s 2024 draft so far, but to Holmes, it goes so much deeper than that. He believes he got two steals — almost at a loss for words on both nights, as he reflected on the players he just added to the organization. That they’re both cornerbacks, well, that comes with its own backstory.

Since Holmes’ arrival in 2021, the Lions had never taken an outside cornerback in the top 100 across three drafts. The closest would be Ifeatu Melifonwu in 2021. He’s now a safety. For the Lions, a team whose secondary has never been able to put it all together, that’s been a glaring weakness. But Holmes, a former area scout tasked with evaluating cornerbacks, has made it clear he’s not going to draft one just to draft one. That’s not how this goes. That’s not how the Lions got to where they are now.



“You can win the headlines in March and April and all that stuff,” Holmes said. “That’s easy to draft whatever the premium positions are — quarterback and edge rusher and tackle and those positions. Say you draft only those positions, but they’re not contributing to your football team. So, did you win the draft? Did you win the draft because you drafted those positions? But they’re not contributing to your football team.

“Or do you draft the best football players that contribute to your football team that make you a better football team? We’re trying to draft football players that contribute and make us a better football team versus just those.”

You’ll often hear the phrase, “Don’t scout the helmet, scout the player.” Holmes’ philosophy is essentially, “Don’t scout the position, scout the player.” He proved that at last year’s draft.

The Lions had a long-term need at corner, and many believed the team was enamored with Illinois CB Devon Witherspoon at No. 6. Turns out, the Seattle Seahawks were, too, selecting him at No. 5. Witherspoon had the mindset, the swagger and the physicality the Lions look for when evaluating the position and learning more about the man beneath the helmet.



But instead of selecting another cornerback viewed to be on Witherspoon’s level in Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez, Holmes traded down to No. 12 and took the next highest player on his board — Alabama running back Jahmyr Gibbs — while adding tight end Sam LaPorta with the extra capital. That was his process. The result? Both made the Pro Bowl as rookies.



It’s what makes his investment in the position this year all the more notable.

Holmes said Arnold and Rakestraw were his No. 1 and No. 2 corners in the class. Arnold, widely considered to be a top-15 prospect overall, fell to No. 24. The Lions traded a 2024 third-rounder to get him, welcoming him to Detroit with open arms. With the loss of capital, an obvious move to recoup picks would be to trade down from No. 61. But instead, Holmes was monitoring Rakestraw as Day 2 unfolded. He said he didn’t think he’d last long in the second round. He said he considered coming up to get him. Ultimately, his patience was rewarded.


Rakestraw is a feisty, physical corner. Perhaps the most physical cornerback in the draft. While Arnold has the bigger personality, one that matches his on-field play style, Rakestraw is more reserved. The voice is soft-spoken, but the words speak volumes. He’s aggressive in the run game, can use his hands to disrupt timing at the line of scrimmage, offers inside-outside versatility at the cornerback position and is wired the way the Lions like their corners to be.



“I call myself the ‘tone-setter,’” Rakestraw said Friday. “My defense used to call me the firecracker of the team, because yeah, I’m a corner, but I’ll come up and set that edge. I’ll hit you like a linebacker. I just let my presence be felt every play that I’m out there.”

A Holmes corner if there ever was one.



“Ennis was still there, so we went ahead and got him,” Holmes said. “Again, we don’t really care (about) the position. It’s just, we take the best player.”

Holmes has a way of making oft-debated draft matters sound minute in the grand scheme of things. A year ago, he said it’s easier to get worse at quarterback than it is to get better — referring to how teams chase the next big thing. He stood behind Jared Goff when the Lions were struggling early in the Holmes-Dan Campbell era. Goff just helped this franchise win its first playoff game in 32 years. Fans at the draft were chanting his name before the event kicked off.



He’s often said he believes in drafting “football players” — not guys who play football. It’s why the Lions have developed a type among the draft community, with experts labeling certain players as a “Dan Campbell guy” or a “Brad Holmes guy.” That only happens when you’ve established a philosophy that’s proven successful over time, sticking to a set of principles that have guided you well.

“It’s hard for us, it’s hard for me and Dan, it’s hard for our staff, to have a guy that’s a really good football player that fits for us and you say, ‘Ah, no, we already took at that position. Let’s get this other player (who’s) not as good as this player at this position,'” Holmes said. “It’s hard to sleep at night, to do that. That’s how we’ve operated so far to this point and that’s what we’ll keep doing.”



Colton Pouncy is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Detroit Lions. He previously covered Michigan State football and basketball for the company, and covered sports for The Tennessean in Nashville prior to joining The Athletic. Follow Colton on Twitter @colton_pouncy

[ghandi]

Some people think that free agency should be after the draft not before....I doubt the Lions sign Emmanuel Moseley if they knew they would get these 2 corners...Would the Falcons have signed Cousins if they knew they could get Penix in the draft?

[Cody_Russell]

Slay emerged as a legit NFL CB in his 2nd year after a rough rookie season. He didn’t start getting the pro-bowl and all-pro nods until a couple of seaons after, but it didn’t take him long to prove he belonged.

Yup!
It’s funny reading old posts. Quick search “Slay” in the archive and sort by ascending. You have guys like Bill Bentley and old Brent Grimes more thought of than Slay due to his rookie struggles.

Also, I forgot that Slay had injury questions as a draft prospect. He overcame that! That’s apparently part of the reason that Slay was a 2nd RD pick.

https://www.detroitlionsforum.com/forums/forum/sports-discussion-forums/archives/6308-second-to-no-one-meet-darius-slay-cb/page7

[Mainevent]

Bro.. Isn't this what I just said? So basically it took Slay 2 years to figure out what we had in him. Thanks for proving my point. You're welcome

Two is “a few” now? Slay was good from the jump in year 2. If you’re waiting for a 1st rounder to come into form in year 3 or 4, you’ve likely already moved onto the next plan to fill that role. Guys on long development time lines are left for later in the draft.

Bro.

[froot loops]

Some people think that free agency should be after the draft not before....I doubt the Lions sign Emmanuel Moseley if they knew they would get these 2 corners...Would the Falcons have signed Cousins if they knew they could get Penix in the draft?

Emmanuel Moseley signed for peanuts.

[El Axe]

I don't have an issue with the need and value of drafting Rakestraw. I don't need convincing that he's a good player and that we can use him.

I am just really concerned with what we're going to do with our offensive line. Our OT depth is Dan Skipper -- a guy we let go last year. Our IOL depth is Sorsdale & Awosika. None of these guys looked good last year. I think we all know that Goff goes from a top-10 QB to a bottom 10 QB if he doesn't get a clean pocket. Our offense statistically goes from top-5 to bottom-5 when we lose Ragnow and that's not opinion, that's statistical fact.

Our OL depth is awful. I'm not sure that there are any quality free agents left. You all know I've followed this draft more than 99% of fans. I don't see any quality OL players being there late in the 5th round. There are a handful of guys who can eventually become depth players, but they will all look like Sorsdale did last year.

We will lose OL starters over the course of the season. I think the odds of having all 5 healthy OL starters for the playoffs is very small. Who here is comfortable with playing a playoff game with Sorsdale starting anywhere? It also usually takes a season for a young player to learn the position. I think it's unlikely that we will keep all of our starting 5 for 2025. We will need a starter in 2025 and we will also be lower in cap space because of some significant contracts coming up.

That pick at 61 might have been the last chance we had of adding quality OL depth without dipping into next season's draft capital. There was an outstanding OT/OG available who is Penei Sewell's cousin and that the Chiefs were excited to trade up to get after we selected Rakestraw. We could have traded back from 61 and selected from many quality OG candidates.

Perhaps Holmes has a quality OL player in his back pocket. Maybe a free agent he is aware of, maybe a prospect that has flown under the radar. Maybe the Lions are much more confident in the depth than I am. I am not saying it's a bad pick, I do question the strategy. I am concerned but am willing to wait and see how Holmes addresses it.

[chemiclord]

Again. In order to trade down, there needs to be someone willing to trade up. It's why I am always so careful to criticize a GM for not trading down, because we have no idea what offers, if any, were out there, or if they were any good. Considering pick #61 appeared to be right in the middle of the Tier 3-prospects, and Rakestraw was by most accounts a borderline Tier 1/Tier 2 talent, I am able to believe there simply wasn't a deal out there Holmes found worth it.

As far as O-Line depth, clearly Holmes was okay enough with what they have that he didn't even blink to send the card with Rakestraw's name up there. And ya know what? I don't know if he's wrong. Awosika was... fine... in his limited duty last year. Sorsdal is one year older and one year wiser at the position. Skipper has always been entirely adequate whenever he's been called into action.

Really, the only IOL that I thought was on the Lions radar and could have been a Day 1 contributor over anyone else on the depth chart was Barton... and ya know what? I'm quite all right with the Lions passing on a super-sub (for a couple years at least) for a guy in Arnold who could quite possibly be a Day 1 starter.

[El Axe]

20 minutes later, Holmes addresses this by trading up and drafting Manu. Manu looks like a beast, but I have a hard time believing he is anything but a project

[jaadam4]

Two is “a few” now?

Yes. It’s literally the definition.

[El Axe]

I don't have an issue with the need and value of drafting Rakestraw. I don't need convincing that he's a good player and that we can use him.

I am just really concerned with what we're going to do with our offensive line. Our OT depth is Dan Skipper -- a guy we let go last year. Our IOL depth is Sorsdale & Awosika. None of these guys looked good last year. I think we all know that Goff goes from a top-10 QB to a bottom 10 QB if he doesn't get a clean pocket. Our offense statistically goes from top-5 to bottom-5 when we lose Ragnow and that's not opinion, that's statistical fact.

Our OL depth is awful. I'm not sure that there are any quality free agents left. You all know I've followed this draft more than 99% of fans. I don't see any quality OL players being there late in the 5th round. There are a handful of guys who can eventually become depth players, but they will all look like Sorsdale did last year.

We will lose OL starters over the course of the season. I think the odds of having all 5 healthy OL starters for the playoffs is very small. Who here is comfortable with playing a playoff game with Sorsdale starting anywhere? It also usually takes a season for a young player to learn the position. I think it's unlikely that we will keep all of our starting 5 for 2025. We will need a starter in 2025 and we will also be lower in cap space because of some significant contracts coming up.

That pick at 61 might have been the last chance we had of adding quality OL depth without dipping into next season's draft capital. There was an outstanding OT/OG available who is Penei Sewell's cousin and that the Chiefs were excited to trade up to get after we selected Rakestraw. We could have traded back from 61 and selected from many quality OG candidates.

Perhaps Holmes has a quality OL player in his back pocket. Maybe a free agent he is aware of, maybe a prospect that has flown under the radar. Maybe the Lions are much more confident in the depth than I am. I am not saying it's a bad pick, I do question the strategy. I am concerned but am willing to wait and see how Holmes addresses it.

This is no longer a concern for me. I was still concerned when we traded up for Manu, but getting Mahogany alleviated it.

I'm not excited about trading away 3rd & 4th next season. I'm not excited that we might need to keep Manu on the active roster taking up a spot when he can't contribute, but I trust Holmes.

[LightninBoy]

Interesting that the Lions used their 1st, 2nd and 3rd round picks all on CB. At least you can't say they aren't trying to fix their secondary.