With the majority of pro days in the books and the big Sam Darnold trade to the Panthers, analysts are trying to keep pace and give their best guess on what teams will do come draft day in their mock draft.
One of the more recognizable draftniks in the business and a former NFL scout, Daniel Jeremiah of the NFL Network released his latest mock draft . He does put a disclaimer in there stating this is where he believes the player will go, not necessarily where the player should go.
So keep that in mind when you see Detroit’s selection.
The first three picks went as expected, with three quarterbacks coming off the board. Jeremiah slotted a fourth QB to Atlanta, believing they are a prime candidate to move out of the pick to a quarterback-needy team.
After the onslaught on quarterbacks, a pair of playmakers come off the board, with Kyle Pitts to Ciniciannti and Ja’Marr Chase to Miami.
With the Lions on the board next and with a slew of quality players ripe for picking, Jeremiah decides to go a different route and select Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields to the Lions.
Don’t forget this is where Jeremiah believes where Fields could go in the draft, either to Detroit, or they find a suitable trade partner and that team selects him. Here is what Jeremiah had to say about the selection.
“This could be a trade spot, with some teams picking after Detroit potentially in the market for a quarterback, but I wouldn’t rule out the Lions staying put and taking a signal-caller themselves. Fields has more upside than Jared Goff.”
There have been endless debates as to whether the Lions should go after playmakers to give Jared Goff the necessary tools to succeed or should they plan for the future and nab one of the quarterbacks to jump-start the rebuild.
The school of thought is the Lions should build the team now and then find the quarterback later; that way, they don’t waste the years of the rookie deal and maximize the rookie scale’s length in the team’s favor.
On the flip side of the coin, if there is a quarterback the Lions feel who could make an impact down the road, they will pull the trigger on it. It is never a bad idea to let a rookie quarterback learn the ropes behind the veteran instead of throwing them to the wolves right off the bat.
But this is where general manager Brad Holmes makes his money by finding mid-round gems that can complement the early selections of players who don’t immediately fill a need.
Our own Jeff Risdon compared Justin Fields to more an athletically gifted Matthew Stafford in his recent 2021 quarterback big board at RealGM . Considering who the Lions moved on from, that wouldn’t be a bad consolidation prize if he fell to the Lions at No. 7.
Whichever side of the field you may be on, we are unsure how this regime will attack the draft this year, making it one of the most debated Lions draft in recent memory. But keep in mind this is a long process in the upcoming “retool,” and some patience will be needed to see how this shapes up.
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