2023 NFL Draft: Have Lions Plans Changed After Free Agency?

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NFL teams have largely constructed a new roster for 2023. For some teams, positions of need still stand out. But for others, their top team needs may have changed after the beginning of free agency. There is one team in particular that appears to have seen their top team needs change. Perhaps, this up-and-coming squad has enjoyed one of the best offseasons of any NFL team so far. That would be the Detroit Lions.

The lovable Lions have been on a rising path under head coach Dan Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes. Overall, this franchise was honest about what needed to take place under a rebuild. Detroit has been able to find certain franchise pillars and tremendous on-field leaders. In the process, the winning results have begun to take shape.

The Lions nearly made the playoffs last season at 9-8. And all of a sudden, the NFC North looks wide open. Aaron Rodgers is not expected to be a Green Bay Packer anymore. Certainly, the Minnesota Vikings overachieved some during a magical season. A partial regression to the mean is expected for them. Finally, the Chicago Bears still have some key holes to fill while they look to grow further alongside young quarterback Justin Fields.

Focusing on the 2023 NFL Draft, how have the draft plans possibly changed for the Detroit Lions? Could they be continuing a recent trend that they are comfortable with? Let’s kick it off.

Lions Address Secondary Early

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As exciting as the Lions were on offense last year, Detroit could not find any consistency on defense. No part of the defense struggled more than the secondary. In total, the Lions ranked 30th in the NFL in passing yards allowed for 2022. They were also 23rd in passing touchdowns allowed and 31st in net yards allowed per pass attempt.

In the handful of notable free agency additions made by the Lions, Detroit has added three intriguing defensive backs. Cameron Sutton and Emmanuel Moseley were each added to the cornerback position. Moreover, do-it-all defensive back CJ Gardner-Johnson was a bit of a steal, after the Philadelphia Eagles opted not to re-sign him.

The important factors for Detroit are this. Sutton, Moseley and Gardner-Johnson are all fairly young players still. This trio is able to be relied upon one-on-one in man coverage, if necessary. To boot, the Lions are getting three players that can boast physical and tenacious play styles. Add in Jeff Okudah finally putting together a well-rounded campaign in 2022, and the Lions are suddenly looking more dangerous in the secondary.

No More Double Dip On Defense In First Round?

For much of the early parts of the offseason, a good amount of mock drafts have placed two defenders to the Detroit Lions. You have seen names like Christian Gonzalez from Oregon or Devon Witherspoon from Illinois getting mocked to Detroit at six overall from the cornerback position. Other defensive backs like Brian Branch from Alabama have been popular fits for the Lions with their second first-round pick at 18 overall.

On top of that, defensive tackle Jalen Carter from Georgia has become a fascinating case to monitor during the final stages of the pre-draft process. His off-field situation has some people believing that he will not be one of the first two defensive players selected anymore. Whether that is the case or not, a slight slide could leave the Lions waiting in the wings to take the Georgia product at six overall.

The chance to land Carter, plus the moves in free agency, could give the Lions the option of simply taking the best player available in the first round. Regardless of team need, Detroit may feel more comfortable taking the best player left on their board in both instances of the first round. As a result, the Lions could be better off in the near future with stacking up as much top-tier talent as they can. Detroit could continue to get more creative in their tendencies as well with the best player available approach.

Does that mean adding an offensive piece like a quarterback, if given the chance? That or adding another skill player to the offensive attack should not be ruled out from the Lions in round one anymore.

Weapons In Detroit’s Arsenal Could Create Movement

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As things currently stand, the Lions possess eight picks in the 2023 NFL Draft. Via Tankathon, five of those picks are slated to be in the top 100, as of now. That includes picks six, 18, 48, 55 and 81. Afterwards, Detroit holds picks 152, 183 and 194 on day three of the draft.

Who is to say that the Lions cannot move up and down the draft board at an aggressive rate? Just last year, they showed us that they are not shy about moving multiple draft picks for a major swap. The Lions traded up to the 12th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft to select Alabama wide receiver Jameson Williams. In this draft-day trade, Detroit sent picks 32, 34 and 66 to the division-rival Minnesota Vikings for picks 12 and 46, via NBC Sports.

Interestingly, these two NFC North teams made another trade with each other before last year’s trade deadline during the 2022 season. The Lions shockingly sent tight end TJ Hockenson to the Vikings. Detroit received a 2023 second-round pick and a 2024 fourth-round pick. On the other hand, Minnesota received a 2023 fourth-round pick and a conditional 2024 fourth-round pick along with Hockenson.

With five premium picks sitting inside the top 100, the Lions have plenty of weapons in their arsenal. Detroit could use those extra day two picks to move up for certain players that they are surprised to see fall. At the same time, they could even package their second first-round pick to acquire more future picks, if they do not love the current board and scenario at 18 overall. The options that the Lions have are cavernous.

Drafting For Present And Future

With the aforementioned idea of drafting the best player available in mind, the Detroit Lions could truly set themselves up well. This could be done by drafting with both the present and the future of the team in the forefront. Simply put, Jared Goff quietly was one of the more solid quarterbacks last season. He did his job well, by not doing too much more than he had to.

Drafting to set him up for taking another step forward could certainly be on the radar of the Lions. Elsewhere, Detroit knows that there is an opportunity for them to take grasp of the NFC North crown. Finding more franchise pillars and on-field leaders could also be important to the Lions during the 2023 NFL Draft. With all of that in mind, this group could finally be set for continuous chances at reaching the NFL playoffs.

Be on the lookout for more FPC NFL Draft articles and analysis in the coming days. For more great sports and NFL content, stay tuned to Full Press Coverage.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.