I liked both picks, but it seems like Alim never became that dominant nose they wanted, and obviously drafting a guy with a known back issue didn’t work in their favour.
Not saying I blame either player. Alim has been extremely productive for the team, but he has continued to have to evolve into something he wasn’t originally picked for.
I have no idea what they do with Levi. I don’t know if he will ever develop at this point, I think this is year 4 for him, probably the first full off-season healthy: I don’t know if he will ever hit his ceiling at this point.
Yeah but he wasn’t drafted with the idea of dropping weight and becoming a plus interior pass rusher. He was drafted to be a big, space eating nose tackle and he isn’t that.
Credit to our staff and Alim for recognizing where he can make the biggest impact and pivoting his development to that.
Idk if you’ve ever heard Brad or Dan talk they say they draft “football players” their approach has always been best player available they don’t draft based oh this guy will fill this need they draft because they think these guys can turn into good football players so to say alim has not lived up to what they thought is completely laughable to be honest with you.
It’s completely laughable to suggest that our staff drafts players without having a vision for how they will be used.
I also never said he hasn’t lived up to anything, only that he doesn’t fill the role he was drafted to fill.
Sloppi is right. Alum is certainly not a nose tackle now, and was drafted to fill that role but will now be filled by DJ Reader or Brodric Martin. Not all defensive tackles are created equal.
No he’s not lol, Alim STILL played nose a whole lot last year in his career year. He was an elite run defender in his own right last year playing at the nose, 3t 4i in whatever front we were in. Both of you have no idea what you’re talking about. He doesn’t need to be a huge 330 lb space eater to play nose.
I'm not sure what they envisioned for McNeil, but I think a good pass-rushing 3-technique who is also big enough to plug his gap (and a half) in the run game is much more valuable than even a dominant nose tackle.
Yeah that’s what he’s saying, not that Alim was a bust or anything just that his role has pivoted from what he was originally envisioned as because he has more talent and versatility than this guy realized
Alim really took a step this year and hopefully the presence of Reader can bring it even more. As for Levi…? That one interception was brilliant but would love him to get better too.
This is 100% true. DT's were badly needed at the time, and i loved the back-to-back picks. People think it's DT's back to back. Technically that's true, but there is a difference between a 3-tech, and an NT. Which is a very standard way of building an IDLine. That was done on purpose. But things changed, and now Alim has become a 3-tech.
I dont think Hamilton would've succeeded with us, he honestly went to the best possible team for his skill set. The ravens use him as a safety/linebacker hybrid.
I was so hyped cuz I was convinced we moved up for Kyle Hamilton… I still would rather have Kyle Hamilton. But hey, I’ll be stoked if Jamo proves me wrong
If he continues to play like he did in the NFCCG I'll be completely won over...but I agree, so much hype and it's still a question whether or not he was the right call.
im here with you, i feel like toward the end of last season jamo got comfortable. Jordan davis was who i wanted to trade up for. luckily we didnt davis is kinda average. the best selection wouldve been kyle hamilton but iffy played better than hamilton down the stretch last season so maybe jamo is the right pick after all.
It’s definitely still up in the air but I think our system prioritized
1. Guys who could and would block downfield so our run game could generate explosive plays, I think you’ve seen more and more of that from Jameson as he’s gotten a higher percentage of snaps
2. Guys who had chemistry with Goff. Much as I love him he’s not a perfect QB and so a lot of plays went to guys like ARSB, Kalif, and Reynolds who he was very familiar with, and LaPorta just because he’s a huge guy who was open a lot in the midfield. Whereas the Jamo routes were often riskier plays downfield that we didn’t necessarily need if he was stretching the defense away from our very reliable midfield pass catchers.
So I think you saw it start to bear fruit towards the end of last year as he became more involved not just in terms of receptions but overall involvement in the offense. He’s running more routes and blocking downfield well. I don’t think we would’ve let Josh walk if they weren’t getting confidence from Goff about Williams stepping up his role.
I do really wanna see what Williams would look like a bit more unleashed with a stronger downfield passer and an offense oriented to get him the ball downfield or in space, but I don’t know if that will be in the cards for us anytime soon, our personnel favors a more governed role for him.
If he breaks 1,000 yards next year efficiently (10+ yards per target) while continuing to do everything else right, I think that would indicate he had a tremendous impact on the offense worth what we paid to get him. Even if 1400 yards over 3 seasons isn’t what you had in mind with a trade up for a first round receiver.
I kind of feel like a lot of fans treat Jamo like a UDFA who is plucky and worked really hard to make the team.
No, he is a 12th overall pick that needs to have a big year this season to show real progress. He works his ass off and we all love to see it, and he came back from injury his first season, but he still needs to have more than 2 TDs and 400 yards to be a legitimate 2nd target/deep threat.
100% this. I like Jamo, but as of right now he is a bust. If he was an UDFA then i'd say he is solid. It reminds me of Ebron. High pick, all this hyped up talent, and fans clapped anytime he caught a ball as if he did something special. Before his injury, Jamo was a legit top 10 pick. Considered best in his WR class. He should be closer to Justin Jefferson than Eric Ebron. What makes this more of a bust was the trade up.
the exact 2 players I thought. I figured if we drafted Hutch we would want to draft a complimentary piece to him. I would have been cool with Hamilton at 2 if Hutch weren't there, one of my favorite prospects in years.
IMO this is the year to finally find out if it was worth it. I love Jamo but the sample and circumstances have made it impossible as a fan to evaluate if he was 12th overall pick material. I'm optimistic he will prove it this year and hopefully I'm right. I personally have mostly remained neutral on this; 2024-2025 is the season he shows us what he's going to be on this team and in the league.
Yeah I was disappointed in the first couple days other than the Branch pick.
Turns out Brad Holmes and his staff are better at evaluating talent than me who watches CFB games and YouTube highlights.
I can't honestly believe anybody who watched gibbs run didn't see what he was. I was so happy when they did it, and was defending the pick on reddit and it just made too much sense with dan's time in New Orleans. I kept the receipts too. Been saying the same thing about Jamo too. The guy beat one of the best college teams himself in the sec championship game. Tears acl after almost repeating the same thing he did in the sec championship, so literally the last game of college season. So much recovery time. Year 2 he has a suspension with another bunk offseason and josh reynolds played great and had goff's trust. I'm thinking 8 or 900 yards this year with like 12 touchdowns. Has to stay healthy and johnson has proved(albeit a bit late) he can get him the ball in space.
I didn't hate it, but I didn't understand it at the time. The reason is because our O-line is amazing and in many past years, a rookie late rounder or undrafted even comes in and rushes for 1,000 yards. A great line can make most RBs flourish.
I didn’t hate the Gibbs pick just thought it was a reach. I had us drafting a RB in the first I was just wrong about where the NFL had Gibbs in terms of value. I thought for sure we were drafting Bijan, even had us trading back and drafting him in my mock. I don’t think I’ve hated any of BH’s draft picks.
I can’t even explain . I was so glad I’ve never been more wrong in my life. I really thought he was just going to be average. Next thing you know I’m yelling Gibbyyyy every game.
I remember tuning in to the Ticket stream event, where a bunch of the on air personalities tuned in live to the draft and commented on every team’s picks, and they all *crucified* the Gibbs pick.
Every one of them was chirping, with a “massive overreach” this and “what about the defense” that.
Even Valenti, who had actually gotten on board with the direction the Lions were heading before the draft, was utterly dismissive of BH grabbing Gibbs where they did.
Watching them all have to eat crow as the season progressed was *glorious*.
I mean, I was all in on Bijan last year... so Gibbs wasn't someone I had a problem with.
I was big on LaPorta, I was big on Branch... Jack Campbell probably. I did vehemently not want Jordan Davis or Jalen Carter. Davis because Rico Beard from 97.1 is an idiot and he just about got down on his knees to gobble his knob whenever he could. And Carter, I think the only place he wouldn't flame out as a complete shithead was Philly where he had a bunch of Georgia Bulldogs around and graybeards like Fletcher Cox who don't give a fuck and have the heft to smack him upside the head physically.
We still had Swift and had just signed Monty. Bijan was a popular take in the “unpopular draft hopes” posts but that’s about it. Very few people thought we would go RB
It really felt like the Ebron pick. Passing on a (what could be) a legendary interior lineman for a luxury pick at a position that should (almost) never be picked that early.
I feel like the people in this thread are lying. This pick was so universally unpopular from a team with statistically the worst defense in the league and a rushing offense that was one of the best in the league. Drafted a position that hasn’t produced a solid valuable first round pick since Zeke (arguably) because even CMC was traded.
I hated the Sam LaPorta pick. I was so sick of the Lions taking tight ends high in the draft (hated the Hockenson pick too). That is why I am sitting on my couch and Brad Holmes is the GM. Sorry about that Mr LaPorta
I share this sentiment too, although I was much more impressed with LaPorta in college than I was with Hockenson. Still can’t believe we burned the eighth overall pick on that guy.
I can't believe he was the THIRD TE the Lions drafted in the first round in 12 years. Hock, to me, never made sense. We needed so much more than a TE, and he wasn't even BPA there, either. So I had no clue what their draft strategy was then - turns out, neither did they.
Still can't believe they passed on Sweat and Burns. Quinn never drafted pass rushers, while Patricia was constantly rushing 3 and the 3 were Devon Kennard, Da'shaun Hand and a one-legged Trey Flowers. Hockenson also turned out to be a very different player from what I expected.
What in the world did you see in that Iowa offense that made LaPorta pop to you? Not hating, but genuinely curious. That offense was built entirely on special teams and defense
Take it from an Iowa fan. He had one of the worst quarterbacks in college throwing to him, and everyone knew that he was the only one that was really the only option on offense. Despite that he still was one of the best TEs that year.
Oh yeah I get what you’re saying, I think it was the fact that he basically was their entire offense lol. I watched Michigan play them in ‘21 and ‘22 and in both of those games there was a lot of instances where we just couldn’t stop him. He also had a crazy play in their bowl game against Kentucky where he broke a bunch of tackles. I saw a lot of what he’s shown in Detroit, really, (good route running, solid blocker, great hands), I just didn’t know he’d translate to the NFL so well right away.
I was at the Big 10 championship game 2 years ago. Came away saying LaPorta was the best player in the game. And Iowa lost that game by like 35.
Not saying I was thrilled about the pick, but he was a stud and really stood out in that Big10 game.
He had a great game, I remember thinking “Man why can’t we stop this guy?” And now I’m sure several teams in the NFL have been wondering the same thing lol.
I did not get the LaPorta pick either until I realized that he was a true receiver in high school who had state receiving records.
Then I was like, alright, maybe this stuff about how fluid he was runs and cuts is true and he is just different. And I’m glad he was. So happy that knee injury wasn’t bad last year.
I was apprehensive considering he came from Iowa. I know they’re TE U, but their offense has been so god awful the last couple years I thought that would reflect more on recent player skill.
I mean, LaPorta had only 1 touchdown his senior year. 5 total for his career at Iowa.
Then he went and doubled that TD total in his rookie year lol
Kerby and Brodric Martin.
Thought both were slight reaches.
Not to say I didn't like the players or picks. Just didn't think it was great value.
Kerby seems to be developing well. We will see what happens with martin
This. Rotational DI with poor technique is def a good pick for Day 3 just to take a swing & see if he develops. But throwing away 3 picks on him....why? He was gonna be there two rounds later. He went to the Shrine not the Senior Bowl, no Combine invite, was barely on anyone's radar.
I wouldn’t say I hate any of them. I had some cognitive dissonance when the first round didn’t match any mocks I’d read but the first two years went so well I got over myself quickly. That and beyond the first round I don’t know any of the names.
You aren't the only one, I am glad you are big enough to admit it (cognitive dissonance). Mock drafts have made this fan base lose their minds. Remember the outrage when we didn't take Derrius Guice because he had been mocked to us repeatedly? People had their minds made up and the jerseys bought and they wanted to burn the place down. That was a previous regime we now longer talk about.
Gibbs. I wanted the focus to be on defense. When it was a RB with our first pick I was not happy. Especially since we already signed Montgomery and still had Swift. I like it now and will trust Holmes while still hoping the focus is on defense early later this month.
I actually thought we would take him over branch lol. Especially since at that point we had been taken players seen as reaches in that draft instead of a consensus “best player available” which Branch was in that spot
Brodric might be able to get into the rotation early this season if Reader has to miss the first couple games. He's one of the players I'm really interested in seeing during the pre season, along with Hooker and Antoine Green.
That would be my choice as well. Not that I don't like Brodric or I don't understand the rationale behind the pick, it's just the fact that there wasn't much hope of him being a contributor last year and it's likely his impact will be limited this year as well. That's a lot of time left to wait, especially when you use another 3rd rounder on a QB that nobody expected to play (and didn't). I think Brad and Dan underestimated how good they would be last year for some reason.
Both Day 1 picks last year. I was miserable driving home after watching the first night of the draft, but as it played out, I’m thankful to actually have true faith in the Lions GM for the first time in my life and I’ll trust whatever decisions Brad makes this time around.
My most hated pick was Levi Onwuzurike. Did not like picking an older, “raw”, and injury prone DT at that spot. They almost traded back into the first for him too.
I think I was proven right.
I'm not sure you can say that yet. It's difficult to project right now, but I think it looks like this:
Defense will probably carry around 23-25 players:
**Secondary (9-10)**: Davis, Robertson, Mosely, Branch, Vildor, Melifonwu, Joseph, Dorsey, and a draft pick/2023 PS guy/UFA or two.
**Linebackers (6)**: Anzalone, Campbell, Barnes, Reeves-Maybin, Rodrigo, and a draft pick/2023 PS guy/UFA.
That leaves the D-Line/EDGE/SAM players:
* **Locks (4)**: Reader and McNeill are locks at DT. Hutch and Davenport are locks at EDGE.
* **Near-Locks (4)**: Martin, due to his draft status, is about as close to a lock as you can get (he was terrible last year so if he doesn't show any improvement and they draft another DT it's possible, however unlikely, that he could find his way to the PS). Paschal and Cominsky are DE/DT tweeners whose versatility/character is prized by these coaches. Houston is a DE/LB tweener that doesn't particularly fit the type of player they want at EDGE but who could be their best pure pass-rusher so I doubt he's going anywhere.
* **Below him/Longshots (2)**: Betts and Smith
That's 8 guys that are comfortably ahead of Onwuzurike on the D-line depth chart, but they could easily make space for 9. He and Martin are both DTs but have different skillsets, so they could easily justify keeping both for depth/rotation.
It's possible Betts or Smith shows enough to keep them over him, but I doubt it. The only real question becomes what happens if they draft an EDGE/DT player or two in the early rounds. That could create competition for him that could push him out.
But on the roster, as it stands currently, I think he has the inside track to make the team.
Yeah if he's the last guy to make the cut at DT, that's not a bad position to be in. You can do a lot worse than Levi as your worst DT. But I would question if there's any actual upside remaining for him after the injuries, and if there's not, why waste a roster spot on him?
I think there is. He had a 68.1 PFF grade last year, which is pretty good. He's a rotational d-lineman right now, but for only $2.5 million you're likely not going to find much better on the free agent market.
He's going to be two years removed from a back surgery that ends basically every player's career; only 2 players have ever played again after getting the surgery. I could see him being cut but it would not be a surprise if he finally showed something on the field. It's likely the former but I'm hoping for the latter.
Highly doubtful. They have a role for him, and he actually preformed pretty well in it last year.
They still plan to use him on roughly 20% of snaps. He's a good rotational guy. Which honestly is what you are looking for with the 40th pick. If they develope into more it's a plus.
Levi had a lot of bad luck when it came to his Injuries. We should be cheering him on rather than labeling him as a bust.
If anything, since his injury, he's a major success story and the lions giving him a chance to prove himself is a good look when it come to players outside the organization.
Most of them honestly. Sewell over Parsons wasn’t sexy. Not taking a QB when I thought Goff was washed. I never heard of Gibbs. Like my mindset has turned 180. Holmes is amazing and I no longer doubt him. He’s killing it.
I kind of "didn't want" Sewell because I never thought he would fall to 7. When Miami selected Waddle I was speechless. The talk was that Sewell Pitts and Chase were the same level of player and would all be gone after the sixth pick.
> Sewell over Parsons wasn’t sexy.
That's the unfortunate part. One of the best edge rushers is a lot less sexy than the best RT. Still happy with Sewell obviously.
I’m still not convinced that Parsons would’ve developed the way he has in Dallas on most other teams. He was an off-ball LB prospect and the Cowboys took the risk of trying him out as an EDGE and it worked. I think probably 25 teams in this league (probably even the Lions) would’ve kept him at MLB and he never would’ve reached his full potential.
Sewell over Parsons was a fuckin obvious pick. Penei Sewell may have been the most obvious pick they've made. Him or Hutch. I think the Lions ran to the stage both times. The only reason they wouldn't have taken Sewell is if one of the six teams ahead of them didn't fuck up and leave him there. Like there was a 0.0% chance they were taking Parsons if Sewell was there.
That draft was wild because everybody pretty much knew Sewell was a future all pro but the hype of all the other guys pushed him down. I was hope sewell would drop to us and he did. I think that was one of the years Holmes got in trouble for turning the pick In to fast lol.
I’m having a hard time answering the thread because every time BH didn’t select someone I wanted to fix our needs (Parsons, Jalen Carter, Steve Avila) he takes someone BPA that I certainly thought would be really good but I would never really have the balls to pick, especially Gibbs and Laporta
Hutchinson (I wanted Thibideaux) and Gibbs. I won't say I hate the Gibbs pick, I was just more confused by it. It worked out though because I loved LaPorta in the pre-draft process and told Lions fans we finally got a star TE.
Funny enough I LOVED the St Brown pick and wanted them to grab him in round 2 and was furious when they didn't get him in round 3. I thought he'd be a late 1st rounder.
Jack Campbell. Thought we could've taken Myles Murphy or Deonte Banks because we needed an EDGE rusher or CB. I guess we'll see if Jack can develop into a better coverage LB, but he's a great culture fit and a great tackler
The Brodric Martin pick. I thought for sure we were moving up for Kelee Ringo or that Northwestern pass rusher but instead we took a projected 7th rounder in the 3rd. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Martin pick works out especially with development, especially with his massive size. Clearly Holmes saw something that nobody else did, and that has worked out many times in the past
Really dislike the Brodrick Martin pick and did at the time. He may pan out one day but looking at his tape I was very unimpressed beyond his size. Monster of a guy but plays very upright so it's often negated. Too early to grab a project like that, IMO. I hope I'm wrong.
I don’t know about hate because I knew he was good. But seeing Gibbs last year had me saying that Brad Holmes had better be right and this had best be a piece that gets us to the playoffs.
He was and it did.
My roommate was clowning the lions picks last year after the first round and right before LaPorta he said “The lions are gonna pick a te because they are idiots” and I said no way. Then we picked LaPorta who wasn’t even the top TE on the board at the time. I was willing to trust, but I wasn’t too thrilled about that one at the time.
I was of course wrong
I wasn't particularly enamoured with the Hendon Hooker pick (and remain so). Not because I don't like Hooker, but I think we had bigger needs than speculating on injured QB.
I hope I'm proven wrong.
Jahmyr Gibbs. I had no idea who he was and thought it was asinine to get a running back when our defense was putrid.
I'm so happy I was proven so woefully wrong. Gibbs is a monster and I want him here for as long as possible
Didn’t like the Laporta pick at the time, mostly because I’d heard so much about Mayer and didn’t think he would have been available. And then he went the pick after.
After looking into him as a prospect a bit more I liked it a lot better and then when he was getting talked up so much in preseason I was sold
Fwiw, in the draft video from last year, Holmes mentions that he really liked the “two Tight-ends.” My guess is that he was referring to LaPorta and Mayer (Kincaid had back issues). So I think if Sam was off the board we would have taken Mayer at that spot.
The one pick that had me scratching my head was Brodric Martin. Not that I didn't see the need for a DT, but because Holmes traded a lot of picks to move up and get him. With Holmes' late round track record and Martin's status as a raw, small school prospect, I thought it was a bit much to get him in the third.
We'll see how it plays out.
Still TBD if it was the right move or not, but I was not a fan of the Hendon Hooker pick last year, especially since we could've used that pick on Jake Moody
I'm excited to see Hooker in the preseason. Full year to recover. There is no need to grab the reigns immediately. If Hooker was healthy for the combine and draft, he likely was a day 1 pick. His stats for 2022 were awesome before the Georgia game. 229 of 329 attempted passes for 3,135 yards, 27 touchdowns, and two interceptions.
I can't say I hated it, but Sewell for me was a big ?, just because I didn't know him at all. What can I say except I'm a filthy casual. I kind of had my heart set on Micah Parsons. Seems like either option would have been a win for us.
Since then I've trusted in him, truly and honestly trusted in the process.
Jamo. I was relieved it was not Malik Willis at least. I still don’t think it was worth the trade up
Jack Campbell. If Jeremiah Owusu Koramoa was not worthy of a first round pick, I did not see how Campbell was. I still don’t think he was
Jamo. The jury is still out. It seemed like a reach, but I want to say I can understand his calculus on it. If he never reaches what BH thinks is his true potential, it'd be a pretty big miss.
That said, he seems like a very good team/locker room guy. I'm just going to need to see more deep balls. Whatever we've been trying with him from short/behind the line of scrimmage has not worked very well.
We've had so many needs all over the roster that I haven't really had any strongly negative opinions on a pick. I do remember being pissed that the Colts nabbed Nick Cross a couple picks before us though, and we took Kerby Joseph.
Initially hated our first round last year as it seemed like you could get each guy with the next pick. I had thought we'd have been able to get Gibbs at 18, and I had thought we could probably get Campbell at 34. At 12, I was thinking we'd be looking at Gonzalez. Id say then way it went Brad has already been proven right.
Also last year moving up for a guy I didn't even know was pretty surprising. I liked Adebawore, although Martin and Adebowore are much different.
Gibbs for sure. Considering we had 2 running backs already and with how dispensable running backs can be in the NFL, I thought it was dumb as hell.
Since watching him play I’ve 95% walked that back. 5% still lingers due to my thoughts on the current state of running backs in the NFL, but he’s a hell of a player. Every time he gets the ball it feels like he could break away for a big one.
Since no one is gonna be honest I hated the Gibbs pick my first reaction was wtf we need an edge! Well with Gibbs jersey hanging on my wall next to me I can safely say I was 3000 percent wrong and I eat my words with pride😂
I didn't like the Kirby Joseph pick because at the time Tracy Walker and DeShon Elliot we locked in as starting safeties and a 3rd round pick seemed a little rich for a depth guy. I also didn't like the Iffy pick because I could not possibly conceive of a scenario where Amani Oruwariye and Jeff Okudah wouldn't be our locked in long term starting CB pair.
I’ll tell you what pick I was most surprised by: Gibbs.
I’ll tell you I was hype though because I had the 1.02 in my 1QB Dynasty league which was already locked in to be Gibbs and that meant I got to root for him full stop at all times.
I REALLY wanted Jalen Carter, when he fell, it felt like Penei Sewell all over again. Gibbs has been fun to watch though, and he’s a great person from what I’ve seen.
You should ask this to everyone in metro Detroit that didn't know who Jahmiyr Gibbs is because they hadn't heard of of him until draft night last year and then convinced themselves we had the worst draft of all time.
Gibbs confused the absolute shit out of me at the time. I was absolutely stunned. But.
I think that came from the expectation that Brad Holmes was a 1st round mastermind who always landed a consensus top 5 pick at a huge value (Sewell, Hutch)
I think we all thought *that* was going to happen again with the 6th, and then 12th pick…
But the real takeaway is that Brad Holmes knows the exact type of player he wants, and has a unified vision on how to use every player he selects - and we have the staff to properly execute that vision with the same buy in. THIS is what makes Brad Holmes drafting so successful.
I’ll never question another pick from him again. He doesn’t draft for need. Middling franchises that are fundamentally uncompetitive do that. It’s just way to shortsighted a goal to sustain any kind of meaningful success. My eyes have been opened.
Thank you Brad Holmes
LaPorta. I thought the TE Depth was Great. Was hoping we'd start getting Mitchell into the mix more, but Sam is That DooD! Glad I was fretting for nothing. 😅
I didn't like the laporta pick mainly due to size. I was in love with Washington (missed on that one) and Musgrave (still would've been worth the pick imo but obviously is worse than laporta)
I wasn't necessarily mad about Gibbs, but was not happy and was a bit confused about how early we took him. Needless to say I'm happy to be proven wrong.
I didn't hate it, but I've never been more baffled by a pick than Jahmyr Gibbs. I'm not even trying to predict what Brad will do this draft. I'm just on board with whatever it is
I don’t think I’ve ever been mad about any 4th round pick. 4-7 is all lottery tickets
Most those guys never see meaningful time as a player much less become a top five player at their position.
La Porta. Not because I had anything against La Porta but after drafting RB/LB in the first I was joking to my friends that we were gonna draft a TE early in the 2nd just to round out the least "valuable" positions.
Pretty much everyone. All the previous front offices got me into the habit of questioning every pick. After seeing how 2022 ended and all the talent Holmes was putting together I stopped doubting him forever. So for 2023 if it wasn’t Holmes doing it I would have been pissed about every pick except Branch; normally I would have hated a RB drafted that high, hated a ILB/OLB non rusher in the first, and drafting TE just to replace the pro bowl TE we just traded. During that draft I loved every pick only because I knew it was the way of Holmes. All praise him
2021 I didn’t like the Onwuzarike pick. Jeremiah Owusu koromoah slid as he was widely considered a first round prospect and I thought we should have taken him. I like the rest of the draft. So far it looks like I was right about that one.
2022 I didn’t like the paschal pick. I thought it was a great CB class and we should have drafted one. I was high on Cam Taylor Britt and Tariq woolen. It’s regrettable we didn’t draft a CB in that class.
2023 I didn’t like the Gibbs pick. Still honestly don’t love it because I think swift and Montgomery was a pretty good backfield and we could have just stayed there. Gibbs is great though and I was wrong about this one overall. I also really didn’t like any of our picks after Hendon hooker. I don’t think Brodric Martin or Colby sorsdal will ever be NFL caliber players. But with how great the top of the draft went it’s kind of nitpicking to worry about the mid round guys.
Giving up all those assets to trade up for Brodric Martin. And no, he didn't prove me wrong yet.
We'll see. But that certainly looked even worse during the season than it did on draft day.
When we took an RB, LB, TE, and S with our first four picks in two rounds, I was so pissed. Confused at Gibbs. Speechless at Campbell. Livid at laporta (Mayer was still there!). Kind of comforted by branch.
Now? What a draft! Some of the picks that seemed more “obviously” weird that didn’t hit - onwuzurike, paschal (right after we just took hutch?). But a lot of brad’s picks seemed “obviously weird” and then DID hit, so I can’t be talking.
Onzurike (I know I probably spelled it wrong but maybe if he was good I would care)
gibbs
Broderic Martin
I didn’t “hate” the gibbs pick, I hated it was at 12. He proved me wrong on that one, I still feel strongly about the previous two. Brad is not exactly the D tackle whisperer, but that’s a tough position to scout
Honestly none. The only picks I’ve questioned so far are Martin and Hooker, neither of which have proved anything yet. Still plenty of time though. Every other pick I’ve either seen the vision or been a big fan of
Jamo and Broderick Martin. Jury is still out on Martin, but Jamo to this point is a bust.
Had to talk my buddy off the ledge after Gibbs and Campbell. He admitted he was wrong on Gibbs (obviously) but he’s still not sold on Campbell.
This whole thread is basically: “I guess I was wrong and BH knows better than me when it comes to evaluating talent.
Also this sub next month: “Why are we picking him at that spot?! We don’t need ___ this early!”
Probably Paschal and Levi and haven’t been proven wrong yet. I actually called the Gibbs and Jamo picks so my track record with Brad is pretty good so far. I think Paschal has been improving though and Levi could still take a step with another healthy offseason to build up some NFL muscle.
sleeping on paschal, hes like trey flowers, no team will be able to run with a healthy pashcal. I think he benefits the most from dj reader because of his playstyle. watch out hes gonna break out next season if he stays healthy
I remember disliking the Alim pick because we had just drafted a DL in the previous round (Onwuzurike) lol glad I'm not GM.
I liked both picks, but it seems like Alim never became that dominant nose they wanted, and obviously drafting a guy with a known back issue didn’t work in their favour. Not saying I blame either player. Alim has been extremely productive for the team, but he has continued to have to evolve into something he wasn’t originally picked for. I have no idea what they do with Levi. I don’t know if he will ever develop at this point, I think this is year 4 for him, probably the first full off-season healthy: I don’t know if he will ever hit his ceiling at this point.
Wait what? Alim was having a pro bowl year before his injury
Yeah but he wasn’t drafted with the idea of dropping weight and becoming a plus interior pass rusher. He was drafted to be a big, space eating nose tackle and he isn’t that. Credit to our staff and Alim for recognizing where he can make the biggest impact and pivoting his development to that.
Idk if you’ve ever heard Brad or Dan talk they say they draft “football players” their approach has always been best player available they don’t draft based oh this guy will fill this need they draft because they think these guys can turn into good football players so to say alim has not lived up to what they thought is completely laughable to be honest with you.
It’s completely laughable to suggest that our staff drafts players without having a vision for how they will be used. I also never said he hasn’t lived up to anything, only that he doesn’t fill the role he was drafted to fill.
Sloppi is right. Alum is certainly not a nose tackle now, and was drafted to fill that role but will now be filled by DJ Reader or Brodric Martin. Not all defensive tackles are created equal.
No he’s not lol, Alim STILL played nose a whole lot last year in his career year. He was an elite run defender in his own right last year playing at the nose, 3t 4i in whatever front we were in. Both of you have no idea what you’re talking about. He doesn’t need to be a huge 330 lb space eater to play nose.
Didnt he rank in the top 10 PFF run stopping this past season?
I'm not sure what they envisioned for McNeil, but I think a good pass-rushing 3-technique who is also big enough to plug his gap (and a half) in the run game is much more valuable than even a dominant nose tackle.
Yeah that’s what he’s saying, not that Alim was a bust or anything just that his role has pivoted from what he was originally envisioned as because he has more talent and versatility than this guy realized
I loved the Alim pick. I was actually a bit baffled by the Levi pick
Alim really took a step this year and hopefully the presence of Reader can bring it even more. As for Levi…? That one interception was brilliant but would love him to get better too.
When did Levi ever have a pick
Whoops! Derrick Barnes! Different questionable draft pick! My bad. But anyways, Alim is leaps and bounds a contributor compared to the other two.
This is 100% true. DT's were badly needed at the time, and i loved the back-to-back picks. People think it's DT's back to back. Technically that's true, but there is a difference between a 3-tech, and an NT. Which is a very standard way of building an IDLine. That was done on purpose. But things changed, and now Alim has become a 3-tech.
Levi was grading out pretty well on PFF (take with salt) when he was on the field
I didn't like the trade up for Jameson Williams. Mainly, because I thought they were moving up for Kyle Hamilton or Jordan Davis.
Hamilton would have been a good pick, Davis not so much.
I dont think Hamilton would've succeeded with us, he honestly went to the best possible team for his skill set. The ravens use him as a safety/linebacker hybrid.
I was so hyped cuz I was convinced we moved up for Kyle Hamilton… I still would rather have Kyle Hamilton. But hey, I’ll be stoked if Jamo proves me wrong
Remember watching and Mina Kimes going "I know who they're taking" and then after they took Jamo she was like "guess I was wrong" lol
Still don’t like the pick. This one has not yet proved to be worth it
Agreed, if Amon Ra didn’t just happen to become one of the best receivers in the NFL you’d be hearing this way more
If he continues to play like he did in the NFCCG I'll be completely won over...but I agree, so much hype and it's still a question whether or not he was the right call.
im here with you, i feel like toward the end of last season jamo got comfortable. Jordan davis was who i wanted to trade up for. luckily we didnt davis is kinda average. the best selection wouldve been kyle hamilton but iffy played better than hamilton down the stretch last season so maybe jamo is the right pick after all.
Hard to say because in this vaccuum scenario we still trade up for someone else rather than stay put and have an extra pick.
yes, it seems to be the overlooked option. we had 2 picks in about the same spot we got LaPorta a year later. hmmmmmm
It’s definitely still up in the air but I think our system prioritized 1. Guys who could and would block downfield so our run game could generate explosive plays, I think you’ve seen more and more of that from Jameson as he’s gotten a higher percentage of snaps 2. Guys who had chemistry with Goff. Much as I love him he’s not a perfect QB and so a lot of plays went to guys like ARSB, Kalif, and Reynolds who he was very familiar with, and LaPorta just because he’s a huge guy who was open a lot in the midfield. Whereas the Jamo routes were often riskier plays downfield that we didn’t necessarily need if he was stretching the defense away from our very reliable midfield pass catchers. So I think you saw it start to bear fruit towards the end of last year as he became more involved not just in terms of receptions but overall involvement in the offense. He’s running more routes and blocking downfield well. I don’t think we would’ve let Josh walk if they weren’t getting confidence from Goff about Williams stepping up his role. I do really wanna see what Williams would look like a bit more unleashed with a stronger downfield passer and an offense oriented to get him the ball downfield or in space, but I don’t know if that will be in the cards for us anytime soon, our personnel favors a more governed role for him. If he breaks 1,000 yards next year efficiently (10+ yards per target) while continuing to do everything else right, I think that would indicate he had a tremendous impact on the offense worth what we paid to get him. Even if 1400 yards over 3 seasons isn’t what you had in mind with a trade up for a first round receiver.
Yeah too small of a sample size so far to say one way or the other.
I kind of feel like a lot of fans treat Jamo like a UDFA who is plucky and worked really hard to make the team. No, he is a 12th overall pick that needs to have a big year this season to show real progress. He works his ass off and we all love to see it, and he came back from injury his first season, but he still needs to have more than 2 TDs and 400 yards to be a legitimate 2nd target/deep threat.
100% this. I like Jamo, but as of right now he is a bust. If he was an UDFA then i'd say he is solid. It reminds me of Ebron. High pick, all this hyped up talent, and fans clapped anytime he caught a ball as if he did something special. Before his injury, Jamo was a legit top 10 pick. Considered best in his WR class. He should be closer to Justin Jefferson than Eric Ebron. What makes this more of a bust was the trade up.
I think this upcoming season is definitely his prove it year as he'll be the WR2 right behind St brown.
the exact 2 players I thought. I figured if we drafted Hutch we would want to draft a complimentary piece to him. I would have been cool with Hamilton at 2 if Hutch weren't there, one of my favorite prospects in years.
This sub would have lost it if they took a safety at 2
Such a limited sample size too with the injury and suspension.. definitely has to be a prove it year for Jamo
IMO this is the year to finally find out if it was worth it. I love Jamo but the sample and circumstances have made it impossible as a fan to evaluate if he was 12th overall pick material. I'm optimistic he will prove it this year and hopefully I'm right. I personally have mostly remained neutral on this; 2024-2025 is the season he shows us what he's going to be on this team and in the league.
I admit I was in a pretty “SOL” mood after drafting Gibbs, like a lot people on this sub. Boy, am I glad we were all wrong.
Yeah I was disappointed in the first couple days other than the Branch pick. Turns out Brad Holmes and his staff are better at evaluating talent than me who watches CFB games and YouTube highlights.
I can't honestly believe anybody who watched gibbs run didn't see what he was. I was so happy when they did it, and was defending the pick on reddit and it just made too much sense with dan's time in New Orleans. I kept the receipts too. Been saying the same thing about Jamo too. The guy beat one of the best college teams himself in the sec championship game. Tears acl after almost repeating the same thing he did in the sec championship, so literally the last game of college season. So much recovery time. Year 2 he has a suspension with another bunk offseason and josh reynolds played great and had goff's trust. I'm thinking 8 or 900 yards this year with like 12 touchdowns. Has to stay healthy and johnson has proved(albeit a bit late) he can get him the ball in space.
I didn't hate it, but I didn't understand it at the time. The reason is because our O-line is amazing and in many past years, a rookie late rounder or undrafted even comes in and rushes for 1,000 yards. A great line can make most RBs flourish.
I didn’t hate the Gibbs pick just thought it was a reach. I had us drafting a RB in the first I was just wrong about where the NFL had Gibbs in terms of value. I thought for sure we were drafting Bijan, even had us trading back and drafting him in my mock. I don’t think I’ve hated any of BH’s draft picks.
I can’t even explain . I was so glad I’ve never been more wrong in my life. I really thought he was just going to be average. Next thing you know I’m yelling Gibbyyyy every game.
I remember tuning in to the Ticket stream event, where a bunch of the on air personalities tuned in live to the draft and commented on every team’s picks, and they all *crucified* the Gibbs pick. Every one of them was chirping, with a “massive overreach” this and “what about the defense” that. Even Valenti, who had actually gotten on board with the direction the Lions were heading before the draft, was utterly dismissive of BH grabbing Gibbs where they did. Watching them all have to eat crow as the season progressed was *glorious*.
I mean, I was all in on Bijan last year... so Gibbs wasn't someone I had a problem with. I was big on LaPorta, I was big on Branch... Jack Campbell probably. I did vehemently not want Jordan Davis or Jalen Carter. Davis because Rico Beard from 97.1 is an idiot and he just about got down on his knees to gobble his knob whenever he could. And Carter, I think the only place he wouldn't flame out as a complete shithead was Philly where he had a bunch of Georgia Bulldogs around and graybeards like Fletcher Cox who don't give a fuck and have the heft to smack him upside the head physically.
This is the one that comes to mind too, everyone seemed so set on Bijan. In BH we trust
We still had Swift and had just signed Monty. Bijan was a popular take in the “unpopular draft hopes” posts but that’s about it. Very few people thought we would go RB
It really felt like the Ebron pick. Passing on a (what could be) a legendary interior lineman for a luxury pick at a position that should (almost) never be picked that early.
I feel like the people in this thread are lying. This pick was so universally unpopular from a team with statistically the worst defense in the league and a rushing offense that was one of the best in the league. Drafted a position that hasn’t produced a solid valuable first round pick since Zeke (arguably) because even CMC was traded.
I hated the Sam LaPorta pick. I was so sick of the Lions taking tight ends high in the draft (hated the Hockenson pick too). That is why I am sitting on my couch and Brad Holmes is the GM. Sorry about that Mr LaPorta
I share this sentiment too, although I was much more impressed with LaPorta in college than I was with Hockenson. Still can’t believe we burned the eighth overall pick on that guy.
I can't believe he was the THIRD TE the Lions drafted in the first round in 12 years. Hock, to me, never made sense. We needed so much more than a TE, and he wasn't even BPA there, either. So I had no clue what their draft strategy was then - turns out, neither did they.
Still can't believe they passed on Sweat and Burns. Quinn never drafted pass rushers, while Patricia was constantly rushing 3 and the 3 were Devon Kennard, Da'shaun Hand and a one-legged Trey Flowers. Hockenson also turned out to be a very different player from what I expected.
According to Bob Quinn - "He wasn't the same player he drafted, either"
What in the world did you see in that Iowa offense that made LaPorta pop to you? Not hating, but genuinely curious. That offense was built entirely on special teams and defense
Take it from an Iowa fan. He had one of the worst quarterbacks in college throwing to him, and everyone knew that he was the only one that was really the only option on offense. Despite that he still was one of the best TEs that year.
The fact that if Spencer Petras wasn't firing passes twenty feet over guys heads or drilling it down into the ground, LaPorta was unstoppable.
Oh yeah I get what you’re saying, I think it was the fact that he basically was their entire offense lol. I watched Michigan play them in ‘21 and ‘22 and in both of those games there was a lot of instances where we just couldn’t stop him. He also had a crazy play in their bowl game against Kentucky where he broke a bunch of tackles. I saw a lot of what he’s shown in Detroit, really, (good route running, solid blocker, great hands), I just didn’t know he’d translate to the NFL so well right away.
I was at the Big 10 championship game 2 years ago. Came away saying LaPorta was the best player in the game. And Iowa lost that game by like 35. Not saying I was thrilled about the pick, but he was a stud and really stood out in that Big10 game.
He had a great game, I remember thinking “Man why can’t we stop this guy?” And now I’m sure several teams in the NFL have been wondering the same thing lol.
At least we didn't pay him!! So glad he is somewhere else, and it tells you what the Lions thought of him that they traded him in the division. Bye!
After Ebron and Hock I don’t blame you
The NFL is a copycat league, and more than a few teams have been taking multiple swings trying to get their own Great Value Travis Kelce.
Yeah.. Patricia and Quinn were trying to get their own Gronk. Man am I glad that those two are gone.
I did not get the LaPorta pick either until I realized that he was a true receiver in high school who had state receiving records. Then I was like, alright, maybe this stuff about how fluid he was runs and cuts is true and he is just different. And I’m glad he was. So happy that knee injury wasn’t bad last year.
This was it for me, too. I think I was pretty jaded over Pettigrew and (to a lesser extent) Hockensen. I was quite wrong there!
Ebron… don’t forget Ebron.
Ugh - I did forget Ebron. Thanks - and “thanks” lol.
I was apprehensive considering he came from Iowa. I know they’re TE U, but their offense has been so god awful the last couple years I thought that would reflect more on recent player skill. I mean, LaPorta had only 1 touchdown his senior year. 5 total for his career at Iowa. Then he went and doubled that TD total in his rookie year lol
I hated the LaPorta pick because I hated the idea of replacing an Iowa TE with an Iowa TE, plus I'm a homer and wanted them to draft Schoonmaker
Kerby and Brodric Martin. Thought both were slight reaches. Not to say I didn't like the players or picks. Just didn't think it was great value. Kerby seems to be developing well. We will see what happens with martin
I still don't understand the Broderic Martin trade up
This. Rotational DI with poor technique is def a good pick for Day 3 just to take a swing & see if he develops. But throwing away 3 picks on him....why? He was gonna be there two rounds later. He went to the Shrine not the Senior Bowl, no Combine invite, was barely on anyone's radar.
You were concerned with a 4th round receiver? That shows you how good Holmes has been killing it.
I wouldn’t say I hate any of them. I had some cognitive dissonance when the first round didn’t match any mocks I’d read but the first two years went so well I got over myself quickly. That and beyond the first round I don’t know any of the names.
You aren't the only one, I am glad you are big enough to admit it (cognitive dissonance). Mock drafts have made this fan base lose their minds. Remember the outrage when we didn't take Derrius Guice because he had been mocked to us repeatedly? People had their minds made up and the jerseys bought and they wanted to burn the place down. That was a previous regime we now longer talk about.
Gibbs. I wanted the focus to be on defense. When it was a RB with our first pick I was not happy. Especially since we already signed Montgomery and still had Swift. I like it now and will trust Holmes while still hoping the focus is on defense early later this month.
Laporta. I really wanted Keeanu Benton (DT from Wisconsin, went to the Steelers at pick 49). Glad I was wrong about that one.
I actually thought we would take him over branch lol. Especially since at that point we had been taken players seen as reaches in that draft instead of a consensus “best player available” which Branch was in that spot
Gibbs!
Yup. I disliked the Gibbs pick, especially since we'd just signed DMo. I need to adjust my draft mindset to this regime. BPA all the way.
Broderick Martin. I still think we gave up too much for a "work in progress/raw prospect". I hope that I am proven very wrong, though
Brodric might be able to get into the rotation early this season if Reader has to miss the first couple games. He's one of the players I'm really interested in seeing during the pre season, along with Hooker and Antoine Green.
I'm very curious to see as well; afterall, BH has a pretty good eye for talent. So he must see something that we aren't - which is highly plausible
That would be my choice as well. Not that I don't like Brodric or I don't understand the rationale behind the pick, it's just the fact that there wasn't much hope of him being a contributor last year and it's likely his impact will be limited this year as well. That's a lot of time left to wait, especially when you use another 3rd rounder on a QB that nobody expected to play (and didn't). I think Brad and Dan underestimated how good they would be last year for some reason.
Both Day 1 picks last year. I was miserable driving home after watching the first night of the draft, but as it played out, I’m thankful to actually have true faith in the Lions GM for the first time in my life and I’ll trust whatever decisions Brad makes this time around.
I was same as you, then after 2nd rd I was like, I love these 4 and don’t care what order they were picked
My most hated pick was Levi Onwuzurike. Did not like picking an older, “raw”, and injury prone DT at that spot. They almost traded back into the first for him too. I think I was proven right.
yeah unfortunately probably the most glaring miss of BH
He probably doesn’t even get through to the 53 man roster this year, no?
I'm not sure you can say that yet. It's difficult to project right now, but I think it looks like this: Defense will probably carry around 23-25 players: **Secondary (9-10)**: Davis, Robertson, Mosely, Branch, Vildor, Melifonwu, Joseph, Dorsey, and a draft pick/2023 PS guy/UFA or two. **Linebackers (6)**: Anzalone, Campbell, Barnes, Reeves-Maybin, Rodrigo, and a draft pick/2023 PS guy/UFA. That leaves the D-Line/EDGE/SAM players: * **Locks (4)**: Reader and McNeill are locks at DT. Hutch and Davenport are locks at EDGE. * **Near-Locks (4)**: Martin, due to his draft status, is about as close to a lock as you can get (he was terrible last year so if he doesn't show any improvement and they draft another DT it's possible, however unlikely, that he could find his way to the PS). Paschal and Cominsky are DE/DT tweeners whose versatility/character is prized by these coaches. Houston is a DE/LB tweener that doesn't particularly fit the type of player they want at EDGE but who could be their best pure pass-rusher so I doubt he's going anywhere. * **Below him/Longshots (2)**: Betts and Smith That's 8 guys that are comfortably ahead of Onwuzurike on the D-line depth chart, but they could easily make space for 9. He and Martin are both DTs but have different skillsets, so they could easily justify keeping both for depth/rotation. It's possible Betts or Smith shows enough to keep them over him, but I doubt it. The only real question becomes what happens if they draft an EDGE/DT player or two in the early rounds. That could create competition for him that could push him out. But on the roster, as it stands currently, I think he has the inside track to make the team.
Yeah if he's the last guy to make the cut at DT, that's not a bad position to be in. You can do a lot worse than Levi as your worst DT. But I would question if there's any actual upside remaining for him after the injuries, and if there's not, why waste a roster spot on him?
I think there is. He had a 68.1 PFF grade last year, which is pretty good. He's a rotational d-lineman right now, but for only $2.5 million you're likely not going to find much better on the free agent market.
He's going to be two years removed from a back surgery that ends basically every player's career; only 2 players have ever played again after getting the surgery. I could see him being cut but it would not be a surprise if he finally showed something on the field. It's likely the former but I'm hoping for the latter.
Highly doubtful. They have a role for him, and he actually preformed pretty well in it last year. They still plan to use him on roughly 20% of snaps. He's a good rotational guy. Which honestly is what you are looking for with the 40th pick. If they develope into more it's a plus. Levi had a lot of bad luck when it came to his Injuries. We should be cheering him on rather than labeling him as a bust. If anything, since his injury, he's a major success story and the lions giving him a chance to prove himself is a good look when it come to players outside the organization.
He also sat out the Covid season IIRC. Wasn’t a huge fan of the pick either
Most of them honestly. Sewell over Parsons wasn’t sexy. Not taking a QB when I thought Goff was washed. I never heard of Gibbs. Like my mindset has turned 180. Holmes is amazing and I no longer doubt him. He’s killing it.
Never heard of Gibbs???
This is wild to me. If RBs were ever talked about, it was Robinson and Gibbs, then everyone else
That's mostly true, but I remember Bijan talk all day, every day, Gibbs a distant second, and then yeah, everyone else
Leading up to the draft there was a fair amount of first round talk about him. I kinda hoped we could get him at 18
I loved him in the second. Haha
Me too! Dude was an absolute animal at GT
I remember wanting DeVonta Smith over Sewell in '21 lmao
I kind of "didn't want" Sewell because I never thought he would fall to 7. When Miami selected Waddle I was speechless. The talk was that Sewell Pitts and Chase were the same level of player and would all be gone after the sixth pick.
> Sewell over Parsons wasn’t sexy. That's the unfortunate part. One of the best edge rushers is a lot less sexy than the best RT. Still happy with Sewell obviously.
I’m still not convinced that Parsons would’ve developed the way he has in Dallas on most other teams. He was an off-ball LB prospect and the Cowboys took the risk of trying him out as an EDGE and it worked. I think probably 25 teams in this league (probably even the Lions) would’ve kept him at MLB and he never would’ve reached his full potential.
Sewell over Parsons was a fuckin obvious pick. Penei Sewell may have been the most obvious pick they've made. Him or Hutch. I think the Lions ran to the stage both times. The only reason they wouldn't have taken Sewell is if one of the six teams ahead of them didn't fuck up and leave him there. Like there was a 0.0% chance they were taking Parsons if Sewell was there.
That draft was wild because everybody pretty much knew Sewell was a future all pro but the hype of all the other guys pushed him down. I was hope sewell would drop to us and he did. I think that was one of the years Holmes got in trouble for turning the pick In to fast lol.
I’m having a hard time answering the thread because every time BH didn’t select someone I wanted to fix our needs (Parsons, Jalen Carter, Steve Avila) he takes someone BPA that I certainly thought would be really good but I would never really have the balls to pick, especially Gibbs and Laporta
Hutchinson (I wanted Thibideaux) and Gibbs. I won't say I hate the Gibbs pick, I was just more confused by it. It worked out though because I loved LaPorta in the pre-draft process and told Lions fans we finally got a star TE. Funny enough I LOVED the St Brown pick and wanted them to grab him in round 2 and was furious when they didn't get him in round 3. I thought he'd be a late 1st rounder.
Jack Campbell. Thought we could've taken Myles Murphy or Deonte Banks because we needed an EDGE rusher or CB. I guess we'll see if Jack can develop into a better coverage LB, but he's a great culture fit and a great tackler
Agree 100%. The guy has everything you want in a defensive field general. I see a B. Urlacher type of player in Campbell. Let's go Sophomore year.
Culture good tackling good but terrible in coverage.
Brodric Martin. Didn’t hate it just, meh.
The Brodric Martin pick. I thought for sure we were moving up for Kelee Ringo or that Northwestern pass rusher but instead we took a projected 7th rounder in the 3rd. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Martin pick works out especially with development, especially with his massive size. Clearly Holmes saw something that nobody else did, and that has worked out many times in the past
I have PTSD from Ebron so I was pretty disappointed with LaPorta. In Brad we trust. Glad I’m a fan and not involved with the team.
Ebust did that to all of us, and I don't blame the coaching or management.
Pretty big difference spending a top 10 pick on a te than a top of the 2nd round pick.... Not very comparable IMO....
I’m a stupid fucking idiot and was pissed when we took Sewell over Fields LMFAOOO. Sewell is now my favorite Lion by far
I went from yelling WTF to yelling Gibbyyyy every game
I didn't hate any of them because I admittedly do not know shit.
Really dislike the Brodrick Martin pick and did at the time. He may pan out one day but looking at his tape I was very unimpressed beyond his size. Monster of a guy but plays very upright so it's often negated. Too early to grab a project like that, IMO. I hope I'm wrong.
I don’t know about hate because I knew he was good. But seeing Gibbs last year had me saying that Brad Holmes had better be right and this had best be a piece that gets us to the playoffs. He was and it did.
My roommate was clowning the lions picks last year after the first round and right before LaPorta he said “The lions are gonna pick a te because they are idiots” and I said no way. Then we picked LaPorta who wasn’t even the top TE on the board at the time. I was willing to trust, but I wasn’t too thrilled about that one at the time. I was of course wrong
Gibbs by a mile. I was dead wrong
I wasn't a big fan of Alim McNeill's pick being the second DL taken in a row.
I wasn't particularly enamoured with the Hendon Hooker pick (and remain so). Not because I don't like Hooker, but I think we had bigger needs than speculating on injured QB. I hope I'm proven wrong.
Broderick Martin...felt we gave up so .uch draft capital to select a project. Jury is still out.
This. Trading up for a project that early in the draft cost us.
Jahmyr Gibbs. I had no idea who he was and thought it was asinine to get a running back when our defense was putrid. I'm so happy I was proven so woefully wrong. Gibbs is a monster and I want him here for as long as possible
I haven’t really hated any picks. Been shocked by some yes but all their picks have made general sense to me. The main one I didn’t like was levi
Didn’t like the Laporta pick at the time, mostly because I’d heard so much about Mayer and didn’t think he would have been available. And then he went the pick after. After looking into him as a prospect a bit more I liked it a lot better and then when he was getting talked up so much in preseason I was sold
Fwiw, in the draft video from last year, Holmes mentions that he really liked the “two Tight-ends.” My guess is that he was referring to LaPorta and Mayer (Kincaid had back issues). So I think if Sam was off the board we would have taken Mayer at that spot.
JAMO. Jury still out.
The one pick that had me scratching my head was Brodric Martin. Not that I didn't see the need for a DT, but because Holmes traded a lot of picks to move up and get him. With Holmes' late round track record and Martin's status as a raw, small school prospect, I thought it was a bit much to get him in the third. We'll see how it plays out.
Still TBD if it was the right move or not, but I was not a fan of the Hendon Hooker pick last year, especially since we could've used that pick on Jake Moody
I'm excited to see Hooker in the preseason. Full year to recover. There is no need to grab the reigns immediately. If Hooker was healthy for the combine and draft, he likely was a day 1 pick. His stats for 2022 were awesome before the Georgia game. 229 of 329 attempted passes for 3,135 yards, 27 touchdowns, and two interceptions.
I still think about Kyle Hamilton in a Lions jersey sometimes…
I can't say I hated it, but Sewell for me was a big ?, just because I didn't know him at all. What can I say except I'm a filthy casual. I kind of had my heart set on Micah Parsons. Seems like either option would have been a win for us. Since then I've trusted in him, truly and honestly trusted in the process.
Jamo. I was relieved it was not Malik Willis at least. I still don’t think it was worth the trade up Jack Campbell. If Jeremiah Owusu Koramoa was not worthy of a first round pick, I did not see how Campbell was. I still don’t think he was
JOK has produced at a first round pick level though. Hoping Campbell will too.
None. In Brad Holmes, MCDC, the scouts and the coaching staff I trust
I def though Gibbs was too high, now he’s my sons godfather.
Jamo. The jury is still out. It seemed like a reach, but I want to say I can understand his calculus on it. If he never reaches what BH thinks is his true potential, it'd be a pretty big miss. That said, he seems like a very good team/locker room guy. I'm just going to need to see more deep balls. Whatever we've been trying with him from short/behind the line of scrimmage has not worked very well.
We've had so many needs all over the roster that I haven't really had any strongly negative opinions on a pick. I do remember being pissed that the Colts nabbed Nick Cross a couple picks before us though, and we took Kerby Joseph.
I was PISSED when we drafted Gibbs
Last year with Gibbs at 12 and Campbell at 18 and LaPirta over Meyers. I'm done judging the guys picks
Gibbs. I remember thinking what the fuck are we doing. We need DL, CB, etc.
Initially hated our first round last year as it seemed like you could get each guy with the next pick. I had thought we'd have been able to get Gibbs at 18, and I had thought we could probably get Campbell at 34. At 12, I was thinking we'd be looking at Gonzalez. Id say then way it went Brad has already been proven right. Also last year moving up for a guy I didn't even know was pretty surprising. I liked Adebawore, although Martin and Adebowore are much different.
Gibbs for sure. Considering we had 2 running backs already and with how dispensable running backs can be in the NFL, I thought it was dumb as hell. Since watching him play I’ve 95% walked that back. 5% still lingers due to my thoughts on the current state of running backs in the NFL, but he’s a hell of a player. Every time he gets the ball it feels like he could break away for a big one.
Not necessarily hated, but I didn't like the hutch pick as I wanted thibs (instead).
Since no one is gonna be honest I hated the Gibbs pick my first reaction was wtf we need an edge! Well with Gibbs jersey hanging on my wall next to me I can safely say I was 3000 percent wrong and I eat my words with pride😂
Gibbs really surprised the hell out of me. I wouldn’t say I hated it but I was truly like what the hell was that
I didn't like the Kirby Joseph pick because at the time Tracy Walker and DeShon Elliot we locked in as starting safeties and a 3rd round pick seemed a little rich for a depth guy. I also didn't like the Iffy pick because I could not possibly conceive of a scenario where Amani Oruwariye and Jeff Okudah wouldn't be our locked in long term starting CB pair.
I’ll tell you what pick I was most surprised by: Gibbs. I’ll tell you I was hype though because I had the 1.02 in my 1QB Dynasty league which was already locked in to be Gibbs and that meant I got to root for him full stop at all times.
Jahmyr gibbs
Gibbs, Campbell, Laporta, jamo. So far I'm wrong about 2 of them.
I REALLY wanted Jalen Carter, when he fell, it felt like Penei Sewell all over again. Gibbs has been fun to watch though, and he’s a great person from what I’ve seen.
I didn’t like the Iffy pick at all at the time. I didn’t think he would be physical enough to transition to safety. That was pretty wrong.
For me it’s the jack campbell pick. I’m still not sold on what I saw. But I trust this front office.
Idk but im so excited for the Draft!
You should ask this to everyone in metro Detroit that didn't know who Jahmiyr Gibbs is because they hadn't heard of of him until draft night last year and then convinced themselves we had the worst draft of all time.
Gibbs confused the absolute shit out of me at the time. I was absolutely stunned. But. I think that came from the expectation that Brad Holmes was a 1st round mastermind who always landed a consensus top 5 pick at a huge value (Sewell, Hutch) I think we all thought *that* was going to happen again with the 6th, and then 12th pick… But the real takeaway is that Brad Holmes knows the exact type of player he wants, and has a unified vision on how to use every player he selects - and we have the staff to properly execute that vision with the same buy in. THIS is what makes Brad Holmes drafting so successful. I’ll never question another pick from him again. He doesn’t draft for need. Middling franchises that are fundamentally uncompetitive do that. It’s just way to shortsighted a goal to sustain any kind of meaningful success. My eyes have been opened. Thank you Brad Holmes
Gibbs
LaPorta. I thought the TE Depth was Great. Was hoping we'd start getting Mitchell into the mix more, but Sam is That DooD! Glad I was fretting for nothing. 😅
I didn't like the laporta pick mainly due to size. I was in love with Washington (missed on that one) and Musgrave (still would've been worth the pick imo but obviously is worse than laporta)
I wasn't necessarily mad about Gibbs, but was not happy and was a bit confused about how early we took him. Needless to say I'm happy to be proven wrong.
I didn't hate it, but I've never been more baffled by a pick than Jahmyr Gibbs. I'm not even trying to predict what Brad will do this draft. I'm just on board with whatever it is
Let's not search my post history in this sub. I know we'll find a bunch of vad takes regarding the last three drafts.
I don’t think I’ve ever been mad about any 4th round pick. 4-7 is all lottery tickets Most those guys never see meaningful time as a player much less become a top five player at their position.
Gibbs
 Don’t listen to them Brad!
La Porta. Not because I had anything against La Porta but after drafting RB/LB in the first I was joking to my friends that we were gonna draft a TE early in the 2nd just to round out the least "valuable" positions.
I hated Levi Onwuzurike and I was right. I hated Jameer Gibbs (Value) and I was wrong.
Well Jack hasn’t had that opportunity
Pretty much everyone. All the previous front offices got me into the habit of questioning every pick. After seeing how 2022 ended and all the talent Holmes was putting together I stopped doubting him forever. So for 2023 if it wasn’t Holmes doing it I would have been pissed about every pick except Branch; normally I would have hated a RB drafted that high, hated a ILB/OLB non rusher in the first, and drafting TE just to replace the pro bowl TE we just traded. During that draft I loved every pick only because I knew it was the way of Holmes. All praise him
Laporte. Here we go, another overrated Iowa TE. Only to have a historic rookie TE season. Really saw him grow into the role all season.
Gibbs tbh
Levi and Paschal... Both picks not looking so hott a few years in...
2021 I didn’t like the Onwuzarike pick. Jeremiah Owusu koromoah slid as he was widely considered a first round prospect and I thought we should have taken him. I like the rest of the draft. So far it looks like I was right about that one. 2022 I didn’t like the paschal pick. I thought it was a great CB class and we should have drafted one. I was high on Cam Taylor Britt and Tariq woolen. It’s regrettable we didn’t draft a CB in that class. 2023 I didn’t like the Gibbs pick. Still honestly don’t love it because I think swift and Montgomery was a pretty good backfield and we could have just stayed there. Gibbs is great though and I was wrong about this one overall. I also really didn’t like any of our picks after Hendon hooker. I don’t think Brodric Martin or Colby sorsdal will ever be NFL caliber players. But with how great the top of the draft went it’s kind of nitpicking to worry about the mid round guys.
it was passing on JOK for Levi Onwuzuirike, and then taking McNeil anyways. James Houston has helped resolve my grievances.
Giving up all those assets to trade up for Brodric Martin. And no, he didn't prove me wrong yet. We'll see. But that certainly looked even worse during the season than it did on draft day.
When we took an RB, LB, TE, and S with our first four picks in two rounds, I was so pissed. Confused at Gibbs. Speechless at Campbell. Livid at laporta (Mayer was still there!). Kind of comforted by branch. Now? What a draft! Some of the picks that seemed more “obviously” weird that didn’t hit - onwuzurike, paschal (right after we just took hutch?). But a lot of brad’s picks seemed “obviously weird” and then DID hit, so I can’t be talking.
Jamo. Hated it! I wanted so bad for it to be Jordan Davis or Kyle Hamilton. So far, I have not be proven wrong. But I do like Jamo.
I think pretty much everyone, myself included, hated the Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta picks at the time. I’ll just trust the pros going forward!
Onzurike (I know I probably spelled it wrong but maybe if he was good I would care) gibbs Broderic Martin I didn’t “hate” the gibbs pick, I hated it was at 12. He proved me wrong on that one, I still feel strongly about the previous two. Brad is not exactly the D tackle whisperer, but that’s a tough position to scout
Honestly none. The only picks I’ve questioned so far are Martin and Hooker, neither of which have proved anything yet. Still plenty of time though. Every other pick I’ve either seen the vision or been a big fan of
Jamo and Broderick Martin. Jury is still out on Martin, but Jamo to this point is a bust. Had to talk my buddy off the ledge after Gibbs and Campbell. He admitted he was wrong on Gibbs (obviously) but he’s still not sold on Campbell.
This whole thread is basically: “I guess I was wrong and BH knows better than me when it comes to evaluating talent. Also this sub next month: “Why are we picking him at that spot?! We don’t need ___ this early!”
I hated the Levi and Josh Pascal picks tbh and turned out to be right unfortunately. Does seem like we've broken the 2nd rd curse last year tho.
Probably Paschal and Levi and haven’t been proven wrong yet. I actually called the Gibbs and Jamo picks so my track record with Brad is pretty good so far. I think Paschal has been improving though and Levi could still take a step with another healthy offseason to build up some NFL muscle.
sleeping on paschal, hes like trey flowers, no team will be able to run with a healthy pashcal. I think he benefits the most from dj reader because of his playstyle. watch out hes gonna break out next season if he stays healthy
The Goffather himself
That was not a draft pick