With the Detroit Lions regular season coming to an end on Sunday, we dive into our first full-seven round 2020 NFL mock draft for the Motor City.
The Detroit Lions regular season ended with a thud on Sunday, as the Motor City battled to the final second but suffered another defeat at the hands of the NFC North champion Green Bay Packers. The loss was Detroit’s ninth-straight and forced the Lions to end the year with a 3-12-1 record, the worst in the division for the second season in a row.
What the loss to the Packers did do for the Lions was cement them with the third overall selection in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. That high draft status also impacts every following round insuring Detroit will have a top selection throughout the annual selection event.
With an eye on next season, and considering the fact general manager Bob Quinn and second-year head coach Matt Patricia have one more season to make the Lions into a playoff contender, Detroit would seem to have several needs to fill.
Obviously, the re-signings and additions made during free agency will have a major impact on which positions Detroit targets in the 2020 draft. There will be some tough choices to be made this offseason with veterans like cornerback Darius Slay and wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr., both still have a year remaining on their contracts in Detroit, might be traded away or simply moved on from.
Defensive tackle Damon Harrison is apparently considering retirement after an injury-plagued season. Safety Tavon Wilson, offensive lineman Graham Glasgow, and several others are scheduled to hit the open market in free agency.
Despite all of these issues still being unresolved, we’ll attempt to give our best guess of how the Lions might proceed in the 2020 NFL Draft with this, our first seven-round mock draft of the offseason for Detroit.