Is Chase Young worth the Detroit Lions trading up for?

With the Detroit Lions appearing to be one spot short of drafting Chase Young, is the talented pass rusher worth trading up for? If so, at what cost?

Detroit Lions fans have heard the name Chase Young for months now. As the Lions season began to spiral downwards, the team’s chances of landing the Ohio State pass rusher increased. And after losing nine straight games to end their season, Detroit appears to be one draft spot short of landing Young.

With the 3-12-1 Lions possessing the third overall selection in the 2020 NFL Draft, most draftniks expect Young to be picked at the No. 2 spot, which is owned by the Washington Redskins. The Cincinnati Bengals, owners of the top selection, appear to be a lock to draft LSU quarterback Joe Burrow after a report that they have no intentions of trading down.

That leaves the top prospect in the entire draft class, Young, available for Washington. But is the talented Buckeye actually good enough for the Lions to consider trading up for? According to ESPN’s Todd McShay, Young is actually better than both former Ohio State studs, the Bosa brothers.

Joey Bosa was the third overall selection in the 2016 NFL Draft by the then-San Diego Chargers. The defensive end was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year after posting 10.5 sacks. Joey is a two-time Pro Bowler and has racked up a whopping 40.0 sacks in four seasons.

Defensive end Nick Bosa was the second overall pick in the 2019 draft. The Pro Football Writers of America recently chose the younger Bosa as their Defensive Rookie of the Year after he recorded 9.0 sacks this past season, helping to lead the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl. Both Bosa brothers were Pro Bowl selections for 2019.

Again, according to McShay, Young is actually better than both of them. Coming from the same college, it’s an easy comparison to make. The fact Young posted 16.5 sacks and 21.0 tackles for loss in 12 games as a junior this past season helps his case.

So what might be the cost of moving up a single spot to draft someone like Young? Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press recently revealed what he believes the price would be for the Lions in order to trade up with Washington, which Monarrez actually called a worst-case scenario.

"“The Lions know they have to find an elite pass rusher. If it doesn’t happen in free agency, the Lions might just get nervous enough to trade with Washington for the No. 2 pick. Washington doesn’t have a second-round pick and just six picks total. The Lions would give up their second-rounder and their sixth-rounder this year, plus a second-rounder next year.”"

The best-case scenario? Washington trades the number two selection to a quarterback-needy franchise, allowing the Lions to stay put and still land Young. All of which seems very unlikely. Instead, Detroit would have to mortgage their future in order to trade up and land a single player when the team has a plethora of needs to fill, which equally seems unlikely.

What is not in doubt is the fact the Detroit Lions need a premier pass rusher like Chase Young. The Lions posted the NFL second-lowest sack total in 2019 (28). But if Motown’s top selection is going to be another Bob Quinn special, meaning a first-rounder who isn’t a Pro Bowler as the fifth-year general manager hasn’t had one yet, then Detroit might as well gamble on Young who appears to be a generational talent.