Detroit Lions: 2020 7-round mock draft with two trades

The Detroit Lions have the third pick in the 2020 Draft, a prime spot to trade down. This mock features such a trade, while still retaining a top-five pick.

The Detroit Lions have locked in the third overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft after completing a dismal 3-12-1 season. Head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn are both on the hot seat following two seasons picking inside the top ten and not coming anywhere near a playoff birth.

Because of this, the Lions are likely to make picks based on winning now, with building for the future a less of a priority. As such, the Lions may try to trade down and accrue more picks in the earlier rounds trying to find more players ready to play in bigger roles as rookies.

There are a lot of teams out there that could use a young quarterback that could be the future of their franchise. The Cincinnati Bengals are one of those teams, and with the first overall pick, they are likely to get their guy in LSU quarterback Joe Burrow.

However, since Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa declared and is expecting to get a clean bill of health at medical checks at the Combine, the Lions could very well find themselves the trade targets of teams vying for a chance to draft the left-handed franchise quarterback. Among those teams are the Miami Dolphins, Los Angeles Chargers, Carolina Panthers, and Indianapolis Colts.

In this mock draft, you will see that popular opinion holds correct and the Lions trade down to the fifth overall pick, while the Dolphins move up and grab hold of the third overall pick. There are very many opinions on what a trade up here would cost the Dolphins.

Some argue that a third alone should be enough, while others say it should cost the Dolphins another first and second round pick. I land somewhere in the middle. In this mock draft, the Lions send the third overall pick to the Dolphins in exchange for the fifth, 39th, and 56th overall picks. This trade is similar to what the New York Jets paid a few years ago to move from the sixth pick to the third pick, though not quite as much return.

I also made a trade back in the third round with the Kansas City Chiefs, where the Lions sent the 67th overall pick in exchange for the 96th and 128th overall picks. I made this trade because I did not like the value on any of the picks and the best players available did not fit the Lions’ needs in my opinion.

Everyone values players differently and I used a popular mock draft machine created by The Draft Network to make my draft. You may not agree with where some players are taken, but just remember that I was making what I thought was the best pick for the Lions based on who was available.

For example (this did not happen in my simulation, just an example), even though it’s highly unlikely Chase Young falls to the fifth pick, had he been there I would have selected him because he would’ve been the best player available for the Lions.

Now, with that settled, here is my first crack at the Detroit Lions’ 2020 draft class. Drop your thoughts and own opinions in the comment section below and let us know who you want in the draft and whether or not you’d like to trade back in the draft (or possibly up).