During mock draft season, the Detroit Lions are a favorite to address the defensive side of the ball early and often much like this 7-round mock draft.
It’s mock draft season and the Detroit Lions have one of the more intriguing draft positions that may send the first round in any number of directions. If the team stays put, they will most likely be landing the talents of Ohio State defensive end Chase Young.
If they trade down, they’ll net some nice draft capital and target Ohio State cornerback Jeffrey Okudah or others highly-touted defensive players, depending on how far down the team moves.
In this 7-round mock draft done on Fanspeak’s mock draft simulator, trading wasn’t an option. Given a world without trades, let’s explore the draft selections that could be future Detroit Lions.
Round 1, 3rd overall – Jeffrey Okudah, CB Ohio State
Once again, in this scenario, there are no trades. Young was selected second overall leaving Okudah as the newest player to help Detroit’s defense. He’ll step in right away and try to help fill the shoes of the departed cornerback Darius Slay.
Drawing comparisons to Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson, Okudah would make a ton of sense for this team. He would bolster the position with newly-acquired cornerback Desmond Trufant and Lions sophomore Amani Oruwariye, among others.
While the Lions could look at other positions and players in this slot – especially trading down – this selection makes the most sense.