The Detroit Lions hold the third pick in next week’s NFL draft. Is there a scenario where they would actually pass on Chase Young if he were available?
The Detroit Lions and the rest of the NFL are furiously finishing their virtual preparations. One week from today is the NFL draft. One week from today all the speculation will end and we will see for ourselves what general manager Bob Quinn will do with the third overall pick.
If you have paid attention to any mock drafts floating around out there the player most mocked to the Lions has been Ohio State cornerback Jeff Okudah. I think we have probably all come to grips with the idea that he will most likely be the Lions top pick.
The free agency frenzy that Bob Quinn orchestrated has possibly filled many holes. Especially on defense. Yet the Lions offseason moves weren’t limited to just free agent signings.
One of the biggest and most talked-about moves was the trade of Pro Bowl cornerback Darius Slay to the Philadelphia Eagles. A move that despite the signing of former Atlanta Falcons cornerback Desmond Trufant still leaves a hole in the secondary.
A hole than many believe will be filled by Okudah. If the draft falls the way most analysts predict it will, then Okudah will be available at the third pick. If Miami, the name most linked to a possible trade with Detroit, makes an acceptable offer for the Lions to trade back to the fifth selection, then Okudah would very likely still be available.
So the player the Lions seem to be targeting should be theirs, unless there is a game-changing move that happens. Unless either Miami or the Los Angeles Chargers trade up with the Washington Redskins for the second pick to acquire former Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Then the Lions would be able to get the player they need the most, Ohio State defensive end Chase Young. The player that could impact Detroit’s defense more than any other player available in the draft. But what if the Lions had Young fall in their laps, but passed on him?