One last Detroit Lions mock draft before some NFL virtual reality

Specialists are people too

For the final selection, I will do what I expect the Lions will most likely do late in the draft themselves.

The loss of punter Sam Martin in free agency to the Denver Broncos needs to be addressed. The Lions do have Matt Wile and Jack Fox on the roster currently to battle for the position, but the addition of Braden Mann would give Detroit their best bet to replace Martin’s production.

Mann has a big-time leg and is capable of doing double duty by handling the kick-offs as Martin had previously. There is nothing glamorous about selecting a punter, but it is a position that is necessary. Mann is the best coming out of college and will give the Lions the opportunity to flip field position when the offense bogs down deep in their own territory.

Thus concludes my attempt to run the virtual draft room for the Lions. In summary, Okudah should contribute immediately and should eventually team up with Oruwariye to give the Lions a very good one-two punch at the corners.

I went heavy in the trenches on both sides of the ball to not only strengthen this franchise at the line of scrimmage but to help build depth. If you control the line of scrimmage, then you put yourself in a position to win games.

The additions of Blackstock and Uche immediately address the Lions’ inability to get pressure on opposing passers. Neither one may be Chase Young, but Uche shined both in space at the Senior Bowl and especially coming off the edge to bring the heat. That is also the calling card of Blackstock. This investment gives Detroit the chance be much better at tracking down opposing passers.

Robert Windsor should become a quality contributor and James Smith-Williams is talented enough to be worth a look.

Robert Hunt will be a plug and play guard for the next 10 seasons who could actually become an upgrade to Graham Glasgow. Ben Bredeson has a chance to challenge for a starting job himself and at least makes the interior of the Lions offensive line deeper. Yasir Durant is unpolished but could turn out to be a gem.

The addition of Bryan Edwards gives the Lions a talented receiver to bookend with Kenny Golladay down the road and Josh Kelley is not only capable of filling in for Kerryon Johnson should he go down to injured, but Kelley is capable of pushing for playing time period.

I’m not claiming my attempt was perfect, because building a team is rarely as easy as we like to think it is, especially when competing with 31 other teams that are trying to do the same thing, but I think having a clear game plan of what you would like to accomplish in place doesn’t hurt.

Now it’s time to step aside and see what Bob Quinn will do with the real thing starting with the first round tonight where my best guess is that Jeff Okudah will be the Lions first-round pick.

How well Bob Quinn does tonight and over the next two days will have a big impact on next seasons success and beyond. I can absolutely say that along with every other Lions fan out there, I hope he shows up all of our mock draft attempts and aces the real thing. Because the Lions actually winning would be much sweeter than any of us patting ourselves on the back for our mock efforts.