Detroit Lions defining moment
Already the Holmes-Campbell era has faced a challenging and difficult defining moment when long-time quarterback, Matthew Stafford, asked to be moved to a different team. Let’s file that under bad news but with an explanation. The picks the Detroit Lions got are good news, while the downgrade from Stafford to Goff is objectively bad news.
To a large extent the Stafford trade, which happened prior to the Super Bowl, started a chain reaction that is still being felt around the league. While the Phil Rivers and Drew Brees retirements also contributed to a quarterback free-for-all, it was the Rams giving the Lions two future first-round picks, another third-round pick, plus quarterback Jared Goff, that really has the NFL buzzing.
The Detroit Lions now possess picks 7, 41, 72, 89, 103, 137 in the 2021 NFL Draft according to the Tankathon website, which tracks NFL draft picks.
While it is tempting to say that the Detroit Lions have endless possibilities early in the draft, let’s look at what the realistic options are. Starting with pick No. 7, the list of players who are worth that pick limits the wish list that is sure to be in Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell’s heads. We’d have to rate the draft class’s limitations as bad news.
Jared Goff is usually a competent signal-caller but is probably not viewed as the ideal quarterback based on comments the coaching staff has made where they indicated that a mobile quarterback with a strong arm is their preference. Goff is not a great athlete for the position but can move enough to give himself throwing windows and extend plays some.
While Goff seems to be destined for the “he’s our guy right now” label and for at least the next two years, Holmes has viable quarterback prospects on the board, as many as four quarterbacks could be taken in the Top-ten and another still in the first stanza of the draft.
Trevor Lawrence seems like a shoo-in as the No. 1 pick but Zach Wilson, Justin Fields, and Trey Lance are all potential early picks, too. Mac Jones is thought to be the other first-round-worthy player available early while Lance has limited experience and hasn’t played Power-five football, hailing from North Dakota State.