Detroit Lions pre-free agency 7-round 2023 mock draft

Fourth Round

The Lions don’t have a fourth-round pick right now. So if the draft were today, they will go the equivalent to more than two round between picks.

Fifth Round

Coming out of April’s draft with two cornebacks might be a goal for the Lions, regardless of what they do at the position in free agency. After what’s sure to be the turnover of the depth chart this offseason, the team has a decision on Jeff Okudah’s fifth-year option between now and right after the draft. The pure need for bodies at cornerback is definitely there.

Gardner is a big corner (6-foot-2, 212 pounds), with the requisite Combine measurements of someone that size (10 and 1/8-inch hands, 32 and a 1/2 inch arms). Of course the knocks on him are related to speed, change of direction, athleticsm, etc., leading Lance Zierlein of NFL.com to wonder if a move to safety might be in his future.

The Lions can’t be too choosy when looking to add talent to their defense. Gardner is a solid fifth-round flier to take, whether he’s ultimately a cornerback or a safety at the next level.

Sixth Round

Brock Wright, Shane Zylstra, etc. truthers will say the Lions were fine at tight end after trading T.J. Hockenson, so they’ll be just fine at the position for relative eternity. But those who live in reality see the need for a talent upgrade at tight end.

Kuntz tore up the NFL Combine, running the 40 in 4.55 at 6-foot-7, 255 pounds. He also posted top-end numbers for tight ends in the vertical jump (40 inches), broad jump (10-feet, 8 inches). His Next Gen Stats Athleticism score was 94, first among tight end as this year’s Combine.

Kuntz barely played at Penn State before transferring to Old Dominion. He had a big 2021 season (73 receptions for 692 yards, five touchdowns), before only playing five games last season due to an injury.

Sixth round is where you more easily make a no-risk bet on traits, upside and development potential. Eyeing a talent injection at tight end, the Lions nab Kuntz here.

Jamaal Williams is a free agent who may or may not leave, and D’Andre Swift is entering the final year of his contract with no lock on a future in Detroit. So running back is a sneaky need for the Lions, if not immediately in 2023 looking down the road for sure.

Ibrahim capped a nice career at Minnesota by leading the Big Ten in rushing last season (1,665 yards), along with leading the conference wth 20 rushing touchdowns. He also did both in 2020, with 1,076 yards and 15 touchdowns in that truncated season. If not for suffering a torn Achilles in the 2021 season opener against Ohio State (when he had 30 carries for 163 yards and two touchdowns), he may have made it three years in a row as the Big Ten’s top rusher. Over his last 20 games as a Gopher, he scored 37 touchdowns.

Ibrahim does not wow with imposing physical or athletic traits, and it’s worth noting he missed at least one game in every non-COVID season of his college career (four out of five). But he just finds a way to gain yards and always fall forward, with a low center of gravity (5-foot-8), sneaky power and a nose for the end zone. He has untapped potential as a pass receiver too.

Ibrahim feels like the kind of back who will be drafted on Day 3 in April, then play a solid decade in the league.

Seventh Round

The Lions also don’t have a seventh-round pick this year right now.