The Detroit Lions stuck with their 118th overall pick, taking linebacker Jimmy Rolder out of Michigan. He was the Lions' second pick out of Michigan in a row, reuniting Rolder with edge rusher Derrick Moore.
Rolder has gotten praise in pre-draft evaluations for his strong run defense, with NFL draft expert Lance Zierlein writing, "If you trust the tape and ignore his lack of experience, Rolder profiles as a future starting inside linebacker."
ESPN's draft expert, Mel Kiper, also had Rolder as a sneakily great potential steal prior to the draft, writing that Rolder's intelligence, tackling ability, and potential as an eventually great linebacker in coverage would make him a good fit for any team in need of linebacker depth.
Zooming out, Rolder projects as proper competition to newly re-signed linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez. Injuries kept Rodriguez out for most of 2025, but he's projected to return as the potential starting WILL in defensive coordinator's Kelvin Sheppard's schemes.
Rolder is versatile enough to compete for the SAM or WILL role, so Rodriguez - and Derrick Barnes - should be concerned about their comfortability in the Lions' depth chart right now.
Lions just put linebacker room on notice with Rolder pick
Rolder, who was projected as a Day 3 pick, lands with Detroit as soon as they've lost a huge piece of their defense in Alex Anzalone. The veteran free agent walked for a new role with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, leaving Detroit with a small need at linebacker.
Health will play a huge role in the LB totem pole in 2026, with the only sure-thing position held right now being Jack Campbell as the starting MIKE.
Barnes and Rodriguez, specifically, will need to stay as healthy as possible to avoid Rolder from yanking their starting jobs from right under them. Barnes had a down season in 2025 despite being one of the few defenders the Lions have paid in recent years, so this could prove to be a huge evaluation year for him if Detroit is looking to potentially move off of his deal in the future.
Rodriguez has a bit of a longer rope, as he showed flashes of great play in 2024 prior to going down with a torn ACL. He returned on a one-year prove-it deal, and there's little doubt that he'll be aiming to do just that despite the Lions seemingly drafting his potential replacement in Holder.
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Rolder's 73 tackles in his final year with Michigan led the team, and he also pieced together seven tackles for loss, two pass breakups, an interception and two sacks. In most profiles, Rolder is simply described as a strong tackler worth taking a swing on, and that's huge for a Detroit team that saw far too many broken tackles that led to huge scoring opportunities for opponents late in the season.
While the Lions couldn't snag one of the better defensive tackles available in the 4th round, they still found one of the best run defenders available. Even with general manager Brad Holmes not necessarily addressing a need, he did just that.
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