Second Round, Pick No. 61: Christian Mahogany, OG, Boston College
Mahogany (6-foot-3, 314 pounds at the NFL Combine, down from being listed at 330 pounds before) was a three-year starter at Boston College. He had one season at left guard, as a freshman in 2020, and at two right guard in 2021 and 2023. He missed the entire 2022 season after suffering a torn ACL during a home workout, but he came right back and allowed zero sacks last season.
The Lions kept their offensive line one of the best in the league this year by signing Zeitler. But he's only on a one-year deal, Graham Glasgow is on a two-year deal and both are in their 30s. Shaping a plan for the future, let alone having better depth, is probably somewhere on the draft radar.
Mahogany may have some work to do to become a better pass protector at the next level, with some flaws you may expect from a big man that are noted in evaluations (lateral quickness, "bend").
Third Round, Pick No. 73: Marshawn Kneeland, EDGE, Western Michigan
And edge rusher could ultimately be an earlier pick for the Lions, but within our "best player available" premise taking one landed here.
As Jeff Risdon of Lions Wire noted, Kneeland (6-foot-3, 267 pounds, 34 and a 1/2-inch arms, 9 and 1/8-inch hands, 4.75 40) seems to fit the template Brad Holmes looks for in a defensive lineman. He carried a strong week at the Senior Bowl into the combine, which may push him into the second round next month.
Kneeland lined up all over the line at Western Michigan, standing up and with his hand down. He gets very high marks for his motor, but probably needs to add to his pass rush repertoire to reach his full potential in the NFL. Sound like something new defensive line coach Terrell Williams can help with.
The Lions traded their second third-round pick, No. 92 overall, to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for Carlton Davis. They also picked up a pick later in this year's draft in that deal.