Second Round, No. 61 overall: Ennis Rakestraw, CB, Missouri
Rakestraw's draft stock fell after he ran a slow 40 at the NFL Combine, but end of the second round was a little too far as he was still a top 30 or 40 player in the entire draft class for some analysts. Holmes said the Missouri product was the No. 2 corner on the Lions' board, and they didn't even have to trade up for him (though not for a lack of trying, apparently).
Rakestraw missed the final four games of last season due to a core muscle injury he had been playing through, and subsequent surgery, totaling 35 tackles and four pass breakups over nine games he played (eight starts). He was targeted just 28 times in the games when he was on the field last season, including just one target against LSU with the No. 2 overall pick quarterback and two first-round wide receivers.
Rakestraw posted an 80.7 overall Pro Football Focus grade last season, with a top-12 run defense grade among cornerbacks (89.0. In 2022, he had 12 pass breakups, 35 total tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss.
The only real knock on this pick is the Lions doubling-up at cornerback as they headed for not being on the clock again until pick No. 164. Finding playing time for everyone might be a thing too, but Holmes backed up his notion that you can never have too many cornerbacks and Rakestraw parallels Arnold as a strong fit.