Don’t expect the Lions to make a bunch of splash moves, but some splashes have been hinted at by Brad Holmes
Brad Holmes sounds like he’s ready to be more active, but that doesn’t mean a bunch of stars are getting signed
The Detroit Lions did not have the season that everyone hoped they would have. They missed the playoffs after going 15-2 and being the NFC’s first seed in 2024. On Thursday, we got to hear from Lions general manager Brad Holmes for the first time since before the season started, and what we saw was a guy who realizes that things went wrong over the last offseason.
“Before I look at anything, I have to look at myself.” Holmes talked about how things weren’t good enough and that some evolution is needed. But he also said a lot of things that point to the idea that the Lions are not going to go out there and buy up every name-brand free agent available.
The Lions will continue to acquire players in a similar fashion you’re used to, but that does not mean the Lions won’t make a splash for the first time
“…Nothing’s going to change fundamentally or foundationally in terms of just the type of players that we’re looking for and what our identity is built on that’s still gonna remain the same, but, you always have to evolve,” Holmes said. “…A lot of the changes and tweaks and adjustments that we will make probably won’t come with a headline, but that’s not to say that we won’t do something that’s in that splash category.”
That’s the part right there that I think Lions fans really need to hear. The Lions are going to continue to go about finding players the way they’ve been finding them. That means team fit, culture fit, and personality fit. All of those things still need to match who the Lions are. They’re not going to go away from that, and they shouldn’t go away from that.
In terms of the splash part of things, the Lions are not going to go out and sign every big-time player available. That’s what Holmes is referring to with the headline thing. The Lions are going to go out there and find the players that best fit, and maybe they wind up with some guys who are spashes. But the Lions’ plan is not just sign guys because they are splashes. That’s still a big improvement because it at least shows the Lions don’t plan to just guard the money and only spend on the guys they drafted.
I know that’s not exactly what Lions fans want to hear, but a steady hand on the wheel is still important, and jerking the wheel and the car into a bridge abutment just because there’s a star there is not good for business at all.
We’ll see what happens in March. The takeaway for me was that the Lions plan to be much more active than they’ve been in the past. But they’re still going to be smart about it.
Detroit Lions News
The Lions have reached out to former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel about open OC job
The Lions might reel in the prize fish this time
