Detroit Lions’ Inside the Den revealed what really happened during the 2026 NFL Draft
Detroit Lions’ Inside the Den finally showed what really happened during the 2026 NFL Draft. Several long-running draft debates can finally be put to rest.
The Detroit Lions released their annual Inside the Den episode covering the 2026 NFL Draft, and it confirmed what many suspected: Lions offensive tackle Blake Miller was always the guy at No. 17. The episode also revealed new details about trade negotiations, day 2 maneuvering, and how Detroit walked away with three of its five day 3 targets. Here’s what we learned.
Blake Miller was unequivocally always the pick
I think we knew this coming out of the draft, but now we have the video to prove it. In the weeks following the draft, news started coming out that the Lions had tried to trade up multiple times. They had a deal in place with Miami to get up to No. 12. They had a deal in place with Baltimore. They had trade talks with the Buccaneers as well.
Eventually, when the Rams took Ty Simpson, Detroit felt comfortable that they could just wait at 17 and get their man. And that’s exactly what happened.
I know there was some talk that the Lions were trying to get Rueben Bain from Miami, but they had the opportunity to do it. They full-on had a trade agreed to with the Baltimore Ravens that would have sent the 17th pick, the 118th pick, and a 2027 third-round pick to Baltimore for the 14th pick. It was agreed to. Everything was ready. If they really wanted Bain that badly, they would have gone ahead and done it. They didn’t. They stayed at 17 and got their man.
I know everybody talks about Kadyn Proctor, but there was nothing going into the pre-draft process that told us the Lions liked Proctor beyond gathering some general information. The stuff that was coming out in reports always felt like Proctor’s agent working overtime to get his client drafted as high as possible. And it worked. He scared some teams into drafting him high. But Miller was always the Lions’ guy.
Derek Moore was always the top edge rusher target on day 2
Going into day 2, it sounds like Derek Moore was at the top of Detroit’s list for edge rushers. The Lions got a little scared for a minute and tried to trade up with Miami to get to No. 43, but the Dolphins shut them down because they wanted the pick. Miami wound up taking Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez, and then the Lions moved up in a trade with the Jets to get Moore at No. 44.
It wound up being the right thing to do, because at No. 45 the Ravens took Zion Young. The thought process coming out of the draft was that the Lions wanted to jump Baltimore because of the many connections Jesse Minter and so many other guys with the Ravens have with Michigan, including having Moore’s defensive line coach over there. It made a lot of sense that the Ravens were going to be totally in on Moore.
I know some Lions fans came out of draft day thinking Zion Young was the guy to take, but Moore was the guy Detroit always liked.
Day 3 brought 3 of 5 targets, and some nervous moments along the way
The Lions had five top targets going into day 3 and walked out with three of them: Jimmy Rolder, Keith Abney, and Kendrick Law.
While Detroit was waiting at 118 for Rolder, it sounds like there was some fear he might not be there. The Chargers called to see if the Lions wanted to move back to 123. Detroit didn’t do that. Los Angeles wound up trading up over the Lions and taking Travis Burke, the tackle from Memphis. Looking at the way the rest of the draft fell, I don’t know why the Chargers did that. Another tackle didn’t get selected until 127 when the 49ers took Carver Willis from Washington. The Chargers probably could have just waited at 123 and still got their man. But hey, it is what it is.
The Lions got Rolder at 118. From there, it sounds like the Lions were looking at multiple receivers, Kendrick Law being one of them. The plan became to grab Keith Abney, then try to trade back up for Law.
The Lions felt the same way about the Abney pick that everyone else did. It was this question of, “What is he still doing here? Why is he still available?” Lions GM Brad Holmes said himself in the video that the value was just too good to pass on Abney. It was the right thing to do.
Beyond that, Detroit had a lot of interest in Skylar Gil-Howard and Tyree West, and they wound up getting those guys later in the draft.
This just felt like one of those drafts where everything worked out in the Lions’ favor. Now you have to wait and see if it all works out on the field. We’re going to find that out sooner rather than later.
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