7-Round Detroit Lions Mock Draft: The Senior Bowl changed some things for Detroit
Following a week of Senior Bowl practices in Mobile, Alabama, we’re doing another Lions mock draft.
The pre-draft process has begun, and we’re past all the All-Star games now. Well, the Senior Bowl is still going down on Saturday on NFL Network at 2:30 P.M. ET if you want to watch it.
But the Detroit Lions, like every other team, were in Mobile to watch the Senior Bowl practices more than the game. I think a lot of stuff was learned there, and it reflects in this year’s post-Senior Bowl mock draft.
Trade down with the Cowboys
The 17th pick can present some good opportunities for the Lions, but this draft appears deep in some of the areas the Lions are looking to fill, so moving down a few spots and grabbing some extra picks is a good idea now.
Lions get: 20th and 112th picks
Cowboys get: 17th pick
20th pick: T.J. Parker, Edge, Clemson
I recently wrote a story that explains the motivation here. The tackle class is deep enough to hold off for a round. The edge class might not be if the Lions are looking to find a guy who can wreak havoc like Parker can.
He had 41 pressures and five sacks in 2025, so it’s not just some particularly impressive film at the Senior Bowl that pushes us towards the edge in the first round. He’s been good for a minute. We also know the Lions watched him and his team during the season.
50th pick: Gennings Dunker, OT, Iowa
This is a deep tackle class, as we mentioned before. We might have been thinking about this wrong the whole time. The Lions might not be looking for a left tackle; they might be looking for a right tackle. Moving Penei Sewell to the left side, as the Bucs did with Tristan Wirfs, makes a lot of sense.
So if it’s a right tackle you need, you didn’t have to grab him in the first round. Dunker is sitting right here at 50, and this guy can play. He allowed just 10 pressures and two sacks in 2025. A bonus is that he also played a little guard at Iowa, just in case you want to try some things. The other bonus is that this cat has a true 1985-style mullet.
112th pick: Dallen Bentley, TE, Utah
I’m calling my shot on Bentley. By the time the draft rolls around, everyone will know he’s the most athletic tight end in this draft, and he will be someone teams have a large interest in. Not first- or second-round interest, but third and beyond for sure. He had a solid Shrine Bowl week.
Bentley is a good pass-blocking and run-blocking tight end, and with the way Drew Petzing loves using tight ends, he fits right in. To sweeten the pot, he also gives Jared Goff yet another weapon. Bentley had 48 receptions for 620 yards and six touchdowns this past season.
118th pick: Zakee Wheatley, S, Penn State
One of the best safeties in the country in 2025, Wheatley allowed a passer rating of 69.2 in 2025. That number improved every season of his career, too. You’ll also notice the number of targets he had gets lower every year. He was targeted just 10 times this season. He locked down his side of the field.
155th pick: Gracen Halton, DT, Oklahoma
I don’t know what Halton was doing at 155, but I had to take him. This is a steal in every sense of the word. We don’t know what things look like for Alim McNeill right now. He had a pretty down year, all things considered. Halton gives the Lions a pass-rushing interior defensive lineman who could either be his replacement or be a really good weapon off the bench for a bit.
Don’t worry about the running game with him. Pro Football Focus had him as their fourth-highest graded run-stopping defensive tackle who played a minimum of 400 snaps.
203rd pick: Ceyair Wright, CB, Nebraska
Wright had such a good week at the Shrine Bowl that he got a call-up to play in the Senior Bowl as well. The fun thing about all of this is that Wright spent his Shrine Bowl week being coached up by Lions defensive quality control coach Dre Thompson. The relationship is already there. Wright spent time with Thompson after practice, too.
211th pick: Al’Zillion Hamilton, CB, Fresno State
The Lions seem to like those Fresno State DBs. Hamilton just had a great Shrine Bowl week with Thompson and even carved out some time to meet with the Lions. A source tells AtoZ Sports that the Lions were actually the first team he met with there.
212th pick: Nadame Tucker, Edge, Western Michigan
Keep an eye on Tucker for the next few months. Had a great Senior Bowl and is someone who can rise up the board soon with a good combine, pro day, and top-30 visit. The Lions are only a couple of hours away from him, so they can call dibs on some of this stuff.
222nd pick: Haynes King, QB, Georgia Tech
I talked about this one earlier this week as well. The Lions might be looking at him as their next Taysom Hill. Not necessarily a guy who can take over for Goff someday, but a backup who can come in for trick plays and wildcat stuff.
A source tells A to Z Sports that the Lions spent significant time with him at the Shrine Bowl.
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