Detroit Lions Mailbag: A surprise upset pick, a potential rookie starter, and the truth about Isiah Pacheco
A surprise upset pick, a potential rookie starter, and the truth about Isiah Pacheco. This week’s Detroit Lions mailbag covers a lot.
Welcome to OTAs week, Detroit Lions fans. Let’s answer some of your questions.
Should the Lions go back to their old way of running the ball and let Isiah Pacheco be the starter?
I get the thought process here, but I don’t think the Lions would be able to replicate what they were able to do with David Montgomery with Pacheco all the time. I’m sure there will be some instances where maybe he gets the ball before Gibbs, but it’s likely to be the opposite a lot more. What the Lions learned in 2024 was that their offense was a lot more dangerous with Gibbs on the field because he can just do so much more in terms of running and receiving. He was also a better blocker than Montgomery.
The super underrated thing about Pacheco is that he’s very good at blocking. So you can see Gibbs coming in on first and second down, and then Pacheco being the guy who can be an extra blocker on third down when you’re probably going to pass more often than not.
Which team could pull a surprise upset on the Lions in 2026?
Call me crazy, I know some already have, but when I made my initial record projection after the schedule release, I went with the Tennessee Titans. I think that team can sneak up on people this year. I’m not saying they’re a playoff team, but I get some 2021/2022 Lions vibes from them. A team that starts winning some games, and you can see that they’re heading towards being a winning team. These are those “how the hell did they lose to them” types of games that happen to everyone.
Which of the three NFC North rivals got better this offseason?
I’m going to go with the Vikings. Kyler Murray is still a big question mark, but he’s an upgrade over J.J. McCarthy. He could potentially have a big season because of all 32 teams in the league, the Vikings will play the easiest schedule in the league in terms of defensive DVOA rankings.
I think both the Packers and Bears had bad offseasons. The Bears, especially. They did not achieve a single thing their fans were hoping and believing they would.
Outside of Blake Miller and Derrick Moore, which rookie has the easiest path to playing right away?
It’s cornerback Keith Abney for sure. He could be a potential starting slot cornerback in 2026. At this point, he really only has one man to beat, and that’s Roger McCreary, who does have experience as a starter there and shouldn’t be overlooked. Christian Izien and Avonte Maddox could be considered there as well. But Abney was a big steal, and he should be able to secure the role.
If Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph aren’t ready Week 1, who plays safety in their place?
The Lions actually have a pretty good setup at safety outside of Branch. There’s the up-and-comer in Thomas Harper, the veteran with a ton of starting experience in Chuck Clark, the versatile option in Christian Izien, and the do-all guy in Avonte Maddox. This is a pretty good group for sure. All of these guys are capable starters and rotational players.
Could Giovanni Manu switch to guard?
The Lions have tried him there before at training camp, but they have really put most of their eggs in the tackle basket. If they moved him to guard, I don’t think he could survive the battle there. Christian Mahogany, Miles Frazier, Juice Scruggs, Ben Bartch, and Michael Niese are all fighting for spots. The most likely outcome at this point is that Manu will be cut at the end of camp and possibly brought back on the practice squad.
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