4 Final Detroit Lions Predictions For The 2026 NFL Draft: The Lions do things you don’t expect them to do or hate, but succeed anyway
The Lions are going to go all in on best player available, and it’s going to have some people in their feelings
The 2026 NFL Draft is almost here, and while we’ve done all the mock drafts and things of that nature. Today, we want to get into some broader predictions for what the Lions are looking to accomplish with this draft.
The Lions go best player available all draft, but still fill their biggest needs
This line from Brad Holmes says it all when it comes to the team’s philosophy on drafting the best player available every time they pick.
“Maybe the best player is a perceived need, and it lines up that way. It’s lined up like that in the past, but that’s not always the case.”
Brad Holmes
From his pre-draft presser
The Lions will not draft for need, but sometimes the best player available matches up with that need. There are multiple edge rushers and offensive tackles who fit that idea for the Lions. No matter how they look at their board, they’re going to fall into an edge or tackle at some point in this draft that fits both needs and BPA. It’s almost impossible to miss it.
The Lions draft a player who will never play the position he played in college for Detroit
When you see something like this, I mean that the Lions might find an edge they like who they want to turn into Sam Linebacker. Michigan’s Jaishawn Barham fits this idea the most. The thought is you want a guy who can drop into coverage, set the edge in the run game, and rush the passer.
In addition to that, maybe they get a quarterback they want to make a tight end, a running back they see as a slot receiver, or maybe a safety they think would be better at corner or vice versa.
Every defensive player they draft will have strong run-stopping grades
The Lions would like to get home to sack the quarterback or pick off passes in the secondary. But more than anything in the world, they want teams to be one-dimensional. That’s why when they draft guys on defense this year, I’d bet you a Buffalo Nickel that each one of them is going to be highly graded in run defense. They’ll probably have a higher run defense grade than anything else.
Fans are going to get mad about something, and draft analysts will talk about positional value
Again, the Lions do not draft for need. They just don’t do it. So when they get to 17, and they don’t take a tackle or edge, get ready for people to say that Brad Holmes needs to be fired, and get ready for draft analysts to talk about how the Lions reached or how they took a position they could have waited on or something like that. There is absolutely nothing Detroit can do to make everyone happy at the same exact time.
Detroit Lions News