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Detroit Lions fans have been clamoring for a way to land an impact defender high in the draft, and Chase Young has been the object of many’s affection for a long time.
The team might not have the fast track to landing Young, however, considering the Washington Redskins could be in the market to take Young with the No. 2 pick in the draft. Most experts have been mocking that exact outcome, but few have been so bold as to predict the Redskins either won’t take Young or will trade out of the spot.
MLive.com’s Kyle Meinke has gone rogue in his latest mock, predicting that the Redskins will trade out of No. 2 with the Miami Dolphins, who will select Tua Tagovailoa. In the pick before that, the Cincinnati Bengals select Joe Burrow. That leaves Young to slip into the Lions’ lap.
Here’s what Meinke wrote about how Detroit would approach a situation like this:
“Nobody stands to benefit from a run on quarterbacks more than Detroit, which already has a franchise quarterback playing at a high level. Of course, it still lost 12 games last year because of a near-historically bad defense. There was no bigger reason for that than their pass rush, which was among the league’s worst. This defense won’t work without better peformances [sic] up front, and Young just so happens to be the best pass rusher in this draft. Hell, he might be the best defensive prospect overall. As long as you have a quarterback in place, you don’t pass up the opportunity to lock in a playmaking pass rusher on a cost-controlled contract like this. Detroit won’t.”
Such a scenario would be a dream come true for the Lions, who need all the help they can get rushing the passer. Obviously, Young would be the biggest feather in their caps to do this, and someone vaulting Detroit to pick a quarterback would be just about the best scenario for the team.
Another Previous Mock Draft Sent Lions Chase Young
What if the Lions finished with the No. 3 pick and still managed to get Young? Most fans likely have not believed it could be the case, but would take that in a heartbeat, and it’s a scenario that was presented in a mock a few months vac in a new mock by Vinnie Iyer of Sporting News.
According to Iyer’s mock, the Washington Redskins take Alabama wideout Jerry Jeudy to help them complement the development of quarterback Dwayne Haskins. That leaves Young to slip down to the Lions with the very next pick.
Here’s Iyer on what the Redskins could be thinking if they looked Jeudy’s direction:
“They should look hard to trade this pick to a QB-needy team or one desperate to get Chase Young.. They will think about offensive tackle too in the aftermath of the Trent Williams mess, but they can’t go wrong with the best offensive player available and pairing Terry McLaurin with another scary big-play target. Jeudy fits the profile as a No. 1 receiver; a classic intermediate-to-deep playmaker and drive-finisher at 6-1, 198 pounds.”
When it comes to the Lions, they likely wouldn’t hesitate to scoop up Young. That’s something Iyer admits in his writeup.
“Young qualifies as a better prospect than recent Ohio State NFL studs Joey Bosa and Nick Bosa. Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn would jump at the chance to get this cornerstone talent for the team’s defensive rebuild. Young (6-5, 265 pounds) is a game-changing disruptor. He has 16.5 sacks in only 11 games as a junior. He’s the clear pick for a team that doesn’t need a QB or a WR.”
The chances of this happening? They might be slim at best given Young’s stature near the top of the draft, but there’s a long way to go between now and April, and anything is always possible.
Obviously, this would be another certified miracle for Lions fans.
Chase Young Stats
It’s easy to see why teams are drooling over Young in this process. The defensive end out of Ohio State has the look of a generational talent at his position given his combination of size and strength. As a whole, Young has dominated, piling up an astonishing 30.5 sacks, 9 forced fumbles and 40.5 tackles for loss.
Young has threatened to go back to college in 2020, so it will be interesting to see if that actually happens, or he ends up taking his talents to the NFL. The bet is that the league will get to see Young join their class in 2020.
Obviously, thanks to these numbers, he figures to be a player that can make an immediate jump into perhaps being one of the more fearsome defenders in the league.
Lions Biggest 2020 NFL Draft Need is Defensive End
Detroit cannot pressure the quarterback meaningfully in 2019, something that has been painfully obvious for weeks and that is a glaring problem given what the team has done to add to the front in recent months and years. Part of the problem has been injury, but beyond Trey Flowers and Da’Shawn Hand, the Lions simply don’t have any young building blocks they can count on right now. The team has to find some form of consistency in the trenches, and that is why it’s a major need for them moving forward.
If the draft were held today, the Lions would have to target some type of defensive end or pass rush specialist highly, and Young would be the top option. Without a few impact players here in 2020, it’s tough to imagine the Lions turning their defensive fortunes around.
That makes the potential selection of Young so vital, and why so many wish to see the Lions find a way to select him. That’s true whatever might happen in the lead in to the draft.
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