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The Detroit Lions have been thinking about making an NFL Draft deal for weeks, but until now, hard details on what type of trade the team could make have been scant. That might have changed late on Wednesday night.
According to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald, the Lions could be prepared to select with the No. 5 pick in the draft, indicating the Miami Dolphins might be moving up to the No. 3 pick.
What else the Lions could pick up in the trade is unknown, but it seems as if the teams could be ones to watch in a potential draft day deal. The Lions, theoretically, could pick up another second or third round pick from Miami in such a scenario. They might be unlikely to pick up one of Miami’s other first round selections.
Additionally, reports from Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network suggest there is activity around pick No. 3 and talks have heated up. Obviously, it’s something to watch in the hours ahead, whether with Miami or another team.
Dolphins Reportedly Have Interest in Offensive Tackles
Most assumed the Dolphins would want to come up in order to select Tua Tagovailoa, but what if the team wanted to move up in order to select another position? That’s just what could happen when the draft gets going on Thursday. According to NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport, the Dolphins are making calls about coming up to No. 3 in order to possibly select an offensive tackle.
While that sounds interesting and compelling, the reality is, the Dolphins probably want to prioritize a quarterback with such a high pick, perhaps even Tagoviloa. Otherwise, why move up at all for a tackle given how many other picks the team has? Regardless, from the Detroit perspective, the price will have to be right in terms of a deal in order to move back a few spots.
Whomever the Dolphins would decide to pick, it’s obvious the Lions want to be able to move back and also acquire more draft assets, so they’d welcome this dialogue.
Dolphins, Lions Called Potential Trade Partners
Last week, Rapoport suggested the Dolphins could be the most obvious team to watch as it relates to an eventual deal with the team.
“If you want to look for a potential partner for a trade, the team to watch here would be the Miami Dolphins,” Rapoport said. “I think it’s pretty obvious where the Dolphins have looked in the draft. They’ve looked at quarterback, they’ve also looked at offensive tackle. Maybe that’s the place where the Dolphins jump up a little bit, take maybe their quarterback of the future of their player to replace Laremy Tunsil at No. 3, get over the Giants, allow the Lions a chance to slide back and maybe take the top defensive player on their board.”
As for what player the Lions might target after a trade down, that’s currently the source of much debate. Rapoport seems to think the Lions would obviously be interested in Ohio State cornerback Jeffrey Okudah.
“They’ve been linked to Jeffrey Okudah, the cover corner who is also a great tackler forever,” he said.”We’ll see if that’s the pick they make, but it is pretty clear Detroit is open to sliding back.”
If the Lions slide back, it could make the most sense to do so with the Dolphins. The team has a stockpile of 2020 draft picks, and Detroit’s goal is to improve their fortunes right now. Miami boasts the 18th pick and 26th pick in the first round in addition to the No. 5 selection. They also have a pair of second round selections and a third round pick at their disposal.
Obviously, if the Lions would be able to score another first round pick in this trade, it would be a major win. Would the Dolphins be willing to go there, however? It remains to be seen, even as the team could represent the most logical trade partner for Detroit.
Former General Manager Sets Lions Trade Price
Will the Lions shoot for the stars in terms of trying to land a king’s ransom for the pick? That’s exactly what a Hall of Famer thinks they should be shooting for. Gil Brandt of NFL.com was asked on Twitter what his asking price would be for teams to come up to the No. 3 pick in the draft. As he said, it should be more than a bit expensive for a team like the Miami Dolphins.
Brandt thinks the Lions should ask for the No. 5 pick, the No 18 pick and the No. 26 pick from the Dolphins as a price for moving up. That deal, he thinks, represents a fair value.
Safe to say if the Lions managed that, it would be a score. Even if Detroit managed to pry loose a pair of first round picks from Miami it would be a huge win. Would teams bite on that? It would be a huge cost to pay to move up for Tua Tagovailoa or another such player.
If the Lions could get this type of haul out of Miami, it might only enhance the chances they do elect to move back when all is said and done, no matter who the Dolphin wants to select.
At the very least, the Lions could now be in play to swap selections with Miami.
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