Todd McShay Hands Lions Disappointing News About Draft Trades

Brad Holmes Rod Wood

Getty Brad Holmes and Rod Wood mix it up during Lions training camp in July 2021.

If the Detroit Lions are going to find a trade partner for their pick in the 2022 NFL draft, it might end up being a legitimate miracle for the team.

At this point in time, finding a deal is something that the Lions could crave. In order to make something happen, though, a team needs a dance partner, and at this point in time, there might not be any of them available to the Lions according to ESPN’s Todd McShay.

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McShay was speaking on a conference call with reporters including Justin Rogers of the Detroit News, and aside from his assertion that the Lions could draft Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton with the second-overall pick, his other takeaway was that the team might have a pretty hard time moving the selection if they want to this year. The reason? This impending NFL draft is flush with talent along the offensive line and defensive line, a pair of spots that could be poised to have players picked early in 2022.

“Todd McShay said he doesn’t see there being any trade market for the Lions at No. 2. Depth at offensive tackle and edge rusher makes it prohibitive,” Rogers tweeted after listening to McShay speak.

One thing that could change the game for Detroit’s pick is the potential addition of a quarterback into the mix. For this reason, the Lions are likely hoping that Malik Willis or Kenny Pickett catch fire into the final weeks of April. Even such, the Lions could stay put and take one of those players themselves, complicating matters.

As much as the Lions want to do a trade, they might find the semantics very difficult. To that end, it is likely not wise for fans to expect to see such a deal play out.


Why Lions Will Want to Trade Back

The Lions have to find a way to patch multiple holes on their roster, given the team has needs on defense and offense. Finding a trade for the second-overall pick could allow the Lions to add to their draft pick stable. Detroit already has nine selections for this year after adding three more compensatory picks to the mix a few weeks ago. While nine picks is a good start, it might not be anywhere near enough for a needy team like the Lions. Detroit needs to find a way to get more players in order to keep their rebuild off the ground, and dealing back could allow the Lions to pick up at least a few more selections while not sacrificing much in terms of distance near the top of the draft board.

Detroit has plenty of needs and a pair of first-round picks already. If the Lions could move back and pick up an extra third-round pick or fourth-round pick, it would represent fantastic business for the team in terms of getting enough cracks at finding difference makers for the near future and rebuilding the roster.


Brad Holmes Addressed Lions Trade Hopes for Top Pick

Trading back has been a hot topic for the Lions lately. Speaking during the annual owners meetings on Tuesday, March 29, general manager Brad Holmes was asked about where the team stands in the pre-draft process. As he admitted, he is taking a closer look at perhaps finding a trade for Detroit’s first-round pick if the right one comes along. MLive.com’s Kyle Meinke tweeted about Holmes’ thoughts after listening to him speak, and it’s clear the boss is potentially looking for a deal.

“The Lions have fielded calls from a couple teams about trading out of the No. 2 pick. Nothing serious yet per Brad Holmes, but talks are under way. Holmes says the Lions are willing to trade the No. 2 pick before the start of the draft. Detroit doesn’t need to see who goes No. 1 before making the decision to pull the trigger — for the right price, obviously,”Meinke tweeted after listening to Holmes speak.

Holmes can keep his ear to the ground for the better part of a month now, but the possibility for a deal to actually happen seems narrow to draft experts. With this in mind, it’s probably wise to assume the Lions will be set to make a pick near the top of the draft this spring one way or another.

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