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The Detroit Lions lost plenty of players last year at this time to unrestricted free agency, but the payoff has finally come one year later in the form of some compensatory picks from the NFL.
As it turns out, the Lions will be the beneficiary of that situation this year. On Tuesday, March 15, the Lions witnessed the reveal of three new picks to their ledger by way of the compensatory system.
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The league finally revealed the compensatory picks, and the Lions were one of the teams to strike it rich in a big way. Detroit added the three selections for 2022 thanks to the fact that they lost three big ticket free agents last year in Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones and linebacker Jarrad Davis.
Detroit hasn’t been a team that commonly adds compensatory picks in the past, so this could be a new way of doing business under Brad Holmes that fans can get behind. More picks will help the Lions get more competitive in the next few years as the team renovates their roster.
This 2022 draft will help them do just that.
Complete Look at Detroit’s 2022 Draft Picks
The Lions have a lot of wiggle room with which to operate this year in terms of draft capitol. The team will hold the second-overall and 32nd picks in the first-round of the 2022 NFL draft. From there, Detroit has pick 34 in the second-round, picks 66 and 97 in the third-round, pick 177 in the fifth round, picks 180 and 216 in the sixth-round and pick 240 in the seventh-round. As a whole, the team has five picks within the first 100 of the draft, something which is a particularly solid mark as it relates to the team being able to find top end talent for the future in order to turn around the hopes of the franchise.
Having a total of nine picks also helps the Lions. The team can not only use those picks to build up their own team, but can dangle them in potential trades for impact players to help the offense and defense. The Lions can also use those picks to move up or down in the 2022 draft as well, giving the team a shot to do some major damage overall.
Lions’ 2022 NFL Draft Primer
As expected, Detroit will continue to use the draft as the big way to build their roster, and the cap space collected will help them to sign their class. There’s a multitude of ways they could elect to go with the second-overall pick given the unique needs of the roster. The team’s defense needs playmakers up front to rush the passer along the defensive line, and could also need depth on the back end at cornerback. Offensively, the Lions have a major need for a big time pass catching wideout to help their down field attack on offense. As always, quarterback is going to be a position to watch near the top of the draft, especially considering the early struggles of Goff with the Lions in 2021.
The good news for Detroit? They also have the first-round pick of the Los Angeles Rams by virtue of the Matthew Stafford trade for this year and next year, and figure to gain multiple compensatory selections for 2022 so some serious building can occur for the roster if the team manages to secure the top overall pick. Obviously, there is no shortage of needs for the team to ponder with all of their selections next year.
Detroit will have plenty of picks with which to operate, so that is the good news as it relates to their overall plans for 2022. The Lions can now set about remaking their team in the best way possible.
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