Getty Jared Goff on the field before a Lions game in 2022 against Green Bay.
When the Detroit Lions make their pick in the 2022 NFL draft, it will come after months and months of conjecture and debate within the court of public opinion.
It seems at this point, everyone has a take on what the Lions should decide to do when they select, and the mocks seem to show that in a big way. It seems every week, things are changing with regard to who might go where based on what the experts say. That’s merely a projection in most cases, but occasionally, some information slips out that is from behind-the-scenes.
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Such was the case in Mel Kiper Jr.’s recent iteration of his two-round mock draft in an insider piece. Within that mock, he had Detroit making three selections, but different than prior mocks, he did not have Detroit going with a quarterback at all. That outcome is not a shock for Kiper, who wrote within one of his write-ups that intelligence seems to suggest the Lions won’t be in a rush to grab a quarterback in 2022 after all.
“The more I talk to people in the league, the more I think the Lions will stand pat on a quarterback with their three picks in the top 34,” Kiper wrote within the piece.
That revelation is quite big at this stage of the game, given the fact that Kiper and others have had the Lions making a quarterback pick in spots up until this point. Whether that’s fact or fiction remains to be seen in the weeks ahead.
Kiper’s Mock Draft Features Other Surprises for Lions
Within the mock, Kiper had the Lions making a bit of a surprise pick early on and going with Cincinnati cornerback Sauce Gardner with the second-overall selection. Gardner has seen a rise up the boards in a major way in the last few weeks, and the Lions have been taking a look at him. Kiper seems to think Gardner’s size will make him of interest for Detroit, and ability to play at a position of need.
With the team’s 32nd pick, Kiper sends Georgia safety Lewis Cine to the Lions given he is said to be a “good cover safety” with speed by Kiper. With pick 34 in the second-round, Kiper gives Michigan’s David Ojabo to Detroit, a player he believes could be a “steal” for the Lions in the future given his injury history.
Here’s a visual on what Kiper believes the Lions will do in this mock courtesy of DetroitLions.com reporter Tim Twentyman:
Mel Kiper Jr. latest mock draft:
No. 2: CB Sauce Gardner (Cincy)
No. 32: S Lewis Cine (Georgia)
No. 34: Edge David Ojabo (Mich)
What do you all think?
As a whole, this would be a pretty solid draft for Detroit. It would check off plenty of the needs the team has, and focus heavily on the defensive side of the ball, which is still seen as a major weakness for Detroit heading into 2022.
Lions Offseason Quarterback Plan With Draft, Free Agency
Who could the Lions look at in the draft for quarterback in 2022 if they chose to do so? There are plenty of options for the team, and that’s especially true after the Lions watched the Senior Bowl last week. While at the game, the Lions saw the likes of Kenny Pickett, Sam Howell, Malik Willis, Matt Corral and Desmond Ridder excel. Any of those players could be early picks for the team, and while some make more sense than others, the Lions could conceivably roll the dice on one of these names if they are happy with how they can develop. The team also decided to re-sign Tim Boyle and roll with him as their main backup for 2022 and do exactly what they did last season as well as keeping David Blough.
Goff’s presence ends up helping the Lions in a big way. The team can select a quarterback if they find one they like and believe in, but they don’t have to make a sudden move whatsoever and take a player they aren’t sure about for the future. They also don’t have to go out and sign a player who has bounced around a lot in free agency recently, which they didn’t do. That could set them up to pursue the position stronger in the 2023 year.
At this point, the team’s quarterback conundrum might not be that big of a deal as Kiper seems to show. It will be fascinating to see if this is fact or fiction in the coming days.
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Mel Kiper Makes Final Prediction for Lions Quarterback Move in Draft