When it comes to the NFL draft, the Detroit Lions march to the beat of their own drum, something the team did once again in 2025.
General manager Brad Holmes did not do what everyone thought he would do and instead opted not to take an edge rusher until the sixth round. Holmes decided to bulk up in the trenches instead with the selections of a defensive lineman, Tyleik Williams, and two guards in Tate Ratledge and Miles Frazier.
Holmes also surprised plenty of people with the trade up for Arkansas wideout Isaac TeSlaa, who wasn’t on many people’s radar at that point in the draft.
In the wake of the draft, The Athletic’s Mike Sando asked unnamed NFL executives for their thoughts on the draft classes of each team, including the Lions.
One executive likened Detroit’s draft approach to that of the Philadelphia Eagles after the Lions added to the interior on both sides of the ball to continue building upon what is a strength.
“Keep building on the lines, which is what they do there,” an exec said. “They play to their strengths, and let’s call it what it is: the Philly mindset. Not a bad strategy. And then they got three players from Georgia, one from Ohio State, one from LSU — big schools.”
Another executive had doubts about the selection of Williams, who is viewed as a one-trick pony for his perceived lack of pass-rush skills. However, the same exec believes Holmes deserves the benefit of the doubt, which he does.
“They pretty much took a run-defending nose tackle in the first round, but they are very firm on their style of ball, and it has paid off, so they get the benefit of the doubt,” the exec explained.
That’s pretty much where we sit with Holmes. He might make us scratch our heads sometimes, but the Lions general manager has done more than enough good in the draft to warrant the benefit of the doubt that he’s making good moves.
After all, the Lions are going broke (not literally, but in terms of future salary cap space) because of how well Holmes has drafted, as several homegrown players have earned massive contract extensions recently.
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