Detroit Lions trade Laken Tomlinson to San Francisco 49ers
By Zac Snyder
Laken Tomlinson‘s rocky tenure with the Detroit Lions is over as the team has traded the former first-round pick to the San Francisco 49ers.
The Detroit Lions replaced Laken Tomlinson as the starter at left guard during the 2016 season and worked him exclusively as a backup, primarily at right guard, during the 2017 preseason.
It was clear the team no longer viewed him as a viable starter and may have even been on the roster bubble to make the team at all. Rather than having to make a decision between keeping or cutting him, the Lions have found a trade partner.
According to Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport, Tomlinson has been traded to the San Francisco 49ers.
Lions are trading OL Laken Tomlinson to the 49ers, sources tell me and @RapSheet. Niners get a former first-round pick.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) August 31, 2017
Rapoport adds the details of what the Lions are receiving in return.
Terms: The #Lions trade guard Laken Tomlinson to the #49ers for a 5th rounder in 2019, sources tell @MikeGarafolo and me.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 31, 2017
It’s not much of a price for the 49ers to pay but it’s also nothing for the Lions to sneeze at considering Tomlinson’s place in the depth chart. They have to wait until 2019 to get the pick, but a fifth round pick is far from a throwaway.
With a rookie Graham Glasgow displacing Tomlinson at left guard last season and T.J. Lang signing in free agency to lock down the right guard spot, it’s a no-brainer to recoup as much as possible for Tomlinson.
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Bob Quinn has put a priority on both the offensive and defensive lines in his first two drafts while Tomlinson, a pick of former general manager Martin Mayhew, fell out of favor. Not coincidentally, Mayhew is now part of the front office in San Francisco.