Detroit Lions: Three players to target in the second round of the NFL draft
By Bob Heyrman
Landing Chase Young with the third overall pick would be a win in itself for the Detroit Lions. Here are three players to watch when the organization picks in the second round of the NFL draft.
As the Detroit Lions brass walk or should I say, ride the boat to the podium in beautiful downtown Las Vegas, general manager Bob Quinn will have more pressure to ace this draft more than ever. The Lions are historically a struggling franchise; it’s a fanbase that desperately NEEDS to see progress in 2020.
The same could be said for the Detroit Lions ownership. Martha Firestone Ford was a big believer in Jim Caldwell, who was promptly fired by Bob Quinn after back to back 9-7 seasons. Quinn believed Caldwell had plateaued, and if that’s what he suspected, it’s a decision we need to live with and support. We are entering our third offseason with Matt Patricia at the helm, and it’s perfectly fine to expect progress after seeing a significant decline in production since he’s taken over.
That being said, he and Bob Quinn need to find a way to draft impactful players immediately. The Lions defense was historically bad last season. At times they wouldn’t be able to stop a plastic bag blowing in the re-circulated air of Ford Field.
In a perfect world, the Detroit Lions will see Ohio State’s defensive end Chase Young fall to them at three. For that to happen, I suspect someone will need to trade up to the second overall spot with the Washington Redsins. Three teams come to mind. The Miami Dolphins have the most draft capital to get the job done. The Dolphins have a plethora of picks in the upcoming draft that include three first-round picks. Surely they’d be able to convince the Redskins to trade down.
The other two teams who should be in search of a quarterback are the L.A. Chargers who pick sixth and the Chicago Bears, but they’d be expected to trade someone like Khalil Mack along with one of their second-round picks to land the second overall pick. Would that even be enough? One could make the argument Chase Young who will be much cheaper than Mack and is much younger, would be the wiser selection.
Playing a little hypothetical game here, let’s say Chase Young is selected with the third overall pick in the draft by the Detroit Lions. Here are three players the team should target in the second round of the NFL draft.