Detroit Lions: The perfect 3-round 2022 NFL Mock Draft 3.0

With the no. 34 overall pick, the Detroit Lions select Lewis Cine.

Lewis Cine is one of my favorite prospects in the 2022 NFL Draft.  Here’s the thing, I am not saying that Cine is better than Kyle Hamilton, who is expected to be selected in the top ten, but I don’t feel that there is much of a dropoff in talent from Hamilton to Cine, which makes picking him at no. 34 a no-brainer for me.

There are two other safeties expected to be chosen around this pick: Michigan’s Daxton Hill and Penn State’s Jaquan Brisker.  Both are exceptionally talented safeties, but I prefer Cine.  Hill appears to be more of a slot corner at the next level. The Detroit Lions recently signed Mike Hughes to compete for a starting job with Jeff Okudah, Jerry Jacobs, and Ifeatu Melifonwu to start alongside Amani Oruwariye.

I believe that the Detroit Lions will find themselves in the market to draft a cornerback in 2022, but I don’t see it being this early.  Again, Hill isn’t a traditional corner, but he’s not exactly a conventional safety, and I believe this is one of the most significant needs looking at Detroit’s current defense.

The Detroit Lions need to pair a playmaker with the recently re-signed Tracy Walker, who is coming off a career year.  Brad Holmes would be doing Walker, a leader on defense, a disservice by pairing him with Will Harris again in 2022.  Campbell seemed to recently overvalue Harris but failed to mention if the former third-round selection would be working as a corner or safety in 2022.

Cine is a tremendous playmaking centerfielder, but he also hits like a sledgehammer.  The Georgia product isn’t afraid to come down into the box and lower the boom, yet has elite instincts and closing speed to play as a centerfielder, single high safety.

Cine really came into his own as a junior, totaling a team-leading 73 tackles with the Bulldogs to go with one interception while defending nine passes.

Change from version 2.0: None