The Detroit Lions were active during NFL Draft weekend as they made three trades to secure the class they wanted.
The Lions bolstered their offensive line by trading up for Georgia guard Tate Ratledge in the second round and traded up 32 spots in the third round to select Arkansas wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa with the 70th overall pick. Detroit also made a deal in the fifth round, trading up for the opportunity to select LSU guard Miles Frazier.
It was a lot of activity for general manager Brad Holmes, who has made 13 trades since arriving in 2021. But if he had it his way, there would have been more deals, especially when it came to the second round of the draft.
Lions GM Brad Holmes Says He Tried to Make 30 Trades on Second Day of NFL Draft
Holmes recalled his draft weekend during an interview on the Costa & Jansen with Heather Show on WXYT-FM on Tuesday morning. While he was plenty active during the draft, he admitted that there could have been a lot more action as Holmes attempted to make “about 30” trades on Friday night.
“On Day 2, we made two trade-ups,” Holmes said via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “Guys, those were two done out of about 30 attempts. That just happened to be the two that we were able to do.”
This seems like a lot but it’s a glimpse of what a general manager does on draft day. While some may believe that executives sit in the war room and crush the draft spread, scenarios are being considered at all teams, leading some conversations about potential moves.
“It’s so many other different attempts and it’s hard to sometimes find a partner because teams just don’t want to go that far down,” Holmes continued. … Just like what I was talking about earlier, the further you go down then the talent pool and the depth on that specific team’s board is going to drop as well, so you have to have peace with that.”
It led Holmes to a pair of prospects he didn’t want to miss. Ratledge was a two-time first-team All-SEC lineman at Georgia and describes himself as “a dirtbag.” TeSlaa had limited production with 28 catches for 545 yards and three touchdowns last season at Arkansas, but Holmes justified the steep cost by calling him his favorite receiver prospect in the draft.
While the best deals may be the ones Holmes didn’t make, he’s hoping the trades he did pan out. The aggressiveness could pay off if Rutledge or TeSlaa become impact players for the Lions in the future.