DETROIT LIONS
Round 1 (No. 2 overall)
Aidan Hutchinson, DE, Michigan: He might not have the ceiling of Travon Walker. But Hutchinson is closer to a finished product, the All-American and Heisman Trophy finalist setting a Wolverines single-season record with 14 sacks in 2021 while also posting 51 hurries. Hutchinson was also a two-time team captain in Ann Arbor and should help establish the kind of culture coach Dan Campbell and the Lions are seeking.
Round 1 (12, from Vikings) – Jameson Williams, WR, Alabama: Detroit moves up by flipping the 32nd pick to the division rival Vikes in order to upgrade their receiving corps with Williams, who might well have been this draft’s No. 1 wideout had he not torn an ACL in the Tide’s national championship game loss to Georgia. Williams and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, who caught 90 passes as a rookie in 2021, suddenly give QB Jared Goff a nifty tandem of targets to mix in with Pro Bowl TE T.J. Hockenson.
Round 2 (46, from Vikings) – Josh Paschal, DE, Kentucky: A three-time team captain who can move up and down a line that needs more bodies despite the acquisition of Aidan Hutchinson. Detroit’s 30 sacks were the third fewest in the NFL in 2021. A cancer survivor, Paschal should be another culture changer for a Detroit organization that appears pointed in the right direction.
Round 3 (97, compensatory) – Kerby Joseph, S, Illinois: Safety jobs up for grabs in Motown. Joseph picked off five passes for the Illini in 2021.
Round 5 (177, compensatory) – James Mitchell, TE, Virginia Tech
Round 6 (188, from Seahawks through Jaguars and Eagles) – Malcolm Rodriguez, LB, Oklahoma State
Round 6 (217, compensatory) – James Houston, LB, Jackson State
Round 7 (237, from Saints through Eagles) – Chase Lucas, CB, Arizona State
Grade: A
Hutchinson “fell” to Detroit at No. 2 before the Lions vaulted 20 spots from No. 32 in order to get highly touted Alabama WR Jameson Williams. And they have two first-rounders at the ready for 2023.