ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) — The Detroit Lions are in unfamiliar territory.
Detroit has the No. 28 pick overall in the NFL draft, its latest slot in a decade.
The Lions also have a lot of talent for a change and that's not cheap to keep.
That's a credit to general manager Brad Holmes, and it's also a challenge as he tries to retain more of the team's best players for years to come.
Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Penei Sewell, David Montgomery, Alim McNeill and Derrick Barnes are all signed through at least 2027.
Some other key players are due to get paid by Detroit, or another team in free agency, after helping the Lions win a franchise-record 15 games last season and back-to-back NFC North titles.
Aidan Hutchinson, Kerby Joseph, Brian Branch, Sam LaPorta and Jameson Williams are among the players Holmes hopes will also agree to stay with multiyear deals.
“We had so many of these young players that have been on rookie deals and we’ve been enjoying the impact that they’ve all been bringing,” Holmes said. "But now, a bill is coming.
"What you spend this year is going to impact next year, even impacts 2027. So, that’s the discipline that we have to adhere to.”
That makes it even more important for Holmes to hit more than miss in this year's draft.
Needs
Help on defense, especially edge rushers, and guard are top priorities.
Hutchinson is expected to make a full recovery from the broken leg that shortened last season, but another defensive end is needed to play on the opposite side.
The Lions may also want to make up for the loss of starting right guard Kevin Zeitler, who signed with Tennessee, and to challenge left guard Graham Glasgow for playing time with a rookie or two.
Detroit has not used a first-round pick on a guard or center since selecting Frank Ragnow in 2018.
Don't need
High picks would be surprising at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end or middle linebacker. Goff, Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs, St. Brown, Williams, LaPorta, Jack Campbell and Alex Anzalone make those positions strengths for the Lions.
Draft prep
Detroit didn't make a big splash in free agency because it's saving cap space to sign players such as Hutchinson, but the Lions were able to make a pair of significant additions.
Shortly after losing veteran cornerback Carlton Davis in free agency, the Lions signed D.J. Reed to a $48 million, three-year contract. Two days later, they added run-stuffing Roy Lopez to join McNeill and DJ Reader at defensive tackle.
“We actually were able to do more than what I thought we were going to be able to do heading into it,” Holmes said.
Making moves
Detroit has made 13 trades during the draft in four years under Holmes, who has moved up nine times to take players he wanted and down four times to acquire extra picks.
At first
The Lions are one of just two teams, joining the Cincinnati Bengals, to make one or more first-round selections in every draft since the NFL’s seven-round era started in 1994.
Holmes might be tempted to trade his late, first-round pick to move down to the second round and acquire additional picks.
Detroit has one pick in each of the first four rounds, none in the fifth and two slots in the seventh.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Larry Lage, The Associated Press
