Want NFL's No. 2 Overall Draft Pick? Lions Are Listening

The Detroit Lions spent the majority of last season going nowhere fast, and now they hope to get somewhere else fairly quickly.

Translation: The Lions stink. They want to stink less.

One way to do that, perhaps, is to trade away the No. 2 overall draft pick for a proven player or players. And what do you know, that may be the approach the Lions are taking.

According to general manager Brad Holmes, the Lions are indeed fielding calls for the No. 2 pick. Holmes was speaking to reporters at the League Meeting in Florida, and admitted none of those talks have yet gotten serious. At this point, they are merely "exploratory."

But this is a pretty unique draft, in the sense that there are no clear-cut major difference-makers. It seems to be more of a guessing game than ever. Because of that, several teams have indicated a willingness to move down in the draft, as relayed by Logan Ulrich of NFL Trade Rumors.

"The Jaguars aren't married to staying at No. 1 overall, the Giants are willing to trade one of their two top-seven picks, and the Panthers have also expressed a preference to trade out of the No. 6 pick and acquire more selections on Day 2 (of the draft)," Ulrich wrote.

For the Lions, getting a veteran who could help immediately and extra picks, albeit later, could indeed be the wise move.

And goodness knows, a wise move is something the Lions could certainly use.

As of now, the ESPN mock draft has the Lions selecting Cincinnati cornerback Ahmad Gardner with the No. 2 pick.

"The Lions gave up the NFL's third-best opponent QBR (53.4) last year and still need a corner. Gardner didn't surrender more than 13 yards in a game or a single TD all season in 2021," ESPN wrote.

















Written by
Sam Amico spent 15 years covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated, FOX Sports and NBA.com, along with a few other spots, and currently runs his own basketball website on the side, FortyEightMinutes.com.