One of the goals from the media when GM Brad Holmes stepped to the microphone for his Zoom press conference with reporters on Tuesday was to try and pry loose a morsel or two on the Detroit Lions’ intentions in the upcoming 2021 NFL draft. Holmes artfully dodged being painted into any corner with the No. 7 overall pick.
But he also kept alive the idea that the Lions are in the quarterback market with their top pick. Even though Holmes clearly knows Jared Goff well and is a big reason why the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft will be coming to Detroit in the blockbuster trade, the rookie GM made it clear that taking a quarterback high in the first round is still very much on the table.
When asked about what positions he liked in the class, Holmes first brought up safety before moving into the quarterbacks,
“I like the crop of quarterbacks that are coming out in this year’s draft. That’s obviously always a very, very important position. When you’re picking inside the top 10, I don’t think that there’s a position that you really can look past at any level and say, ‘Oh, well, that’s not a very, very deep position.’
He later answered a different question, one framed around ESPN’s Mel Kiper’s opinion that the Lions should avoid a QB at No. 7, by hyping up both the 2021 quarterback draft class and the need to address the most important position on the field prominently when given a chance.
“I think the quarterback position in general – what’s cool about this year is that they’re in all different flavors. You have the guy who can actually do it all, can do it from the pocket, do it with his legs,” Holmes said, carefully avoiding mentioning any specific players by name. “You have another guy that’s probably a little bit more (the type who) does it with his legs, a little bit more being creative. There’s another guy that actually probably does it more from the pocket. So, all the different flavors make it very, very intriguing in terms of when you’re looking across the whole scope of the class of these quarterbacks.
I do think, again, when you’re picking in the top 10, I don’t think you can ignore – and I think it’s just smart drafting business anyways – is that when you’re picking in the top 10, that you make sure that you know that quarterback class very thoroughly.”
It’s a smart move by Holmes to keep the options open. Or rather, keep the appearance of all options being open. He’s sending a message to other teams that might want a quarterback prospect that No. 7 is in play. That creates leverage with the pick to move either up or down in the draft. It’s also an indication that Goff won’t simply be handed the long-term keys to the franchise when the trade is completed later in March.
