Throughout the offseason, there were a lot of jokes made about the Lions doing everything in their power to be more like the Patriots, but the most notable move Detroit made was one that New England would not have. And I can say that with 100% certainty because the Pats had their chance to pay Trey Flowers and decided “Nah. We’re Good”
The Lions followed up that move with two curious decisions in the draft — the T.J. Hockenson and Jahlani Tavai picks — that make you wonder if this team has a good grasp on positional value and where it should be allocating its limited resources.
Notable draft picks: TE T.J. Hockenson, LB Jahlani Tavai
Key acquisitions/re-signings: DE Trey Flowers, CB Justin Coleman, WR Danny Amendola, TE Jesse James, RB C.J. Anderson
Losses: DE Ziggy Ansah, DT Kerry Hyder
*Re-signed with team
Hockenson was the best tight end in the 2019 draft class. He just wasn’t worth a top-10 pick. Both of those things can be true. There are only a handful of tight ends in the NFL that make a real impact on games. Those guys may be worthy of a top-10 pick — and even then, I’m skeptical — but the chances of Hockenson developing into one of those guys are slim. There’s a reason the Patriots did not try to replace Rob Gronkowski after his retirement: Those tight ends are rare.
The same can be said of the Flowers signing. Detroit was willing to shell out $56 million in guaranteed money to him while New England was content to let one of their better homegrown talents walk. For a team that seems to be following a New England-based blueprint, that should have been a major red flag. The Patriots are one of the few teams who understand that lacking premium pass rushing talent doesn’t prevent teams from producing a productive rush if the scheme is doing the heavy lifting.
That pretty much covers Detroit’s significant moves: Danny Amendola and Justin Coleman are solid players, but neither appears to be a long-term answer. The Tavai pick was straight out of the Patriots playbook — with Detroit taking a system-fit player way higher than any other team would have — but, given New England’s draft results under Bill Belichick, which have been hit or miss, I’m not sure if that’s the part of the Pats playbook you want to follow.
