It’s been a weird week when it comes to defensive backs, the 2025 NFL Draft, and the Detroit Lions.
It started with former Michigan cornerback Will Johnson. Once presumed a top-10 pick before a 2024 season didn’t go as planned, Johnson held a pre-draft workout this week, and some NFL draft experts were not impressed. There are some speed concerns with Johnson, and with a reported 4.33 short shuttle and a refusal to run the 40-yard dash, his workout did not put those concerns to bed. That has led some to speculate that Johnson may slide down the draft further than some expect.
A few days later, The Athletic Dane Brugler slotted a different cornerback—Kentucky’s Maxwell Hairston—to the Lions at 28 overall in his seven-round mock draft. Not many Lions fans were happy with that pick, as Detroit already has a lot invested at the cornerback position.
Fast forward to Thursday, and Lions general manager Brad Holmes reiterated once again that the team is not interested in drafting specific positions, they’re interested in drafting good football players.
“When you start chasing need, it’s like well that need might make sense for right now at this time, but we make these picks for future investments,” Holmes said this week.
Put all that together, and it has some fans wondering: could the Lions draft another defensive back with the 28th overall pick? Erik Schlitt and I discussed this on the latest Midweek Mailbag podcast, specifically talking about whether Detroit would be able to avoid the temptation of Will Johnson or Georgia safety Malaki Starks if they’re sitting there at 28 overall. That discussion begins at the 39:15 mark in the podcast below.
Other topics this week include:
- What position groups (outside of maybe WR) are the Lions not in a hurry to spend a lot of money on?
- If the Lions exercise Jameson Williams’ fifth-year option, would that salary travel to another team if he’s traded?
- Who is the best combination of GRIT + VILLAIN in this draft for the Lions?
- What makes Donovan Ezeiruaku a good fit in Detroit?
- Could there be a massive run on defensive linemen this year? How would that impact the Lions?
- Three players we DON’T want the Lions to draft at 28
- Which is more likely at 28: Tyler Booker or a cornerback?
- What’s more important for this draft class: quantity (for salary cap purposes) or quality?
- Does this Lions regime have to win an eventual Super Bowl to be considered successful?