Kadyn Proctor Could Be Lions’ First-Round Offensive Line Pick

This is not the deepest or most star-heavy draft in recent years, making it difficult to assess which direction teams will go in when the selections begin. And that is especially true of some of the better teams in the NFL who have built competitive rosters and could pivot towards the best player available.

Despite all of their regular-season success in the last three years, the Detroit Lions may not have that BPI luxury anymore.

Through the course of discussing the upcoming draft with numerous evaluators and personnel executives, and as teams begin to look more at what they anticipate teams drafting around them might be up to, there is something of a consensus building that Detroit is going to strongly embrace upgrading along the offensive line, even after investing significant draft capital at the line of scrimmage already.

Quarterback Jared Goff’s limited mobility became more of an issue last year, the Lions no longer have the one-two punch of David Montgomery and Jahyr Gibbs in the backfield and, in the assessment of some rival executives, the window for this team to win big may be closing. 

Detroit’s defense has been up and down over the years and the case could be made for adding on that side of the ball as well, but it was hard not to believe that they will lean back into offensive line in the middle of the first round, where they should have several options.

Why offensive line?

Detroit’s offense, and Goff’s efficiency, waned significantly last season as injuries and age and retirements impacted the offensive line; the unit was considered the best in the NFL a few years ago. Those issues, coupled with the departure of innovative play caller Ben Johnson to Chicago where he became the Bears head coach, took what was the Lions’s superpower and made it much more like a league-average unit in the second half of the season. 

Lions head coach, Dan Campbell, a former NFL blocking tight end, turned the franchise around in no small part by emphasized the need to get bigger and stronger at the point of attack, and the Lions know they must play bully ball to win. Right now, they seem short a few bullies.

“It’s gotta be an offensive lineman,” said a general manager whose team is also picking in the back half of the first round. “It seems pretty obvious to us.”

Detroit’s line crumbled with center Graham Glasgow retiring and former stalwart left tackle Taylor Decker is also gone. They added depth pieces in free agency, and did find a replacement center, but the team appears quite thin at tackle and another injury to All pro Penei Sewell this season would wipe them out as presently constructed. 

Undoubtedly, there will be a few top offensive linemen long gone before Detroit picks. 

One personnel executive suggested that in a draft lighter on true blue chip tackles than is the norm, some teams believe really only two are in the “surefire rookie starter category” – that Detroit will be motivated to trade up if need be. 

Alabama tackle Kadyn Proctor is said to be a player Detroit is very high on (at 6-foot-7 he has the size they covet. 

Detroit is currently down to -175 (DraftKings) to select an offensive lineman with its first pick, a proposition that is going to continue to lose value as the draft approaches.

Campbell has talked openly lately about moving Sewell to left tackle; that’s being interpreted by some of his peers as a nod to the lack of strength at left tackle in this draft and perhaps an indication of finding a plug-and-play right tackle from college.