Who Detroit Lions Could Have Targeted in First Round of NFL Draft

Lions were surprised Terrion Arnold dropped in the first round.

Missouri defensive lineman Darius Robinson greets NFL commissioner Roger Goodell / Eric Seals / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Detroit Lions, like the rest of the NFL world, were surprised cornerback Terrion Arnold dropped on the opening night of the draft.

Heading into the draft, many believed the Lions could target an EDGE rusher, a cornerback or an offenive lineman, based on team needs.

One of the players Detroit could have selected, had there not been a run of offensive players to start the draft, was Missouri defensive lineman Darius Robinson.

According to Sports Illustrated, “Detroit had actually laid groundwork for a trade up—I believe Missouri DE Darius Robinson was the target—which made it easy to pivot and get aggressive in going up from No. 29 to No. 24 to land a falling Arnold."

With Arnold still available, Detroit trusted the stamp of approval given by Nick Saban, NFL Insider Albert Breer explained.

"As the Lions see it, being deployed as the star at Alabama is a huge sign of trust and respect from Saban, because of the mental and physical burden he puts on that spot, and the versatility he demands from it," Breer wrote. "Detroit did have a couple of high-level staffers get to Saban on Arnold, confirming what they’d seen. Which, in the end, made going after Arnold a no-brainer when he slipped."

General manager Brad Holmes confirmed that the team had options to potentially select a different player at a different spot, if the draft had gone differently.

“I didn’t think Arnold was going to be there,” Holmes explained. “Really, didn’t think he was going to be there calling late teens, but really trying and thinking we were going to have to settle for a different player at a different position but still trade up.”