Could Lions Pull Off Blockbuster Trade to Land Aidan Hutchinson and Kyle Hamilton?
The first blockbuster trade of the 2022 NFL draft season could involve the Detroit Lions.
With increased draft capital acquired from the Matthew Stafford trade last offseason, is general manager Brad Holmes ready to channel his inner Les Snead and start wheeling and dealing draft picks?
The general consensus is the Jacksonville Jaguars will target offensive lineman Evan Neal with the first overall selection.
With the Lions targeting defensive end Aidan Hutchinson out of Michigan with the No. 2 pick, could Holmes and Co. become active on the telephone to secure another top pick in the first round?
The player that has skyrocketed up most draft boards is safety Kyle Hamilton out of Notre Dame.
"If Hutchinson’s off the board and he’s gone, if he goes one, I would have no issues whatsoever with them (Lions) taking Kyle Hamilton and saying this is a plug-and-play guy who’s going to give them something they desperately need, and that’s somebody that can make a play," NFL analyst Daniel Jeremiah said in a recent teleconference. "In a different draft, where maybe you had some guys at a different level of grades, then you could say, 'OK, well, I’ll lean towards the edge rusher, positional value, all that stuff.' But I think Kyle Hamilton stacks up really well with everybody in this draft."
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In the spirit of aggressiveness, Holmes and Co. do not sit back and let one of the top safeties who would fill a need go to another team.
In this proposed trade with the Houston Texans, the Lions would secure the No. 3 pick in the draft and make Hamilton an integral part of the Lions' defense for many years to come.
Proposed draft trade
- Lions receive third pick in 2022 NFL draft.
- Texans receive Lions No. 32 pick in 2022 NFL draft, 2022 third-round compensatory pick and first-round picks in 2023 and 2024 draft.
For the Lions to take a drastic leap forward, it might be time for Holmes to adopt the mantra of his former boss: "F them picks."
