5 Must-Know Things About Detroit Lions DL Tyre West

On Saturday, the Detroit Lions closed out their draft with back-to-back defensive linemen selections. It wrapped up a day that saw the Lions target the defensive side of the ball with all but one of their selections, with Kendrick Law being the lone offensive player.

The last defensive name to hear his name called during the draft by the Lions was Tennessee lineman Tyre West. Here are five things to know about the Lions’ last pick of the 2026 NFL Draft.

Described as “tweener” body style

West’s draft graphic showed the player as a defensive lineman, not as an interior lineman or EDGE defender. That is by design, as the Volunteer has lined up in both spots throughout his collegiate career, with his size (6-foot-1, 283 pounds) suggesting that he is a hybrid of a “big” EDGE and a defensive tackle.

His arm length and 40-time both scream defensive tackle, and he will be an interesting player to monitor once summer camps begin.

Exhibition game standout

Following a senior season that saw West post his best stats yet, with 23 tackles, 7.5 of them for loss, four sacks and a forced fumble, West got invited to the American Bowl. After a strong week of practice, the defensive lineman was invited to the more prestigious Senior Bowl, where he also stood out.

That postseason started putting more teams on notice, and made West become a trending pick in some draft circles. West standing out in exhibition bowl games is no shock, however. When he was a sophomore in high school, the young lineman earned MVP honors of the Georgia Athletic Coaches North-South game.

Only two top-30 visits during draft process

With West only being a rotational player with the Volunteers, his top-30 visits with teams were hard to come by. However, West was the first publicized top-30 visit for the Lions, with the news breaking shortly after the NFL Combine.

That caused West to start gaining some traction in mock draft circles, and it came out that West only got two official top-30 visits. The other team to invite West in for a visit: the New York Jets, the team with former Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn as head coach.

Multi-sport athlete

West, much like other football players, excelled at sports outside of the gridiron.

During his time at Tift County High School (Ga.), West participated in track and field in the spring, along with football each fall. The lineman, predictably, participated in shot-put.

He was one of the best in school history to do it, too. West is second place in his school’s history for longest shot-put throw, putting up a best throw of 48 feet, 11 inches his junior season. Due to his early enrollment at Tennessee, West did not get a chance to shoot for the Tift County High School record as a senior.

West was the second-best shot-put thrower on the team that year, however. Cade Anders holds the school record for longest shot-put throw, north of 55 feet. Anders had his own football career, too, playing tight end at Duke University in 2022 and 2023.

During an interview, West also said he played basketball in high school.

Relatives with former division rival

West had an inspiration growing up that pushed him towards pursuing football at the next level, and that was former Valdosta State linebacker Larry Dean. Dean was a Division II national champion with Valdosta before becoming the only undrafted free agent to make the Minnesota Vikings roster out of training camp in 2011.

Dean was division foes with the Lions for three seasons before a stint in Buffalo and Tampa Bay. He then took his talents to the Canadian Football League. Dean would be a four-time All-Star in the CFL. He retired in 2023, and now serves as the Assistant Director of Player Personnel for the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

West had an inspiration to push him into football growing up, and now has a source to lean on when it comes to having knowledge of “making it” at this level. In addition, West gets bragging rights over his relative, with West getting his name read off during the draft.

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