Two months from now, we'll be furiously debating who the Lions should draft with their two-first round picks. At the moment, it makes for fun conversation.
Todd McShay took a stab at it in his latest mock draft for ESPN, which begins with quarterbacks Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud going Nos. 1 and 2 overall (to the Colts and Texans, respectively), followed by three defensive linemen to round out the fop five: Will Anderson Jr., Jalen Carter and Tyree Wilson.
At No. 6, McShay has the Lions taking Clemson DE Myles Murphy to augment a defense that allowed the most yards per game and most yards per play in the NFL last season:
Adding Murphy's speed off the edge to a group that already includes 2022 first-rounder Aidan Hutchinson and surprise rookie standout James Houston immediately moves the defense forward.
McShay also raises the possibility of GM Brad Holmes and the Lions trading down and "picking up additional draft capital from a team looking to nab a quarterback."
The Lions are back on the clock 12 picks later, after three cornerbacks come off the board in Joey Porter (No. 14 to New England) Devin Witherspoon (No. 16 to Washington) and Christian Gonzalez (No 17. to Pittsburgh).
That doesn't stop the Lions from addressing a position of need with Georgia CB Kelee Ringo at No. 18, says McShay:
There will be a lot of opinions about his game, but Ringo has a lot of upside. He has speed and length, and he's very good in press coverage. Plus, he hauled in two interceptions in each of his seasons at Georgia.
Adding a player of Ringo's caliber would certainly help a secondary that allowed the second most yards per pass and most yards per completion last season.
Either way, the Lions have a lot of work to do at corner, where they saw two starters at the beginning of last season wind up on the bench: Jeff Okudah and Amani Oruwariye.
They may or may not pick up Okudah's fifth-year option this offseason and likely won't re-sign Oruwariye as a free agent. Ringo could help fill the void in both the short term and long term.
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