The Lions waited as offensive players flew off the board Thursday night, then made a move on defense. Detroit traded up from No. 29 to No. 24 and drafted Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold, drawing roars from the record-breaking crowd downtown.
The Lions sent their third-rounder, No. 73 overall, to the Cowboys to move up five spots, and also got a 2025 seventh-rounder back.
Arnold was widely considered one of the top two cornerbacks in the draft, along with Quinyon Mitchell who went No. 22 to the Eagles. He should slide in as the No. 2 outside corner in Detroit opposite trade acquisition Carlton Davis III and projects as a No. 1 in the near future.
And the Lions should benefit immensely. They allowed the most air yards and the second most yards per pass in the NFL last season and still reached the NFC title game. With a much-improved cornerback tandem, their Super Bowl aspirations are legit.
Lions defensive backs coach Deshea Townsend said that Arnold immediately impressed in pre-draft meetings for his smarts: "His understanding of football and the scheme is one of the things that stood out right away … And then you just saw his personality, how he loves to compete."
On 79 targets in coverage last season, Arnold allowed a passer rating of 50.7, per Pro Football Focus. He had 12 passes defended and five picks, and some of his best games came against Alabama's toughest competition. Townsend raved about Arnold's ball-tracking skills, as well as his physicality. He has elite closing speed and a nose for the football.
"That's one of the most important things I look at when we're watching a corner: can he track and locate and take the ball away? That's one thing you want to have the ability to do, is be able to find the ball when you're in phase and go create turnovers. He has the ability to naturally find the ball."
When he took the stage in front of 275,000 fans Thursday night, Arnold also took the mic and shouted to the crowd, "Detroit, y'all got a star, man. Hey, I’m home, man! I’m home."