With the 28th overall pick, the Lions could stand pat and add another quality player to their roster. Maybe even a defensive end. Or, as Brad Holmes alluded to Thursday, one week before the draft, "maybe you just go up and get the guy you really, really want and you don’t use all those other draft picks."
Holmes was talking generally, not specifically about the Lions' intentions. But he's shown over his first four drafts in Detroit that he's not afraid to take a big swing in the first round, most notably when he traded up 20 spots to take Jameson Williams 12th overall in 2022. Could the Lions be plotting a similar move next Thursday night?
It depends how their board shakes out, but the right edge rusher -- a clear position of need for Detroit -- could compel the Lions to jump, says NFL Draft insider Daniel Jeremiah.
"It’s just, they would have to be in love with one of these edge rushers to do that. To me, with the sheer number of them in this draft, I think you would maybe be a little bit more patient. But hey, I’ll give you the dream scenario," Jeremiah said Friday on a conference call. "Jalon Walker, everybody freaks out because he’s kind of a tweener and he starts to drop a little bit and he gets outside the top 10. Man, if I’m the Lions at that point in time, I might be willing to be ultra, ultra aggressive and throw him into our defensive mix."
A Georgia product who won the Butkus Award last year as the top linebacker in the nation -- the same award Jack Campbell won in 2022 -- Walker can also play on the ball and wreak havoc off the edge. He's a hybrid, or a "tweener," depending how you choose to look at it. Teams that value versatility like the Lions likely see it as a plus. Others might see Walker as lacking a clear role.
Walker is projected to go well before the Lions are on the clock, so this is, indeed, a dream scenario. But he could slide if enough teams aren't sold on where he fits in an NFL defense, not quite big enough to thrive as a defensive end, not quite fluid enough as an off-ball linebacker. If he slips into the teens, the Lions might not be able to resist the idea of adding him to their defense as a weapon across from Aidan Hutchinson.
"That would be the one scenario I could see (where) if you saw a star that started to drop, they would be inclined to be ultra aggressive and go get him," said Jeremiah.
Another smaller Georgia edge defender Nolan Smith slid to the Eagles at 30th overall in 2023 amid questions about his size and just had a breakout season with 10.5 total sacks, including four in the playoffs, to help Philly win the Super Bowl. Walker has already drawn comparisons to Smith in the lead-up to the draft.
The Lions don't have an obvious need at linebacker, with Campbell and Alex Anzalone entrenched in the middle of their defense. And Walker feels a bit redundant to Derrick Barnes, who just signed a three-year extension. At 6'1, 243 lbs, Walker isn't built to play exclusively on the defensive line, "but his athletic talent and suddenness to attack both edges makes him a menace for tackles," says NFL.com's Lance Zierlein.
Zierlein projects Walker as an "early down linebacker who can rush off the edge or match up across the line as a blitzer on passing downs." In other words, a problem for offenses and a potentially highly-useful piece for new Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard.
A lot would have to happen for Walker to slide into Detroit's territory at No. 28, and they'd likely have competition to go get him -- if they were so inclined. All to say, unlikely. But a scenario worth monitoring next Thursday night.