While the Lions eventually drafted an edge rusher in the sixth round, Brad Holmes tried to grab one sooner.
Holmes faced several questions about the position after Day 2 of the draft and said there's a difference between drafting an edge rusher for the sake of drafting an edge rusher and drafting one that aligns with your board.
"All I hear is, 'Edge rusher, draft an edge rusher.' Well, are you assuming that the guy is really good? That’s a whole different story. Can you get in position to get one of those? I don’t need to get into specifics, but there were times we made attempts to get one and they got picked before, you couldn’t get up. It takes two to trade. Or, we had another player higher. We did the same thing that we do every draft. We picked the highest-rated player regardless of position," said Holmes.
Four edge rushers were picked in the first round before the Lions were on the clock at No. 28, including Shemar Stewart at No. 17 by the Bengals and James Pearce Jr. at No. 26 by the Falcons, in a trade with the Rams. Ahead of Day 2, Holmes said "there's still some guys left up there" that the Lions liked and "I've already got some ideas brewing" about trading up.
It's likely in the second round where the Lions tried to make their move. Four more edge rushers went before the Lions' pick at 60: Donovan Ezeiruaku to the Cowboys at No. 44, JT Tuimoloau to the Colts at No. 45, Nic Scourton to the Panthers at No. 51 in a trade with the Broncos and Oluwafemi Oladejo to the Titans at No. 52 in a trade with the Steelers.
Scourton, in particular, seemed to fit what the Lions look for on the edge, a big, powerful pocket-crusher with the versatility to kick inside who also digs in against the run. The Lions ultimately trade up three spots for a building block on the other side of the line in Georgia guard Tate Ratledge.
Six more edge rushers went in the third round, but only one before the Lions traded up 32 spots to draft receiver Isaac TeSlaa No. 70: Ashton Gillotte, who went No. 66 to the Chiefs in a trade with the Titans.
Holmes and the Lions got their edge rusher in the sixth round in Ahmed Hassanein from Boise State, a raw but powerful player with an extremely high motor. Asked what it is the Lions look for at that position, Holmes said, "He's got to win rushes, he's got to set edges."
As for Hassanein specifically, who's only played football for a handful of years after moving back to the United States from Egypt, Holmes said that the Lions "acquired him because he plays with his hair on fire." Hassanein had 22 sacks and 33 tackles for loss over his final two seasons at Boise State, and ranked fourth in the country last year in quarterback pressures.
"As, let’s call it, developmental as he is, he just plays hard," said Holmes. "I said the other night, what do you have to do at that position? You have to set edges and win rushes, and when I say win rushes, it’s not just getting a sack. You can win rushes just by harassment and power and collapsing the pocket and just sheer effort. We just liked his upside, we like his football character, his work ethic, his passion.
"He was so fired up on the phone to get here. That’s the type of stuff you want to hear. But he’s a guy that just kept staying on the steady climb and ascension the more and more and more we watched of him."
Asked Saturday if he'll finally stop getting asked about acquiring an edge rusher, Holmes smirked and said, "I don’t know, I don’t know. You guys have been on my ass pretty hard on it. I was like, 'Sixth round, I don’t know if that suffices.'"
Holmes also left open the door to the Lions adding reinforcements at the position in the months ahead: "It’s an ongoing, nonstop, relentless climb for just building a roster in general. It’s not a position that’s off limits. We’re always looking to try to get better. Sometimes there’s just not better out there past maybe the current starters you have, or versus the current depth you have.
"But yeah, we’re always trying to look for better and I definitely would not be doing my job if I did not continually look at every single avenue."