Brad Holmes breaks down why the Lions didn’t want to trade back at No. 7 in the 2021 NFL draft
One of the more memorable moments of the first NFL draft for Lions GM Brad Holmes was a clip from the Detroit “war room” where Holmes politely but firmly rejected trade overtures from other teams when his Lions went on the clock at No. 7 overall. Many fans wondered why the Lions would so steadfastly refuse to consider trading back and acquiring more picks.
The Lions, of course, stayed true to their board and snagged Oregon OT Penei Sewell.
On a recent episode of The Athletic’s Football Show with host Robert Mays, Holmes broke down why the team didn’t move back.
“We always thought that we had to be in a position that, we need to add the best football players that we possibly can. We thought all the scenarios that we went through — yes, we did have dialogue with other clubs on our pick and throughout the other rounds — we did come to the conclusion that, look, if the right guy is there, we’re just staying and taking the best player.
“Now, we didn’t rule out moving back depending on who was or (was) not going to be there. And sometimes you’ve got to think about, depending on the strength of that specific draft—and that’s for every draft—depending on the strength of that draft, do you trade back? What do you acquire or what can you possibly acquire versus if you stayed put?
“So all of those things kind of play into the equation, but we just felt good about when Penei was available then that dialogue with those other teams were pretty quick.”
The excited reaction from Holmes, head coach Dan Campbell and the rest of the Lions braintrust made it very clear the team landed its most favored outcome by selecting Sewell.
Holmes also offered a tidbit there that might have been previously unnoticed. When he talked about the relative strength of the draft, he indicated the Lions didn’t see this particular draft class as having a lot of value for trading back. That’s an interesting admission when Holmes has also stated publicly that he tried to trade up for Levi Onwuzurike, who Detroit landed in the second round without having to move up.
