The Detroit Lions apparently didn’t like any of their options at No. 6 overall, which was the pick they acquired in a 2021 trade with the Los Angeles Rams that involved Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff. Rather than picking sixth, they traded the selection back to the NFC West.
Detroit sent the pick to the Arizona Cardinals, who then took Ohio State offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr. Arizona had previously traded back from No. 3 in a deal with the Texans, but they moved back up from No. 12 to 6 to take the first tackle in the class.
With this deal, the Lions will now pick two spots before the Rams in Round 2, an interesting development for former Rams executive and current Lions GM Brad Holmes.
The updated trade:
The Lions trade: Pick 6, pick 81.
The Cardinals trade: Pick 12, 34, 168.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) April 28, 2023
It’s fun to think about who the Rams could’ve taken with the sixth overall pick had they not made the deal with the Lions, but of course it’s impossible to know if they would’ve been picking there without that trade anyway.
Tyree Wilson was on the board at No. 6 and would’ve helped the Rams’ pass rush, and Jalen Carter would’ve been an excellent pairing with Aaron Donald up front.
Christian Gonzalez, the stud cornerback from Oregon, would’ve helped the secondary a lot, too.
