Packerdeeznuts'S MOCK DRAFT
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Packerdeeznuts'S MOCK DRAFT
RUN ON MAR 2, 2026

Lions roar

  • Packerdeeznuts DRAFTING FOR THE
    Lions
Draft Selections
Jadarian Price Head Shot
PICK: 17 RND: 1 (DET)
Jadarian Price
RB Notre Dame
Anthony Hill Jr. Head Shot
PICK: 50 RND: 2 (DET)
Anthony Hill Jr.
LB Texas
Malachi Lawrence Head Shot
PICK: 118 RND: 4 (DET)
Malachi Lawrence
DE-EDGE UCF
Zane Durant Head Shot
PICK: 155 RND: 5 (DET)
Zane Durant
DT Penn State
David Gusta Head Shot
PICK: 186 RND: 6 (DET)
David Gusta
DT Kentucky
VJ Payne Head Shot
PICK: 203 RND: 6 (DET)
VJ Payne
S Kansas State
Thaddeus Dixon Head Shot
PICK: 212 RND: 6 (DET)
Thaddeus Dixon
CB North Carolina
John Michael Gyllenborg Head Shot
PICK: 222 RND: 7 (DET)
John Michael Gyllenborg
TE Wyoming
Draft Grade — Lions
Overall C+
ValueC- NeedB TradesB- FutureB-
The Lions did enough to get by: C+.

The Lions went off the board in a big way for Jadarian Price, 35 picks early. Conviction is one thing; this is another. Some smart calls, some head-scratchers, and a C+ in the wash.

A whole weekend of picks and offensive lineman is somehow still a want. On value alone, Hill Jr. makes the weekend a net positive.

Job largely done: cornerback settled and 6 of 9 of the wish list covered.

A perfectly average weekend, for better and for worse.

Pick Analysis
Pick17 Rnd1 Jadarian Price
In slot 17 they get a workhorse for the backfield, though the board says they badly overpaid. A clean fit for the roster.
Pick50 Rnd2 Anthony Hill Jr.
Anthony Hill Jr. slipping to the 50th overall pick is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Pick118 Rnd4 Malachi Lawrence
Malachi Lawrence in Round 4, Pick 18 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Pick155 Rnd5 Zane Durant
A real head-scratcher, Zane Durant in the Round 5 slot is miles ahead of his ranking. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
Pick186 Rnd6 David Gusta
They paid up for David Gusta at No. 186 when waiting would have done the job. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
Pick203 Rnd6 VJ Payne
Good price on VJ Payne in the 203rd pick, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Pick212 Rnd6 Thaddeus Dixon
They took Thaddeus Dixon at par in No. 212, which is nothing to complain about. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Pick222 Rnd7 John Michael Gyllenborg
This one needs a full-page explanation: John Michael Gyllenborg in Round 7, Pick 6, miles early. The roster fit checks out.