Mock Draft Mania: Using different simulators to generate 7 three-round projections for the Detroit Lions
Allen Park — As a young writer, doing a first-round mock draft was a thrill. As my career matured, they became a chore.
Some of the burden was my obsessive approach. I'd pore through local reporting for each team, learning about roster needs and drafting trends, attempting to slot the most logical prospect at each slot. From start to finish, producing a mock would take 8-12 hours. Of course, much of the audience I was writing for was skimming to get to the Detroit Lions' projection, reading those few paragraphs and moving on with their day.
Still, readership metrics on mock drafts were undeniable. My bosses would've happily taken a fresh projection every few weeks. We settled on three: One following the combine, another after free agency, with a final stab on the eve of the draft.
This year, I haven't done one. It's been refreshing, plus there are plenty of others who can fill that speculative void. I opted to invest my draft prep into different avenues, with a heavy emphasis on film. It wasn't necessarily better because it was still a massive amount of work put into a bunch of players who will never wear a Lions uniform, but ignoring the draft in the months leading up to the event was never an option.
And one thing about mock drafts, particularly those written early in the offseason, is they are a tool to familiarize yourself with the prospects, especially the top-tier talent likely to be selected in the first 50 or so picks. Not every NFL fan is a college football fan, so there's value to this introduction.
However, with the draft later this week, I was feeling a tinge of regret for not participating in the mock game. So here I am, with the finish line in sight, joining the race.
However, I'm doing things differently than I have in the past. No more reading up on the Colts, Commanders and Chargers. Instead, I'm keeping my focus firmly on the team I cover.
There are several mock draft simulators out there that allow me to do that. I've rounded up seven of them and took the following approach.
- One run-through each with no re-dos
- No trades
- First three rounds only (I'm not crazy)
So, instead of one mock draft, here are seven. Included are the picks for Detroit at 28, 60 and 102, the other prospects I considered at each spot, and some thoughts on how things went for each. Enjoy.
Pro Football Focus
The picks: DT Derrick Harmon, Edge Oluwafemi Oladejo, Edge Ashton Gillotte
Other considerations at No. 28: OT Josh Simmons, Edge Nic Scourton, Edge James Pearce Jr, OG Donovan Jackson
Other considerations at No. 60: S Kevin Winston Jr., OT Aireontae Ersery, guard Tate Ratledge, OL Jonah Savaiinaea
Other considerations at No. 102: Safety Jonah Sanker, CB Nohl Williams, LB Danny Stutsman
Thoughts: Things got a little weird out of the gate with this exercise, although I'm sure plenty of fans wouldn't be upset if Detroit's draft went this way.
Being able to stand pat and land Harmon would be an excellent start to the draft for the Lions. He's got size, length, versatility, and the ability to disrupt in the backfield.
Simmons was the option that gave me the most pause. Before tearing his ACL, the athletic offensive tackle was tracking toward top-10 consideration. A high school guard, he could play inside to start his career and eventually replace Taylor Decker.
In hindsight, I might have let the team's long-term need for an edge pressure me into selecting Oladejo when I had Savaiinaea and Ersery
slightly higher on this week's Lions-centric Big Board. Yep, I'm guilty of chasing a need, reinforcing why I'm not qualified to be a general manager.
Then, to have Gillotte there in the third round really hammered the point home. Regardless, I don't view taking edge defenders with back-to-back picks as a negative, and we know general manager Brad Holmes won't hesitate to double-dip. Justifying it further, I see Oladejo and Gillotte as having different strengths and styles that complement each other, reducing concerns of redundancy.
Still, I would have felt better about the balance at the top of this class if I had addressed a different area of the roster with one of the three selections.
ESPN
The picks: Edge Shemar Stewart, WR Jack Bech, S Jonas Sanker
Other considerations at No. 28: Edge Donovan Ezeiruaku, DT Walter Nolen, DT Kenneth Grant, WR Emeka Egbuka
Other considerations at No. 60: CB Benjamin Morrison, DT Omarr Norman-Lott, Edge Nic Scourton, Edge Landon Jackson, Guard Tate Ratledge
Other considerations at No. 102: Edge Ashton Gillotte, LB Demetrius Knight Jr., IOL Dylan Fairchild
Thoughts: Like Harmon, Stewart falling into the Lions’ lap would be a coup. He offers a rare combination of size and elite athleticism on the edge, making him a natural long-term replacement for Marcus Davenport opposite Aidan Hutchinson.
There’s an obvious level of projection with Stewart, given he mustered just 4.5 sacks during his three-year college career. Still, you can comfortably bank on defensive line coach Kacy Rodgers squeezing production out of the prospect’s potential.
In the second round, the best value would have been taking a second edge rusher in Scourton or Jackson. However, unlike the Oladejo/Giolotte selections in the previous simulation, I see more overlap between the available pair and what Stewart offers.
That left me with a coin flip between Ratledge and Bech, who I had back-to-back on the Big Board. I went with the receiver because the position would be more difficult to fill later in the draft, based on the way the board was falling. Bech’s ultra-competitive playing style would mesh well in Detroit, giving the team a sure-handed pass catcher comfortable operating across the middle, as well as an eager perimeter blocker.
As for the third round, Sanker is a prospect who would be a great fit at that spot, providing a much-needed third safety on the depth chart with high-ceiling potential as a special teams contributor.
Pro Football Network
The picks: DT Kenneth Grant, WR Jayden Higgins, LB Demetrius Knight Jr.
Other considerations at No. 28: DT Walter Nolen, IOL Grey Zabel, WR Emeka Egbuka
Other considerations at No. 60: Edge Oluwafemi Oladejo, Guard Tate Ratledge
Other considerations at No. 102: OL Emery Jones, IOL Miles Frazier, WR Tory Holton, LB Smael Mondon Jr.
Thoughts: Although I wasn’t able to address any immediate needs, I leaned into selecting the best players on the board. In this scenario, the Lions would reap the rewards in 2026 and beyond, if not sooner, due to an unforeseen injury.
Grant, the athletic Michigan nose tackle, checked in at 13 on our Big Board. There’s quite a bit of redundancy with DJ Reader and free-agent addition Roy Lopez as an early-down, space-eating nose tackle. However, both veterans will be playing on contracts that expire at the end of the year. Grant has a ceiling reminiscent of Reader in his prime, with a little more pass-rush production.
Moving to the second round, I was thrilled to see Higgins still on the board after he checked in at No. 29 on our pre-draft rankings. Yes, I could have reached for Oladejo’s upside at a spot where many see the bigger roster need, but the Iowa State receiver is a perfect fit as a long-term X receiver to replace Tim Patrick, who turns 32 later this year.
With the way the board developed as the third round progressed, trying to trade up to secure an edge like Oladejo or a guard like Ratledge would have made sense. But that wasn’t an option in this exercise. By the time I was back on the clock, those positions were picked over.
Instead, I selected another potential 2026 replacement with Knight, a converted quarterback who has developed into a well-rounded off-ball linebacker. He could eventually step in for Anzalone if the two sides don’t come together on an extension.
