2020 Lions Draft Recap: A Tale of Two Targeted Areas

The Lions entered the 2020 NFL Draft with nine draft picks and, whether by accident or on purpose, the team ended up focusing most of those picks on shoring up two areas of the team that have been troublesome for a while. When the dust settled after a few trades and Lions still using nine picks, the picks went towards either improving the Pass Rush or upgrading the Offensive Rushing game. Only two picks, big run-stuffing DT John Penisini (Rd 6) and WR Quintez Cephus (5a), bucked the trend, while the other seven all will ideally impact the performance for the better.

Let’s start with the back history and why draft picks were utilized to bolster the Offensive Rushing Game. Since Barry Sanders retired after the 1998 season, the lions have had exactly four 1,000-yard rushers in the last 21 years, and none since Reggie Bush last did it in 2013. Throw in the streak of 70 straight games without a 100-yard rusher that Kerryon Johnson finally broke in 2018 as a rookie, and you kind of get how bleak the situation has been. There were a variety of excuses/reasons such as RBs not talented enough, RB injuries, bad OL play, injuries to OL, scheme issues, OL coaches, RB coaches, etc. But the bottom line is that the Run game has sucked for a while, and Darrel Bevel wants a balanced offense that is equally good at passing as it is at rushing.

Running Game Impactful Draft Picks

Swift (2), Jackson (3b), Stenberg (4), Huntley (5b)

Bevell will have a literal buffet of backs to choose form when he runs plays next season, with guys that can hammer the ball, outrun the Defense to the corner and catch the ball with WR-like skills. Throw in complete backs in Kerryon Johnson and D’Andre Swift, and it is easy to see why the RB component of the rushing game has the most promise it has seen in years.

As days pass since the draft, it sounds like Swift was likely the consensus best back in the Draft and the Lions were taking him or JK Dobbins either way to bolster the rush game. He is a three-down back, so will work well with the other back situationally, but I expect him to ultimately become the de-facto “feature back” for the Lions assuming he can avoid the injuries that have plagued Scarborough and Johnson in their young careers. Huntley will add that elusiveness and pass catching ability out of the backfield that was lacking last year and should be a nice option for Bevell to scheme against defenses on third downs.

As for the blocking component, Quinn brought on two OG prospects that should ultimately anchor the line with Frank Ragnow for the next several years. Jackson and Stenberg were considered two of the top 10 interior OL in the draft, so this was a bit of a coup grabbing both. Jackson is likely ahead of Stenberg in pass blocking and overall polish, being a starter for multiple years at Rutgers and Ohio State, while Stenberg has a nasty streak and run blocking acumen that should be used immediately in Three TE situations where the Lions need additional beef. My expectations are that Jackson grabs one OG starters slot, and that by year end Stenberg is pushing for playing time in a rotation at the other.

Now the Pass Rush situation hasn’t been quite as dire as the rushing game, but it has been maddeningly inconsistent the last five years, with sack totals of 43, 26, 35, 43 and 28 from 2015-2019, and only Ansah reaching double digits with 14 and 12.5 in ‘15 and ’17. To help smooth those ups and downs, the draft added some pieces that should allow the rush to get home a bit more often going forward.

Passing Rush Draft Picks

Okudah (1), Okwara (3), Cornell (7)

Okudah is a CB, how does he help the pass rush? The simple answer is the longer a WR is covered, the more time the pass rush has to get to the QB. While it might be premature to state that Okudah is a better CB right now than Darius Slay was last season, I don’t think it would be that far off base. Okudah is bigger, a better tactician and willing tackler and to be honest, Slay’s play had dipped the last year or so, but IMO was getting Pro Bowl nods on reputation alone.

Of all the picks, Okwara is the one that is a direct impact on the pass rush. He is an ideal specimen for the Lions scheme, with a long frame and arms, athletic build and ability to bend off the edge while still agile enough to play the run. Before he broke his leg at Notre Dame, he

While Cornell is a bit of a tweener for a DT or traditional DE, at 6’3” 285 he brings a lot to the table to assist the pass rush. He can step out on the DE during rushing downs with his frame, but ideally generate inside pressure and clean up the QBs when Flowers and Okwara brothers are forcing them to step up.

Only time and coaching will tell if these picks will impact those two units as expected, but the first step was identifying the deficiencies and with the next step taken on draft day to add guys that can hopefully be an upgrade.