Detroit Lions connections to two teams could help facilitate draft day trade

With the 2024 NFL Draft just days away, one of the hot-button topics surrounding the Detroit Lions is whether they will stay put and pick at No. 29 or make a trade. Lions general manager Brad Holmes is aggressive in acquiring players, and he has used his available trade capital to make several draft day moves in each of his three previous drafts.

In 2021, Holmes made one draft day trade with the Cleveland Browns to move up and acquire Derrick Barnes in the fourth round. In 2022, Holmes moved up again, trading with the Minnesota Vikings to grab Jameson Williams in the first round, then traded with the Philadelphia Eagles in the fifth round, using the acquired pick to add Malcolm Rodriguez.

In 2023, Holmes made six trades in total, with five of them coming in the first three rounds. The Lions traded with the Arizona Cardinals to move back in the first round and acquire Jahmyr Gibbs. Then traded with the Green Bay Packers in Round 2 in order to move up and draft Brian Branch. Next, Holmes traded back with the Kansas City Chiefs and then struck a deal with the Denver Broncos to trade back again before acquiring Hendon Hooker. His fifth trade was a move up into the third round to grab Brodric Martin, and Holmes once again made the deal with the Cardinals. The final trade sent D’Andre Swift to Philadelphia, where Holmes got a future fourth-round pick (in the 2024 draft) and the pick he used to acquire Antoine Green.

After Holmes’ wheeling and dealings last year, there’s been a ton of speculation on whether he will continue to be aggressive and make trades in this draft. When asked about the possibility of trading out of the first round, even though the draft is being held in Detroit, Holmes insists that he’ll do what’s best for the team and is not scared to make a trade.

“We have to do the right thing for the organization, and if it makes sense and it lines up and it’s the right thing to do, we have to do the right thing,” Holmes said.

One of the reasons Holmes was able to make so many trades last offseason was due to an abundance of draft capital—third most in the 2023 draft, per PFF’s model. In 2024, the Lions rank near the bottom of the NFL (29th, per Sharp Football Analysis and Tankathon’s models), which could lead to Holmes looking to trade back and acquire more assets.

So, which teams have an abundance of draft capital in 2024 and could be looking to trade back into the first round?

According to the 2024 draft pick value models, the two teams with the most draft capital are the Arizona Cardinals and Washington Commanders. With this excessive amount of draft picks, NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zeirlein believes both teams could be in the market to use their assets to trade up into the latter part of Round 1.

Trading draft picks is an art form, and with the value boards varying for each team, general managers will often make deals with other general managers whom they have established relationships with.

There have been three teams Holmes has made multiple deals with during his tenure with the Lions:

• Los Angeles Rams — where Holmes previously worked directly before being hired by Detroit
• Philadelphia Eagles — where Lions senior personnel executive John Dorsey worked directly before being hired by Holmes
• Arizona Cardinals — whose assistant general manager is Dave Sears worked as the Lions' director of college scouting up until the 2023 offseason. Before 2023, Holmes hadn’t made a trade with Arizona, but after the Sears hire, Holmes traded with them twice.

With Holmes having an established connection with the Cardinals—and Arizona holding the most draft capital in this draft—they make a logical potential trade partner, if indeed the Cardinals are interested in jumping back into the first round.

Here’s a look at the Cardinals' current picks in 2024:

• Round 1: Nos. 4 and 27
• Round 2: No. 35
• Round 3: Nos. 66, 71, and 90
• Round 4: No. 104
• Round 5: Nos. 138 and 162
• Round 6: No. 186
• Round 7: No. 226

The Lions’ current regime has not previously made a trade with Washington in the past three drafts, but the Commanders did hire Lance Newmark—former Lions senior director of player personnel—to be their assistant general manager this offseason.

As is the case with Sears, the Newmark hire could further the relationships between these two front offices, and if Washington is indeed looking to move back into the first round, the opportunity to facilitate a deal should be easier.

Here’s a look at the Commanders’ current picks in 2024:

• Round 1: No. 2
• Round 2: Nos. 36 and 40
• Round 3: Nos. 67, 78, and 100
• Round 5: Nos. 139 and 152
• Round 7: No. 222

Rounding out the top 5 teams with the most draft capital are the Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Chargers, and New England Patriots. The Bears only hold this lofty spot because they have two picks in the top 10, but beyond that, they only have two more picks for the remainder of the draft, making them an unlikely trade partner. The Chargers and Patriots are working to mold their team in the images of their new head coaches, making them potential candidates, but the front office connections are not nearly as strong as with the Cardinals and Commanders.