Notes: Mock draft roundup

One last mock draft roundup before the 2024 NFL Draft begins later today. We made it.

Well, we made it everyone: the 2024 NFL Draft in Detroit is finally here!

As it pertains to the Detroit Lions and their fans, many are in unfamiliar territory for the first time in a quite some time. This has led to one of the more interesting periods leading up to the draft, and created a lot of discourse around what the Lions might do when they are on the clock for the first time at 29th overall.

Many of you have been firing up the ol’ mock draft machines since the beginning of February, and for that, I salute you.

For your convenience, we consolidated some last-minute mock drafts from around the internet, and as usual—there are several differing opinions depending on who’s mock you are reading.

Peter Schrager of the NFL Network has a particularly interesting mock draft where the Lions trade up to 21 overall with the Miami Dolphins to select Florida State University edge rusher Jared Verse. At first glance, I am not a huge fan of moving up eight spots in the first round. The price to move up usually doesn’t come cheap, but the idea of having Verse opposite of Lions’ star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson is pretty enticing.

Additionally, ESPN’s Matt Miller and Field Yates each dropped one final mock draft prior to draft weekend kicking off. You can read Miller’s here, and Yates’ here ($). Miller has them staying put, while Yates has them trading down.

Lastly, Trevor Sikkema over at PFF.com took one last stab at trying to predict the first 32 picks on Thursday night, including an interesting pick at 29 for the Lions.

In previous years, we’ve seen mock drafts consolidate around a handful of options for Detroit. But this year, projections are all over the place.

And now, onto the rest of today’s notes:

• Our friends over on the Roar of the Lions Podcast UK were on CBS Detroit the other night discussing their Lions’ fandom and how they are enjoying their first time in the city. Special shoutout to Ash for not being offended when I cleaned his plate at Sweetwater Tavern once he was finished.

• Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports wrote a nice article where he cited Detroit’s growth over the years, and how the draft is a chance for the city to show people how things have changed.

• Even if you aren’t in the city or even the state of Michigan, it is Honolulu Blue day for you, too. Make sure you wear your Lions’ best and let people know.

• Kyle Brandt is rocking a really nice Detroit Tigers jacket on Good Morning Football. Still crazy to think that it is being recorded in Campus Martius today.

• Lastly, if you are going downtown, make sure you download the NFL OnePass app onto your phone.