The NFL Combine is ongoing and some of things that are happening here in Indianapolis are telling. Nearly every position group has spoken to the media this week and one of the positions that Lions media has been hovering around the most is receiver.
Part of that is because Brad Holmes has shown to be unpredictable in the draft and he's also shown that he loves offensive weapons. The other part is that this is a pretty good receiver class.
The Lions offense might seem like a finished product due to it being so good last year, but this team does lack a definitive number two receiver. They just don't have that big bodied X receiver who can do some damage on the outside or make contested catches in the red zone.
While there's reports out of Indianapolis that Jameson Williams is about to take a big step next year, the Lions still need help.
They're looking for that help this week. We talked with multiple receivers at the NFL Combine and three of the biggest receivers in the building said they had formal meetings with the Lions during the combine. LSU's Brian Thomas, South Carolina's Xavier Leggette and North Carolina's Tez Walker were those three.
The one thing those guys have in common is their size. They're all on the bigger side. Thomas is 6-foot-4-inches, Leggette is 6-foot-3-inches and Walker is 6-foot-2 inches. The Lions also had an informal meeting with 6-foot-1 Washington receiver Jalen McMillan.
These receivers are all expected to go early in the 2024 NFL Draft. Thomas is slated to go in the first round while Leggette and Walker are second round projections. So based off what we're seeing this week, the Lions could look to fill that role early.
It fits the idea of what this team is about. While they have needs, they don't look at the draft like you might expect them to look at the draft. The draft is all about finding talent that they feel they can build around and then re-signing down the road over strictly looking at things in a needs based way. They want ballers and it doesn't matter what position those ballers play or when experts think those ballers should be drafted.
So don't be surprised if the Lions go into this draft and take a receiver with their first pick or one of their earlier ones. They are all about building up and this would be a part of that.
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