The Detroit Lions just had a phenomenal 2024 NFL Draft. They went and got their guys again for the fourth year in row and you have to be impressed with their dedication to their draft philosophy. While there were some shocking moments along the way, if you were paying attention to the Lions draft process, you kind of always knew who their guys were.
That's because we learned last year that the Lions really do rely on their pre-draft meetings. The Lions drafted four players that they had meetings with in 2023 and signed another four as undrafted free agents. This year they did it again. Four of their six draft picks had pre-draft meetings with the Lions. That's where some spoilers could be learned.
The first one was Terrion Arnold. If you look at the list of top-30 visits that the Lions had, every player on that list was slated to go at the bottom of the first-round or lower except one guy and that was Terrion Arnold. He was the only guy the Lions had in to Detroit that was slated to be a top 15 draft pick.
That right there told you that Arnold was the top guy on their board and if they were going to move up for anyone in the first round, it was going to be him. That and the fact that Brad Holmes attended the Alabama pro day. and has drafted multiple Alabama players.
The next big tell was with fourth-round pick Sione Vaki. The Lions had their most pre-draft meetings with him. They talked to him at the Senior Bowl, had a formal meeting at the combine, a pro day meeting and a top-30 visit. Even before we were told by a source that the Lions really wanted him, it was already pretty clear that they really wanted him.
The Lions also had top-30 visits with Giovanni Manu and Ennis Rakestraw. The Manu visit came in a week where basically everyone tried to meet with him. Lions' GM Brad Holmes said Manu's dance card was so full that the Lions had to do his meeting on a Sunday.
Rakestraw came in for his on the same day that Terrion Arnold came in. They did their visit together. It's kismet that the Lions wound up with both of them and they seemed to have formed a bit of a bond since then.
Not everyone appeared to have had a meeting. The Lions didn't meet with Mehki Wingo or Christian Mahogany pre-draft as far as what's been reported. Maybe that will change as time goes on. The Lions drafted players last year that they didn't have reported meetings with too.
The Lions will be back on the draft grind next year. Be sure to pay close attention to who they're talking to and how much they're talking to them. You might notice that they're talking to their future.
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