Brad Holmes has been preaching the same gospel since he walked through the doors in Allen Park: best player available, period. No positional rankings, no reaching for need, just pure talent evaluation. And with 93% of mock drafts slotting an offensive tackle to the Lions at pick 17, we’re about to find out if he really means it.
Holmes laid out his philosophy again this week, and it sounds exactly like what you’d expect from a GM who watched the Matt Millen era draft for need and light the franchise on fire for eight years.
“I’ve always said the reason why we always go for the best player available approach is because there is only one draft, and the roster’s going to change every single year,” Holmes explained. “Every single year it’s going to be new needs, contracts are going to expire, things are going to happen.”
The Case for Best Player Available
Look, after decades of watching this franchise reach for positions and whiff spectacularly, there’s something refreshing about a GM who just wants the best football player. The logic is sound enough: rosters change, injuries happen, and what looks like a luxury today might be a necessity tomorrow.
Holmes isn’t wrong about how quickly needs can shift. The Lions’ safety room is exhibit A. Last year after Kerby Joseph signed his extension, it looked like the Lions were headed for a decade of top-tier safety play with Joseph and Brian Branch holding down the fort. Then Joseph missed most of the season with a concerning knee issue and Branch suffered a torn Achilles that will likely impact his availability.
That’s the NFL. That’s why you stockpile talent wherever you can find it.
When Talent Meets Reality
But here’s where it gets complicated for a team that’s actually good. The Lions aren’t the 2008 squad hoping to stumble into competence. This is a championship-caliber roster with specific holes that could derail another playoff run.
Right tackle is a glaring need. Dan Skipper gave everything he had, but asking him to protect Jared Goff’s blind side against elite pass rushers in January is asking for trouble. Everyone knows it, which is why 67 of 72 mock drafts have Detroit taking a tackle.
The question becomes: what if the best tackle available at 17 is significantly worse than the best player overall? Do you take a B-plus tackle over an A-minus edge rusher or receiver?
The Millen Shadow Still Looms
Part of me loves Holmes’ approach because it’s the exact opposite of what we lived through for eight miserable years. Millen drafted for need constantly and gave us Roy Williams the safety when we needed a quarterback, Mike Williams the receiver when we needed everything else, and Ernie Sims when we needed competent football players.
Best player available feels like an insurance policy against that kind of systematic failure. Good players find ways to contribute, even if it’s not immediately obvious where they fit.
But there’s a difference between the disaster years and now. The Lions have actual talent, actual coaching, and actual playoff aspirations. Sometimes the best move for a championship contender isn’t the same as the best move for a rebuilding team.
The Championship Window Reality Check
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: championship windows aren’t infinite, even when everything looks perfect. Jared Goff is 29. Amon-Ra St. Brown will need a new contract soon. The salary cap is real, and this core won’t be together forever.
That doesn’t mean panic-reaching for positions, but it might mean weighing immediate impact differently than you would for a team still building toward relevance. Sometimes the best player available is the guy who can help you win a Super Bowl this year, even if he’s not the most talented player on the board.
Of course, Holmes would probably argue that approach is exactly how teams talk themselves into reaches and mistakes. And yes, I know what you’re thinking: this is probably just me overthinking because I’ve been hurt too many times by this franchise to trust that good things can continue happening.
Trust the Process, But Watch the Clock
The honest answer is that Holmes has earned the benefit of the doubt. His first three drafts have been mostly excellent, even when the picks seemed questionable at the time. Remember the hand-wringing about Jameson Williams coming off an ACL tear? That worked out fine.
But championship teams sometimes have to make championship decisions, which means balancing pure talent evaluation with situational reality. If there’s a tackle available at 17 who can start immediately and protect this franchise quarterback, maybe that’s worth more than the slightly more talented player at a position of strength.
Then again, maybe Holmes sees it differently. Maybe he looks at this roster and thinks adding another weapon for Ben Johnson’s offense or another pass rusher for Aaron Glenn’s defense creates more value than plugging the tackle hole with an adequate player.
The beauty of best player available is that it usually works out, especially when you have good coaches who can figure out how to use the talent. The risk is that sometimes the best player available doesn’t help you win the games that matter most.
Sunday will tell us whether Holmes sticks to his philosophy or whether the pressure of a championship window changes the equation. Either way, it beats the hell out of reaching for a kicker in the second round because you’re scared of special teams.
Are you buying Holmes’ best player available strategy, or should the Lions prioritize filling the tackle hole even if it means passing on better talent? Let me know if you think this front office has earned enough trust to draft however they want.
