Day 2 Could Make or Break This Lions Draft Class
Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft is nearly here, and for us Lions fans, this might be where Brad Holmes either saves this draft class or watches it crumble. Right now Detroit sits with just one pick across Rounds 2 and 3 combined. One pick. In two entire rounds.
But here’s the thing about Holmes that we’ve learned over the years. The man loves to move around the board like he’s playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers. With seven Day 3 picks burning a hole in his pocket, don’t be shocked if he packages some of those late-rounders to climb back into Day 2 for a second or third selection.
Because let’s be honest, seven seventh-rounders isn’t exactly a recipe for roster transformation. We need actual contributors, not just camp bodies.
How to Watch Day 2 Without Losing Your Mind
Day 2 kicks off Friday, April 24 at 7 p.m. ET, broadcasting live from Pittsburgh. You’ve got your usual suspects covering it: NFL Network with Rich Eisen, Daniel Jeremiah, Charles Davis, Joel Klatt, and Ian Rapoport, ESPN with Mike Greenberg anchoring alongside Mel Kiper Jr., Booger McFarland, Louis Riddick, Laura Rutledge, and Adam Schefter, plus ABC rolling with Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Nick Saban, Molly McGrath, Field Yates, and Pete Thamel.
If you’re cutting the cord like half of Detroit, you can stream it on NFL Plus, the ESPN App, ABC, Hulu, or Disney+. Radio folks can catch it on Westwood One, Sirius XM, or ESPN Radio.
No Pride of Detroit live stream tonight, but honestly, sometimes you need to suffer through this draft process with just your own thoughts and whatever adult beverage helps you cope with Holmes’s inevitable wheeling and dealing.
Will Holmes pull another vintage Lions move and trade down when we desperately need talent, or is he finally going to be aggressive when it matters? Sound off in the comments below.
Holmes has shown he’s not afraid to make moves, so I’m actually feeling good about tonight. With seven Day 3 picks sitting there, he can definitely work some magic to get back into Day 2 and grab some real talent. This could be the turning point where we stop settling for scraps.
I want to believe in Holmes, I really do, but we’ve been down this road before where the front office gets cute with all the trading around instead of just taking the best players available. One pick in Rounds 2 and 3 is rough no matter how you spin it, and I’m not holding my breath that Day 3 magic is gonna fix that.
Back in my day we’d be thrilled to have seven picks on Day 3, period. Now you gotta juggle them around to get back into Day 2. The game’s changed so much, but one thing hasn’t – we always find a way to make it more complicated than it needs to be.
This is the moment right here. Either Holmes shows us he’s learned how to be aggressive when we need it or we’re gonna be looking back at this draft wondering why we didn’t go all in on Day 2. Seven seventh rounders is basically lottery tickets, we need real contributors now.