Why This Draft Class Has Us Feeling Different About Holmes
The Lions wrapped up their 2026 draft weekend and the immediate reaction was… fine. Not bad, not great, just fine. Address some needs, pick some solid players, move on to summer. After years of watching Brad Holmes make big swings that either paid off huge or left us scratching our heads, this felt almost mundane.
But hold up. Not everyone is shrugging their shoulders at this class.
Brett Whitefield from Fantasy Points called it his favorite Brad Holmes draft ever, and that take deserves some attention. His reasoning? This was Holmes getting back to basics in the best possible way.
Back to Business, Back to Dawgs
According to Whitefield, this draft was about one thing: toughness. Every single pick was a physical player who brings that edge the Lions had maybe drifted away from. No cute moves, no overthinking, just straight up dawgs.
Blake Miller at tackle fits that mold perfectly. The Lions needed to reset their offensive line identity, and Miller brings the kind of nastiness that made this franchise different under Campbell. Sometimes the best move is the obvious move.
Then there’s Derrick Moore in the second round, who Whitefield had as the fourth best pure pass rusher in the entire class. Getting that kind of value in round two? That’s classic Holmes when he’s operating at his best.
The Trenches Tell the Story
What stands out most is how heavily the Lions reinvested in the lines of scrimmage. This is a franchise that built its recent success on controlling the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, and this draft doubled down on that philosophy.
Even the later picks like Jimmy Rolder carry that same DNA. Physical players who can impose their will. It’s not flashy, but it’s exactly what made this team dangerous in the first place.
Maybe boring was exactly what the Lions needed. Sometimes the best draft is the one that remembers who you are and goes all in on that identity. Holmes has made plenty of splashy moves over the years, but this class feels like him trusting the process that got them here.
Is this the draft that finally gets us over the hump, or are we just convincing ourselves that boring equals better? Let me know what you think below.
