B
Detroit Lions
McCoy should have been long gone. The Lions pounced, and earned a B.
by SunDGod ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 9 steals
· 0 reaches
The best pick of the weekend was also the simplest. The Lions watched Jermod McCoy slide 195 picks past his grade and did not hesitate.
They punted on linebacker, and it is the miss that keeps the grade honest. The roster is better shaped than it was, with cornerback chief among the fixes.
Building through the lines is a philosophy, and they stuck to it.
Solid rather than spectacular, and there is nothing wrong with that.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 17 they get juice off the edge, outstanding value to boot. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
They robbed the room for Spencer Fano here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Circle this one: Mansoor Delane at pick No. 118 is a fall that decides a draft. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
The board fumbled Jordyn Tyson all the way to the 128th pick, and they scooped it up. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
A tight end of that caliber at pick 157 is the definition of value, full stop. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
You do not let an interior defensive lineman like Kayden McDonald reach slot 181 and blink. They did not. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Somehow Akheem Mesidor was still sitting there in the 205th overall pick, and they pounced on premier edge rusher value. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Jermod McCoy in the Round 6 slot is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Michael Taaffe at slot 222 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.