During his famous season-ending press conference, Brad Holmes collected receipts from his first draft class as Detroit Lions general manager.
“When you look back at those picks, those picks were not welcomed by many in this room,” Holmes went on to say. “Dave (Birkett), you asked us to pick a quarterback. You did not want us to choose Penei Sewell. People did not want us to wait until the fourth round to select a wide receiver (Amon-Ra St. Brown). People did not want to wait for Derrick Barnes to mature.”
Amazing: #Lions GM Brad Holmes cashed some receipts today during his press conference:
“You wanted us to pick a quarterback, you didn’t want us to pick Penei Sewell.”
“I know you said that was a miss.”
“Everybody? Or are you included?
“I give credit to probably two people in this room…” pic.twitter.com/gS8LfMcF2
– Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) February 5, 2024.
That first draft class laid the groundwork for a reconstruction that resulted in a trip to the NFC Championship Game in year three. Penei Sewell and Amon-Ra St. Brown are the clear-cut construction blocks. Alim McNeill is a rising talent following a great third season. Ifeatu Melifonwu was finally healthy and became a force down the stretch of the recently concluded season. Derrick Barnes had a largely successful third season.
That represents five of the Lions’ seven picks in the 2021 NFL Draft, and all seven are now on the roster. Even though it is a recent development, it appears to be unusual in the league. These players are now eligible for contract extensions after three seasons in the league.
So, let’s take a look at those extension-eligible players, in the order they were picked in 2021 (with round and pick number), and what a new contract may look like for them.
