7 round Detroit Lions mock draft with four trades and pre-draft meeting inspiration

Right off the bat I decided to trade down. I stayed in the first round though. Here's what I did:

Lions get: 32nd and 95th picks
Chiefs get: 29th and 205th pick

I really wanted to close that large gap between the 73rd pick and the 164th pick. We did that by picking up a second third rounder here. 

A potential future lockdown cornerback. Teams were scared to throw the ball McKinstry's way in 2023. He was targeted just 39 times and only allowed 19 catches for 205 yards and one touchdown. 

The Lions have shown a lot of interest in him. They had a formal meeting at the combine, Brad Holmes went to his pro day and they had a top-30 visit with him. That's some very strong interest. Kool-Aid watch is on for the Lions.

I wanted to move back up in the second round so I called up our friends in Arizona and made a deal with them for the second year in a row. Here's what we drew up:

Lions get: 35th and 162nd picks
Cardinals get: 61st, 73rd and 164th picks

Not only did I move up in the second, I also moved up in the fifth. It did cost though. But we're not done here with the trades. 

Legette is a bit of a monster. He has all the muscle and height to go out there and bully cornerbacks, but he also has the speed and agility to run past them too. I love Legette's contested catch ability as well. There's just a lot to like here. 

The Lions have already had a formal meeting with him at the combine too. We'll see if they meet again at a top 30 visit. 

I like where I was sitting at 95, but I thought we had an opportunity to move down a bit and get some extra picks out of it. So I called up our friend Lance Newmark over at the Commanders and worked out this deal:

Lions get: 100th and 139th picks
Commanders get: 95th and 249th picks

We move down to the bottom of the third round and then get a pick in the fourth as well. Just balances things out nicely. 

This kid will grow on you super fast. He has ability in all three phases. For starters, he's a solid safety that can immediately give production in the Lions rotation. Then on offense he had 520 total yards and five touchdowns for Utah last year. In special teams he can be a return man. The versatility is crazy here. 

The Lions have been all over him since January. They talked to him at the Senior Bowl, had a formal meeting with him at the combine, went to his pro day and then had a top 30 visit with him. Vaki watch is on in Detroit. 

I know Lions fans were probably hoping for a pass rusher earlier in the draft, but I just never really had a shot to take a guy that I liked until this point. Kamara is one of my top five edge rushers for the Lions and getting him here is a bit of a steal. 

Kamara was a baller at Colorado State last year. He had 14 sacks in 12 games last year and coupled that with 64 pressures. That 14 sacks was fourth in the country and those 64 pressures was third. Kamara can play.  

The Lions scored big with DJ Reader in the middle and they have Alim McNeill as well. Still, I just didn't feel like they had enough depth. That's why I'm going with Boyd here to be a part of that rotation.

Boyd is an interesting one. He plays for a small school, but teams have been interested in him. Including the Lions. They've already had him in for a top-30 visit. Boyd can be more than just a run stopper in the middle. He's shown that he has some good pass rushing ability as well. 

I wanted more picks at the end of the draft so I called up the Buffalo Bills and made a deal:

Lions get: 204th and 248th picks
Bills get: 201st pick

I think I've drafted him in every mock draft or close to it. It's the same reason as before. The versatility and the athleticism is too much for me to pass on. He started at every position on the interior of the line. For a team that could lose one of those pieces to retirement sooner or later and a team that deals with the bulk of their injuries there, it would be nice to have a guy like McMahon.

It's time for a Karty party. That's the thing we'll say every time Karty comes out to kick for the Lions. Karty has a strong leg that's capable of hitting kicks in the 50's and 60's. Plus the Lions attended his pro day when he was the only player participating at the Stanford pro day. That has to say something right?