Detroit Lions three-round 2022 mock draft with number one pick

The Detroit Lions might just have the worst team in the NFL in 2021. Let’s take a look at a three-round 2022 mock draft scenario with the top pick in tow.

The Detroit Lions are in the early stages of a full-scale rebuild. The Lions hired a new general manager in the 2021 offseason, bringing in Brad Holmes from the Los Angeles Rams. They hired a new head coach in former player and top assistant coach Dan Campbell.

The Lions traded their former number one overall pick Matthew Stafford to Holmes’ former team in Los Angeles and, in addition to a load of picks from the Rams, they managed to also bring back the number one pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, Jared Goff.

In a separate move, the Lions acquired another former Los Angeles Rams first-round pick in Michael Brockers, and they’ve done quite a bit to re-shape the roster as quickly as possible.

With that being said, expectations from the outside are pretty low on the Lions this season. Detroit is obviously breaking in a new front office and coaching staff as well as hoping that Jared Goff will be the tide to raise all boats offensively. The defense has a lot of youth and, frankly, is seriously lacking off the edge in the pass rush department, at least on paper.

Along with major needs at wide receiver, QB of the future if Jared Goff doesn’t work out and off the edge, there is still plenty of work for Brad Holmes to do to get this Detroit Lions team in a place where they can compete.

How might the Lions approach the 2022 NFL Draft? Sure, it’s early, but it’s never too early to get a look at the next wave of NFL prospects.

Here is a three-round, way-too-early Detroit Lions mock draft for 2022, and one assuming the worst (or best) — the Lions earn the top pick in the draft.

Detroit Lions 2022 mock draft

1a. Sam Howell, QB, North Carolina

The Detroit Lions have completely reset at the quarterback position, moving on from 2009 top pick Matthew Stafford and bringing in a pretty high-profile replacement in Jared Goff.

Although Goff may be the scapegoat for the Los Angeles Rams’ lack of a Super Bowl win in recent years, he’s proven to be an effective game manager, and perhaps a fresh start elsewhere will help him tremendously.

Either that, or it will expose him in a big way.

If the Detroit Lions earn the number one overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, there is absolutely no question that Goff will have had something to do with that.

If the Lions get the number one pick next offseason, quarterback will probably be at the top of the priority list, and Sam Howell is certainly a player right now with a near-consensus QB1 ranking, though we’ve toyed with plenty of other scenarios.

In his first two seasons at North Carolina, Howell has thrown for 7,227 yards and 68 touchdowns compared to just 14 interceptions. He’s considered a clear Heisman Trophy favorite in the 2021 college football season.

He’s drawing some comparisons to Baker Mayfield for his body type and playing style, and while Mayfield has had mixed results as an NFL quarterback, Howell may presently be the most NFL-ready guy at the position and will have to be obviously beaten out for his spot as QB1 in the 2022 class.

1b (from Rams). Treylon Burks, WR, Arkansas

Arguably the weakest position on the entire Detroit Lions’ roster heading into the 2021 season is wide receiver.

The Lions let Kenny Golladay walk in free agency. They let Golden Tate walk in free agency. Marvin Jones walked in free agency. Danny Amendola is gone.

Quintez Cephus, a rookie in 2020, is the team’s leading receiver returning from last season who plays the wide receiver position. He had 20 receptions for 349 yards.

The Lions brought in Tyrell Williams, a free agent bust with the Las Vegas Raiders, to hopefully be a big-bodied “X” receiver along with Breshad Perriman, an oft-injured player who has big-time speed and has been drifting from team to team in recent years.

Kalif Raymond was also brought in via free agency and offers some intriguing speed at the position, and players like Cephus and 2021 fourth-round pick Amon-Ra St. Brown also have potential.

With that being said, the Lions certainly need receivers and in a bad way.

They may have to spend three picks in the 2021 NFL Draft on the wide receiver position, and the selection they acquired from the Rams is a good place to start in another deep class.

Treylon Burks is gaining some serious steam, so this pick would have to be closer to 20 than 32, but this is a player who offers outstanding ability after the catch with his size at 6-foot-3, 232 pounds.

Averaging over 16 yards per reception for the past two seasons, Burks broke out in 2020 and had seven touchdowns for the Razorbacks. He’s undoubtedly a first-round player for the 2022 NFL Draft and could explode in 2021.

2. Nik Bonitto, EDGE, Oklahoma

Defensive end Romeo Okwara had 10 sacks for the Detroit Lions in the 2020 season.

Everson Griffen was second on the team with 3.5 sacks.

As a team, the Detroit Lions had just 24 sacks in the 2020 season, a borderline laughable number.

The Lions need to add some pass rushers in a big way, and they do so here at the top of the second round of this 2022 mock draft projection with Oklahoma’s Nik Bonitto.

Bonitto had 11.5 tackles for loss and 9.0 sacks in the 2020 season for the Sooners, and if you ask Pro Football Focus, his falling to the second round of a mock draft is certainly a laughable idea.

Bonitto can certainly get after the quarterback. At 6-foot-3, 238 pounds, he’s certainly not got the ideal size for an EDGE player but if he can improve at the point of attack in 2021, he can undoubtedly rise into the first round.

There will certainly be a ton of eyes on Bonitto this season and the Detroit Lions would probably love to be able to add him to their edge position for 2022 and beyond, considering their best pass rusher is Okwara, who at this point is all alone out there.

Third Round

3a. Myjai Sanders, EDGE, Cincinnati

With the potential of a near-$24 million cap hit in 2022, former big-money free agent acquisition Trey Flowers is in sort of a make-or-break season with the Detroit Lions.

Flowers played just seven games last season for Detroit, and while he certainly has never tricked anyone into thinking he would be an annual 15-sack type of player, he’s got to prove himself worthy of such a massive 2022 cap hit.

Even if the Detriot Lions bite that bullet and keep Flowers beyond this season, a player like Cincinnati’s top edge defender Myjai Sanders might be too good to pass up on.

Sanders has outstanding burst off the snap and with his combination of size and quickness, and would bring even more intensity to a Detroit defensive line that also added Levi Onwuzurike and Alim McNeill in the 2021 NFL Draft.

3b (compensatory). Daxton Hill, S, Michigan

The Detroit Lions had just seven interceptions as a team in 2020 and they undoubtedly need improvement from their secondary in the 2021 season.

Hil is an aggressive, fast, instinctive defensive back who fits the ideal mold of a defensive back in today’s NFL in that he can float between safety and nickel.

Although he’s got just two interceptions in his first two seasons for the Wolverines, Hill has seven passes broken up and he has the potential to absolutely explode in ball production this season with his instincts and speed.