All Lions: Danielle Hunter Could Be Free-Agent Target for Detroit.
The Detroit Lions had a successful season in 2023, capturing their first division championship in three decades and making it to the NFC Championship Game for the first time in 32 years.
Furthermore, a big portion of the Lions’ success this season can be due to the outstanding ’23 draft class created by general manager Brad Holmes.
Most notably, Holmes hit gold with his first- and second-round picks. He moved back from the sixth overall pick to grab running back Jahmyr Gibbs at number twelve, and then drafted off-ball linebacker Jack Campbell at number eighteen. He then selected tight end Sam LaPorta at No. 34 overall, using the additional selection earned by trading out of the No. 6 spot, and defensive back Brian Branch at No. 45.
While those picks were heavily criticised at the time for their lack of so-called “positional value,” they eventually paid off handsomely for Holmes & Co.
Gibbs and LaPorta both made Pro Bowls in their rookie seasons, while Branch established as a key member in the Lions’ secondary. Furthermore, Campbell, while not as impactful, showed signs of being a valuable member of the team’s linebacking corps.
At this point, it appears like the organisation is on track to become a perennial Super Bowl contender. According to Steve Palazzolo of Pro Football Focus, the Lions can do this by continuing to build through the draft.
“I think they’re smart enough to know, keep your foot on the gas, keep doing what we’ve been doing,” Palazzolo said on the Pro Football Focus “Fixing Every AFC & NFC North Team in 5 Minutes!” broadcast on Monday. “They landed on four of the top 50 or whatever draft picks. I believe Jack Campbell will be a hit in the end, but the other three are unquestionably successful. They made good draft picks. They don’t live in this world with extra draft capital anymore. So, I believe they must continue to hit on their picks because they will have less picks.”
He and fellow PFF writer Sam Monson believe EDGE Danielle Hunter would be an excellent free-agent target for Detroit this year. They believed he would provide a much-needed boost to the team’s pass-rushing attempts while not jeopardising the team’s ability to keep its current crop of great players.
“But then same thing, if you’re really looking two and three years down the road here, you keep hitting on draft picks, just like the Saints had that 2017 draft class where they all came due, in Ryan Ramczyk, (Alvin) Kamara and Trey Hendrickson, you have to anticipate being able to pay all those guys in a few years,” Palazzolo said. “And, as I mentioned, (Aidan) Hutchinson and (Penei) Sewell, the Lions now have this world where they’ve drafted so well that those guys will have to be paid three and four years from now.” So, you can’t just keep flinging money around like crazy. However, I do not believe a Danielle Hunter move is one of those.
