Brad Holmes Explains Timing for Sewell, St. Brown Extensions

Holmes discussed the extensions on The Rich Eisen Show Monday.

Oct 8, 2023; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes watches warm-ups. / Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports

The Detroit Lions made waves this offseason by signing both Penei Sewell and Amon-Ra St. Brown to lucrative contract extensions.

Detroit did so at an interesting time, as both players agreed to their deals on the eve of the first round of the NFL Draft. General manager Brad Holmes proved to be quite timely, as St. Brown was the highest-paid wideout for just a day before the Philadelphia Eagles reset the market with a deal for A.J. Brown.

Appearing Monday on The Rich Eisen Show, the Lions' general manager explained why they elected to make the deals when they did. It was the result of an extensive process that involves forecasting the extension market and what teams may be working on other deals with similarly valued players.

“You’re definitely aware of it for sure. That’s part of the, we always talk about both sides working very, very hard in terms of getting something done," Holmes said. "We’re aware of it, their camps are aware of it. What’s moving? What’s coming down the pipe? But the bottom line is, from our standpoint, we just want to do what’s right by the player. St. Brown has earned this, and we can’t control what happens after that but we wanted to make sure that we did what we were supposed to do in paying him appropriately.

"You try to do the best you can but you can’t control the future. And a lot of times, those things that are looming, they’re waiting for the first person to strike. But we really shouldn’t punish the player that we’re trying to reward because of what we can’t control. We just felt like he’s an elite player, he’s truly earned it, he represents and embodies everything that we’re about as a franchise so just really happy for him.”

💻 Brad Holmes

Asked the @Lions general manager about @Jahmyr_Gibbs1 sophomore breakout and the decision to give @amonra_stbrown the bag:#NFL #OnePride pic.twitter.com/jD2EBOHpq1

— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) May 13, 2024

Holmes still has several other players who are extension eligible, most notably quarterback Jared Goff. Though he was not asked about the potential deal by Eisen, the general manager has spoken previously about the work being done to get the passer a new deal.

He also elaborated on the process of re-signing players. The Lions' front office does much work on forecasting what the salary cap will look like and where they fit within the market. As a result, they are able to make intelligent deals without handicapping themselves for future endeavors.

“We try to, obviously there’s a market for everyone and we try to make sure our players are paid appropriately within where we are forecasting what that market is going to be," Holmes explained. "The other component about the when part i, not only the when and where the deal is going to happen with how we’ve forecasted the market, but we’ve got to look at it for the future as well."

By making deals that benefit them for the future, the Lions are hoping to maximize their current success while also maintaining a solid base of resources for the future.

"So that’s the part that, yeah, you can do this and I think we do an excellent job of, we can pay this player this at this time and it’s advantageous for us, but at the same time, is this gonna limit us for what we want to do next year and the year after and another one of our own players that are gonna be due for an extension?" Holmes said. "How much cash are you gonna have available for free agency for the upcoming year? So all of that, there’s a lot of moving parts, but all of that comes into play.” 

Holmes 'All for' live lion on sideline

In previous podcast appearances, Lions' coach Dan Campbell has made comments about having a live lion on the sideline at the team's Allen Park practice facility.

When asked by Eisen, Holmes quipped that he would be in favor of having one but doubted that the team will ever be allowed to do so.

“I would be all for it if we were allowed to do it," Holmes said. "But I think we’re not gonna get that one pushed through.”