Lions Target QB, LB in Latest CBS Sports Mock Draft

Detroit Lions target both offense and defense in latest mock draft.

The Detroit Lions' front office is now quite excited to begin the process of improving a team that finished with a 9-8 record in 2022. 

While a significant amount of resources should be focused on the defense, Detroit's personnel department will not shy away from adding players they believe fit the culture they have now established since arriving in 2021. 

Veteran backup Nate Sudfeld spent the 2022 season in Detroit, but it would not be surprising if Detroit looked to upgrade at the backup spot by selecting a developmental player to learn under Jared Goff. 

In the latest CBS Sports mock draft, Detroit general manager Brad Holmes is selecting at No. 6 overall (via the Rams) and at No. 18 overall.

With the No. 6 overall pick, the team adds Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud. 

Writer Chris Trapasso explains, "Jared Goff was fantastic down the stretch in 2022, but the Lions pick Stroud, believing they won't be picking this high again for a while. Stroud has major upside."

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Holmes has not closed the door on drafting a quarterback and letting the prospect sit behind a veteran, especially given the quality of play Goff has shown the past several months. 

With the second of two first-round picks, Detroit bolsters its linebacking corps by drafting Clemson Tigers linebacker Trenton Simpson.

"Simpson is a highly athletic, three-down linebacker with some outside pass-rushing juice," Trapasso writes. "He'd be a fun addition to the Lions defense, a unit that played better down the stretch."