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Lions Turned Card In for Aidan Hutchinson 'So Fast' NFL Got Upset

The Detroit Lions were happy with their selection of Michigan Wolverines defensive lineman Aidan Hutchinson.

John Maakaron

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The Detroit Lions knew fairly quickly who they wanted to target with their No. 2 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. 

Leading up to the draft, Aidan Hutchinson was widely believed to be among the leaders to be selected with the No. 1 overall pick. 

As the draft approached, the Jacksonville Jaguars became more enamored with Georgia's Travon Walker, who eventually became the top pick in the draft.

The Lions became so excited that they turned in their card so quickly that the league became "mad" at the organization. 

NFL writer Peter King explained, "After the Jaguars picked Travon Walker number one, the Lions told the league the pick was in, and it was Hutchinson -- within a minute of the Walker pick. “We turned the card in so fast the league got mad at us," said one Lions official." 

When Hutchinson discovered he was not the top pick, he was praying the Lions would make the call. 

“I’m not quite sure what happened, but they did end up taking Travon. Congrats to him. That’s freaking awesome," he said. "First thought, I was just praying the Lions were going to take me. It’s a little bit scary when you get in that green room and the Lions are on the clock and you’re just sitting there like, ‘Dear God, please pick me.’ That was kind of what was running through my head.”

The Lions' defense may just end up benefiting from a motivated player, who said he may find ways to use being passed on by the Jaguars as motivation. 

"I find little ways to motivate me. If that’s one team passed on me, I guess I could use that as motivation. That’s kind of how I do things," Hutchinson said. 

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John Maakaron
JOHN MAAKARON

John Maakaron has covered Detroit Sports since 2013. Brings a vast array of experience covering the Detroit Tigers, Detroit Lions, Michigan Wolverines, Michigan State Spartans, Detroit Mercy Titans, and Oakland University Golden Grizzlies. John brings a wealth of sports broadcast experience. In 2013, John had the vision to establish the Detroit Sports Podcast Network. Has recorded over 3000 podcasts analyzing Detroit Sports. In 2019, Sports Illustrated Media Group, a historical sports media outlet, partnered with Detroit Sports Podcast to provide daily Lions content for their growing and expanding digital media outlet. Our Lions content can also be read in the newspaper at The Oakland  Passionate about Detroit Sports and it is reflected in his coverage of the local teams!

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