The Detroit Lions are firmly in a Super Bowl window, and the work of general manager Brad Holmes is a big reason why.
Detroit has come a long way since the Bob Quinn-Matt Patricia era.
Those two-plus seasons were forgettable for a lot of reasons, and one of Quinn’s moves was recently named one of the worst of the last decade by Bleacher Report.
Detroit’s 2020 trade that shipped star cornerback Darius Slay Jr. to the Philadelphia Eagles did not age well.
“Not only did Detroit part with Slay before their playoff window opened,” analyst Kris Knox wrote, “but it also sent him to a conference rival that twice did with Slay what the Lions never have—appear in a Super Bowl.”
Due in part to a rift with Patricia, Quinn shipped out Slay for the modest return of third- and fifth-round picks in the 2020 draft. Slay went on to play five strong seasons as Philly’s top boundary corner and was among the veteran leaders of last year’s Super Bowl run.
The Lions didn’t exactly hit on those two extra picks in the 2020 draft, which ended up being Quinn’s last with the team.
“The third-round pick was used to trade up for guard Jonah Jackson, while the fifth-round pick was used on wideout Quintez Cephus,” Knox wrote. “While Jackson was a Pro Bowl alternate in 2021, neither he nor Cephus signed a second contract with Detroit. Slay, meanwhile, went on to start 73 regular-season games for Philadelphia make three Pro Bowl appearances as an Eagle.”
The Lions aren’t the first to get fleeced by Howie Roseman, but at least Detroit got it right with Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell.
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