Lions GM Explains Why Team Traded Up for ‘Smooth’ WR

The Detroit Lions made a big addition to their wide receiving corps, trading up for Michigan native and lifelong Lions fan Isaac TeSlaa.

The Lions jumped up 32 slots on Day 2 of the NFL draft, giving up the No. 102 pick this season and both of next year’s third-round picks to take the Arkansas wide receiver at No. 70. Speaking to reporters after the selection, Lions general manager Brad Holmes said TeSlaa’s versatility made him stand out and warrant the big jump up the draft board.

Lions Had Eye on Isaac TeSlaa

Holmes said the team got a close look at TeSlaa in the Senior Bowl, and it was actually his run blocking that made the first impression.

“Just saw how he was in the run game in the team periods,” Holmes said, via the team’s official website. “Just his blocking and his size and he was just being a pest, and he was pissing off the DBs and defenders.”

Holmes added that the more the team looked into TeSlaa, the more they found to like about him. The Lions general manager noted that TeSlaa was a smooth runner with strong hands and a lot of versatility.

“You see a guy that’s big, long, smooth strider, can accelerate, can run,” he said. “He’s a hands catcher. He plays special teams and can block. He can do a lot of things.”

TeSlaa will bring plenty of size to Detroit’s receiving corps, standing at 6-foot-4 and 214 pounds. He was a big-play specialist at Arkansas, leading the SEC with a 19.5-yard average per reception. TeSlaa was a sure-handed receiver, making 62 catches for 897 yards and five touchdowns in his two seasons with the Razorbacks with no drops.

Benjamin Raven of MLive.com had pegged TeSlaa as a good pick for the Lions prior to the draft, saying his athleticism would be a good addition for quarterback Jared Goff.

“TeSlaa scored a 9.93 on the Relative Athletic Score, with his 6-foot-3, 214-pound build and 4.43-second 40-yard dash and 39.5-inch vertical raising eyebrows,” Raven wrote.

TeSlaa said he was excited to join the team and start putting in work.

“I’m just ready to get to the facility and put the work in,” TeSlaa said. “I see myself as someone who can play both positions (slot and outside). Obviously, I have a big frame with speed to play outside receiver but I can moved to the slot and I feel like I bring a lot of versatility.”

Lions Make Another Big WR Decision

The Lions traded up for TeSlaa just hours after the team announced that it was picking up the fifth-year option on wide receiver Jameson Williams. There had been some rumors that the Lions could consider trading Williams, who struggled with consistency on the field and got into some trouble off of it.

He was suspended twice, once for gambling and again for breaking the league’s rules against performance-enhancing drugs.

Holmes set the record straight, saying the team never considered putting the speedy playmaker on the trade block.

“No. No,” Holmes said, via MLive.com. “That’s something we have never entertained. I don’t know where that report came from. But that’s not a conversation that me and Dan (Campbell) has ever had.”