Per usual, the Lions have faced a multitude of backlash for their selections in the 2025 NFL Draft.
In recent years, ESPN has repeatedly criticized Brad Holmes's picks. In 2023, Mel Kiper actually gave the Lions a "B" grade for their draft as a whole, but disagreed with multiple picks that ended up being stars.
"They traded down from No. 6 to No. 12, but they reached for running back Jahmyr Gibbs there. While I like Gibbs' game, this is too high," said Kiper. "At No. 18, the Lions did what great teams don't do, and that's reach for a need [Jack Campbell]."
In 2024, Kiper and ESPN gave the Lions another "B" grade. At this point, Kiper was starting to understand Brad Holmes more as a GM, but still disagreed with a few of his picks. He did not like the Giovanni Manu pick, who Holmes still believes in as a project for the future.
This year, ESPN gave the Lions a "C+" grade, the worst given to the Lions in the Brad Holmes era. Only the Bengals and the Falcons received lower grades from Kiper. Holmes continues to take the guys that rank high on his big board, regardless of what Kiper and other mock drafters think.
After the draft, ESPN's Matt Miller released his 100 best picks, steals, and fits of the 2025 NFL Draft, and only a couple of Lions made that list.
2 Lions barely make ESPN's top 100 picks
No. 58 Tate Ratledge
The first Lion appears on this list at No. 58 with the Lions second-round pick Tate Ratledge.
Ratledge, my favorite pick of the draft, was a dominant multi-year starter at Georgia. Known as one of the best guards in the draft, Ratledge was a great value pick for the Lions, who lost Kevin Zeitler to the Titans in free agency.
Even if the Lions had retained Zeitler in free agency, the guard position was very thin for them. Landing one of the best guards in the draft late in the second round fills a need and achieves the value that the draft evaluators look for, landing him on this list.
"This pick also represented good value since four guards were already off the board, and Ratledge was likely the only remaining starter," said Miller.
No. 99 Miles Frazier
Barely landing the Lions' two players on this top 100 is Miles Frazier, who clocks in at second-to-last on this big board.
Personally, I had Frazier listed as a guy the Lions should go after on Day 2 of the NFL Draft, and he fell all the way to pick 171 in the 5th round where the Lions took him. In his college career, Frazier was a Freshman All-American and a finalist for the Joe Moore Award.
Frazier's pure size at 6'6", 317 pounds makes him a threat at any position on the offensive line. Although listed as a guard, Frazier is expected to be a possible Frank Ragnow replacement at center in the near future, and Holmes may have drafted him as such.
"Frazier's experience at tackle and exposure at guard in the predraft process have me believing he could start at right guard in the pros," said Miller.
The Lions drafted a versatile, experienced, SEC lineman in the fifth round, making this one of my favorite picks of the entire NFL Draft.
