Recent draft successes for the Detroit Lions include players with collegiate backgrounds from the Iowa Hawkeyes.
Last year alone, the Lions selected linebacker Jack Campbell and tight end Sam LaPorta from the university.
During a media session following the Play Football Prospect Clinic with Special Olympics athletes draft event, Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt expressed admiration for another Hawkeyes prospect the Lions might consider at pick No. 29.
DeJean notably showcased his talents on the Hawkeyes’ defense, amassing 120 total tackles and seven interceptions over three collegiate seasons.
In addition, Klatt highlighted the excitement surrounding the numerous trades occurring in the early rounds of the draft, indicating teams’ proactive approach to securing desired players.
“This is what I love about the draft. I feel like it’s gotten more aggressive in recent years with all the movement and the trades. What you start to see is that teams go through this process and they’ve put in an enormous amount of of manpower and resources and time and energy into these prospects,” Klatt commented.
“And they start to they start to fall in love with not just the player but the person. And they think to themselves, ‘We need that guy in our locker room.’ And I think that’s the reason why you see more trades now is because teams have the the equity.”
When questioned about the possibility of the Lions drafting defensive lineman Darius Robinson, Klatt suggested that general manager Brad Holmes could be eyeing a player in the interior defensive line this year.
“If you want to call it that, the ammunition to go and trade and move up. Robinson is an interesting thought. I keep thinking about maybe even interior (defensive line) for them. I think interior could be in play,” Klatt said.
“I don’t think Byron Murphy would be available, but Braden Fiske or Johnny Newton from Illinois — those are names that that I could see popping up as well. And Darius Robinson is obviously a really good player as well.”
