In a recent re-draft of the 2021 NFL Draft, the disrespect of Lions offensive tackle Penei Sewell was so obvious that it’s blatant.
Despite opting out of his final season at Oregon due to COVID, Penei Sewell was still regarded as a top-10 pick for the 2021 NFL Draft. And if not the best, the second-best offensive tackle in the class.
At No. 7 overall, the Detroit Lions were happy to get Sewell and they wasted little time turning the pick in. They repeated that speed with Aidan Hutchinson a year later, to the chagrin of the league office and its desire to foster draft day drama.
NFL.com and NFL Network’s Adam Rank recently did a re-draft of the 2021 draft. While the offering of unique thought can be appreciated by those of us in the business, it’s also fair to take issue where warranted.
At No. 7 overall in the re-draft, Rank had the Lions taking 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga.
Detroit broke out under Dan Campbell last season, but a defense that ranked 32nd overall (and 30th against the pass) held this team back. I can’t imagine how much better the Lions would have been with Hufanga in the secondary. The second-year safety was a first-team All-Pro for the 49ers last season.
Thankfully, Rank didn’t go any further to make the case of Hufanga to the Lions. Lest he reach any further to say why the pick shouldn’t have been Sewell.
Lions offensive tackle Penei Sewell blatantly disrespected in 2021 re-draft
What about Sewell, you say?
Rank had him going No. 24 overall to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the re-draft.
Sewell has been quite good over his first two seasons, but there is room for him to get better. There could be an argument for offensive tackle Rashawn Slater, who Pro Football Focus graded out better than Sewell in 2021. But Slater missed most of his second season with a ruptured biceps tendon.
If the Lions had it to do-over at No. 7 overall in the 2021 draft, they’d still take Sewell 98 times out of 100. The other two times, Micah Parsons would likely be the pick. And if the Lions didn’t just take him again, Sewell would not last to 24th overall in any “real” re-draft.