Free Press sports reporter Dave Birkett takes a position-by-position look at the top prospects and biggest Detroit Lions needs in the 2023 NFL draft. This is the sixth in an eight-part series:
The Lions had a long-term need at both the wide receiver and tight end positions before Jameson Williams and two other receivers were suspended in a gambling probe last week, but those needs have been amplified even more heading into Thursday’s NFL draft.
Williams and fellow receiver Stanley Berryhill will miss the first six games of the 2023 season for placing bets on non-NFL games from a team facility, and the Lions released receiver Quintez Cephus after he bet on football. Currently, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Williams are the only Lions receivers under contract beyond this season, and as talented as Williams is, he still is unproven in the NFL.
St. Brown, a fourth-round pick in 2021, has exceeded all expectations in his two years with the Lions. He has 196 catches for 2,073 yards, is coming off a Pro Bowl season and has said he hopes to add more of a downfield element to his game this fall. If he stays healthy, he is in line for a mega contract extension next spring.
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The Lions have adequate complements at receiver in Josh Reynolds, Kalif Raymond and the re-signed Marvin Jones. That’s essentially the same nucleus — Jones replaces free agent departure DJ Chark — that formed one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL last season, but they need more depth at the position and insurance for Williams, who has more drops (three) than catches (one) to this point in his career.
At tight end, the Lions lack top-end talent after last year’s trade of T.J. Hockenson, but return Brock Wright, Shane Zylstra and 2022 fifth-round pick, James Mitchell. The Lions struck out on fortifying the position in free agency, and in a deep draft seem likely to spend one of their nine picks to add another playmaker to the room.
Given their roster construction and needs in the passing game, it would not come as a surprise if the Lions spent a Day 2 pick on a receiver, tight end or both.
WRs on the roster: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Marvin Jones, Josh Reynolds, Quintez Cephus, Kalif Raymond, Trinity Benson, Tom Kennedy, Maurice Alexander, Stanley Berryhill. TEs on the roster: Brock Wright, James Mitchell, Shane Zylstra, Derrick Deese Jr.
Top 3 WR prospects: 1. Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ohio State; 2. Zay Flowers, Boston College; 3. Quentin Johnston, TCU.
Top 3 TE prospects: 1. Darnell Washington, Georgia; 2. Michael Mayer, Notre Dame; 3. Dalton Kincaid, Utah.
Other players with Michigan ties: WR: Jayden Reed, Michigan State; Ronnie Bell, Michigan; Dylan Drummond, Eastern Michigan; Sy Barnett, Davenport; Hassan Beydoun, Eastern Michigan. TE: Luke Schoonmaker, Michigan; Joel Honigford, Michigan; Daniel Barker, Michigan State; Joel Wilson, Central Michigan; Gunnar Oakes, Eastern Michigan; Nick Poterack, Wayne State.
Day 3 sleepers who could interest Lions: WR: Derius Davis, TCU. TE: Tucker Kraft, South Dakota State.
Recent Lions draft picks at WR: 2022 — Jameson Williams (first round). 2021 — Amon-Ra St. Brown (fourth round). 2020 — Quintez Cephus (fifth round). 2019 — Travis Fulgham (sixth round). 2018 — none. Recent Lions draft picks at TE: 2022 — James Mitchell (fifth round). 2021 — None. 2020 — none. 2019 — T.J. Hockenson (first round); Isaac Nauta (seventh round). 2018 — none.
Draft dish
This year’s receiver class lacks the high-end talent of past seasons, with no Ja’Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle or even Williams on the board. But there is plenty of depth and as many as five receivers could go in Round 1 as rookies are more ready than ever to contribute at what’s become an expensive position.
There is no consensus on the draft’s best receiver. Smith-Njigba missed most of last season with a hamstring injury, but outshined Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave, two receivers who had success as rookies last season, when they were teammates at Ohio State in 2021. Flowers is a bottle rocket who excelled in tough circumstances at Boston College. And Jordan Addison won the Biletnikoff Award at Pitt as a sophomore before transferring to USC last year. All three seem best suited to play from the slot in the NFL but have the versatility to move outside.
TCU’s Johnston is a physical specimen who should go in the second half of Round 1. Tennessee’s Jalin Hyatt is the premier deep threat in the draft. Reed doubles as a dangerous return man and should come off the board early on Day 2. And North Carolina’s Josh Downs, the nephew of Lions cornerbacks coach Dre Bly, and Houston’s Tank Dell are undersized slot receivers who look like Day 2 picks. An average of 33 receivers have been taken in the past three drafts, and that number should be similar this week.
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While receivers get the headlines, this year’s tight end class is deeper and has better top-end talent. Washington is “an absolute Adonis,” ESPN analyst Todd McShay said, who can block inline and has untapped potential as a receiver. Kincaid is the best pure receiving tight end in the draft, though he fractured his back late last season. Mayer is a combo tight end who caught 67 passes for 809 yards and nine touchdowns last season. And Schoonmaker is one of three Big Ten tight ends who could hear their names called on Day 2, along with Iowa’s Sam LaPorta and Penn State’s Brenton Strange.
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.