Some give out post-draft grades.
But I always hated report cards — maybe, that’s some deep-seated, high-school PTSD.
Here are 10 awards and predictions after the Detroit Lions‘ 2023 NFL draft:
Biggest impact
Here is a bold, way-too-early prediction: Jahmyr Gibbs will provide plenty of highlights next season. But this Lions offense will have a different star every game.
So, Jack Campbell is going to have the biggest, most-noticeable, most consistent, game-by-game impact of any Lions rookie in 2023, becoming a Day 1 starter and impacting darn near every play.
“Jack Campbell, we expect him to make an immediate impact,” Lions GM Brad Holmes said last week.
JEFF SEIDEL: Matthew Stafford trade finally complete, putting Lions in incredible position
Alvin Kamara 2.0 award
Alabama defensive back Brian Branch, taken No. 45, had an interesting take on his college teammate. “Gibbs is a generational talent, (Saints RB) Alvin Kamara 2.0. He does a lot of things that are unteachable and unguardable. I feel like his running style is — nobody I’ve ever seen.”
Kamara, listed at 5 feet 10 and 215 pounds, has been used as a runner, receiver and returner, accumulating 8,888 all-purpose yards in six seasons for New Orleans.
Gibbs is smaller (5-9, 199) but has a similar skillset. At Alabama in 2022, he ran the ball 99 times, caught 32 passes and returned eight kicks.
It’s understandable why the Lions love Gibbs. But for those who question why they used a first-round pick on him, here is more ammunition: Kamara was taken in the third round.
SEIDEL ON GIBBS: Did Lions waste a pick? ‘When you come across a special player … you just get him’
Gonna Fit Right In award
Campbell already sounds like he’s from Detroit: “I’m a midwestern kid who I feel like, up to this point, has kind of earned everything that I’ve gotten. I feel like kind of an old-school, blue-collar mindset, and I feel like that’s maybe what they liked about me. I feel like that’s a perfect fit for Detroit. The people in this city, I feel like they work for everything they get, never complain, never point fingers, and I feel like that’s just who I am. I feel like I couldn’t be in a better city that represents that.”
Yep, he’s going to fit right in.
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Trader Brad award
You know at the end of a Euchre hand when everybody just starts tossing in cards? And cards are flying all over the table, and maybe, you are half paying attention, and can’t quite remember the suit? OK, maybe that’s just me. But that’s what it felt like trying to follow Holmes trade picks in this draft, as he moved all over the place, throwing picks every which way. I swear he could have turned in a selection and the NFL would have said: “Oh, it’s your turn? Go ahead.”
DEAL ZONE: Every NFL draft-day trade Brad Holmes has made as Lions GM
Coolest Ending to a Zoom award
Most of the Lions draft picks were noticeably polished, especially those from the bigger colleges.
But offensive lineman Colby Sorsdal, taken in the fifth round out of William & Mary, was refreshingly honest. “I can’t really explain the feelings right now,” he said. “I think I’ve got hives a little bit just from how excited I am.”
After his Zoom call with reporters, he didn’t know what to do. He smiled and nodded his head.
“I appreciate you guys,” he said.
And he gave thumbs up. The reporters cracked up.
GRADING THE PICK: William & Mary OL Colby Sorsdal doesn’t move the needle
How a future Green Bay Packer influenced the Lions award
The Lions brought in Lukas Van Ness on a visit, and he raved about Campbell, his teammate at Iowa.
“I thought that he talked more about Jack on his visit than he did about himself,” Lions linebacker coach Kelvin Sheppard said. “That resonated with us because that’s a guy that just went top 15 tonight as well, that spoke glowingly about this player as a leader and the things he brought to their team.”
The Packers took Van Ness 13th overall.
The Lions took Campbell five picks later.
Already rooting for this guy award
Brodric Martin, a defensive lineman, started out at North Alabama, an FCS school that is not exactly a powerhouse — it lost to Memphis this year, 59-0.
Then, he transferred to Western Kentucky.
“I had a lot to learn,” Martin said. “Then in the middle of that season, my brother passed away.”
His brother, Brandon Martin, died of leukemia in 2021.
“It was like, probably, the father figure I never had,” he said. “He was my right-hand man, and you know it was his time (when) he got called up. He’s my everything, he’s my motivation.”
So, this guy who went through an FCS school and lost his brother, is now a Lion. And he carries plenty of inner drive.
“It was just that fight man, coming from where I came from, not a lot of draft picks out of there and stuff,” he said. “I’m just blessed to be in this situation.”
How can you not root for him?
Guitar Hero award
Sordsal plays the guitar in his free time.
“So, my dad and I are big fans of Nirvana, so Nirvana was like my pregame ritual before every game. You know, ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit,’ I know it’s like the classic Nirvana song, so like we love that. I’m like,’ Oh, yeah that’s cool, I want to jam out like (Nirvana guitarist) Kurt Cobain.’ So, that’s what I started doing.”
Bold prediction II
Here’s another prediction: Martin will become a massive cog in the Lions’ defense, helping against the run. But it will take some time.
“This guy’s a big man, but he moves a lot better on film,” Holmes said. “He just has, like we said, a lot of meat on the bones. He’s got a lot of upside. He’s a big man, he’s athletic, he plays hard, he chases to the ball. I don’t think I’ve seen many 330, 340-pound guys run to the ball like he does. So, when you get that — he’s got some rawness, but we’re really excited about his upside. He’s another one that we brought him for a visit, and he just kind of lit the room up just with his personality and just his mindset. He’s a really good kid that has a pretty unique story. We’re just really, really excited. I think that (Lions defensive line) Coach John Scott is going to do some really nice things with him.”
JEFF SEIDEL: Lions emerge from NFL draft with roster in great shape. Now it’s time to win
Best Imitation of Brad Holmes award
Sam LaPorta looked like he was going to run through a wall after getting drafted in the second round by the Lions. He was smiling and muscling high-fives. All joy and pure emotion. He looked just like Holmes without pounding on a table. Yep, he’s gonna fit right in, too.
Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @seideljeff.