Detroit Lions' 2018 draft: Analysis for every pick

Breaking down the Detroit Lions' 2018 draft class.

Round 1, No. 20 overall: Frank Ragnow, C, Arkansas

My take: The Lions taking Ragnow in the first round is a stunner. Ragnow could be a good selection, and the Lions did need an offensive lineman, but defense is a bigger issue for Detroit -- particularly on the line at pass-rusher and defensive tackle. There were strong options on the board in both cases -- edge rusher Harold Landry and defensive tackle Taven Bryan. They were better options and each would have filled a larger need, particularly considering few interior offensive linemen had come off the board. This pick feels like a gamble for general manager Bob Quinn to solidify his offensive line with a fast-rising player on draft boards, but the Lions had more proven options out there.

The center did not allow a sack throughout his time as a starter in college, something he is "proud" of, and he's healed from the ankle injury he suffered in October that required surgery, saying that now it's "a normal ankle." Ragnow said Thursday night that the only contact he had with Detroit was an interview at the combine and he was surprised when the Lions called at No. 20.

"They mentioned on the phone that they really tried to keep it under the radar that they were interested in me and I was very surprised," Ragnow said. "But I'm so, so excited to be a Detroit Lion."

Quinn opened his news conference late Thursday night by joking with reporters, asking how many nailed their mock drafts this year (none really did). He explained that the Lions didn't need to do much work on Ragnow after their combine meeting because he was "pretty clean." Quinn said he doesn't know whether Ragnow will end up playing guard or center, but that his versatility stood out.

Lions had options: The board fell well for the Lions -- about as well as it could have, or so it seemed. It left Detroit with three good defensive options, a plethora of offensive line possibilities and enough players on the board that it could try to trade back. Both Landry and Bryan offer the type of positional flexibility the Lions covet in their defensive players in Matt Patricia's multiple front. Yet the Lions passed on both.

Quinn said they knew other teams were interested in Ragnow just after No. 20 and they had opportunities to both move up and fall back but chose to stick at No. 20 because Ragnow was there and they are "very excited to get this player." He wouldn't go through why the Lions chose Ragnow over Landry, Bryan, Billy Price and others, declining to go through his evaluations of the players.

"I'll just tell ya that we obviously had Frank higher on the board than all those guys and we think he's a better fit for us," Quinn said.

From Arkansas to Arkansas: Ragnow is going to replace Travis Swanson, the former Arkansas center taken in the third round in 2014. It also continued a trend for the Lions, who have now gone offensive line in the first round of three of the past four drafts (Taylor Decker in 2016, Laken Tomlinson in 2015 and now Ragnow). One has worked out so far in Decker and one was a colossal failure in Tomlinson. Ragnow, though, was not a name who had been linked often with Detroit.

Swanson was a mentor to Ragnow and he said Thursday night that he already received a congratulatory text from him. He called replacing Swanson "unique just because I know him and he's a mentor in my life."

Round 2, No. 43 overall: Kerryon Johnson, RB, Auburn

My take: The Lions were going to take a running back, it felt like, at some point during the draft. The one Detroit took, though, is a mild surprise in Kerryon Johnson even though LSU’s Derrius Guice is still on the board. Johnson, at No. 43, is a fantastic player who can find the end zone with 29 touchdowns during the last two seasons. Last year, he had 1,391 yards and averaged 4.9 yards per carry. Johnson’s selection also shows -- again -- the Lions are trying hard to fix a run game that finished last in the league in yards per game and yards per carry last year along with going the last 68 games without a 100-yard rusher. Johnson is a tough back, too. He credited the house he grew up in – where his father trained basketball players, including Michigan State’s Josh Langford – as a major factor in that. He said his parents and siblings “don’t tolerate excuses,” which has helped him mentally. So, too, has having other athletes in his family. His brother, Kerron, is a professional basketball player in Germany. “Just being around the game has helped me,” Johnson said. “The best way to learn is through experience, so it’s been awesome.” The Lions have needed a tough back who can get the tough yards as they try to fix a really rough running game.

How he fits: Johnson is a power back who should take over for LeGarrette Blount in that role in 2019. By then, of course, he might be the team’s featured back with Blount and Ameer Abdullah in the final years of their contracts. Johnson being taken so high doesn’t bode well for the futures of Dwayne Washington, Tion Green, Zach Zenner or possibly even Abdullah on the roster. Figure Johnson to be worked in as an early-down back from the start. Johnson is a patient runner, which helps him. In fact, he believes every back should have similar levels of timing. “I think every running back is supposed to be patient,” Johnson said. “That’s how lanes develop. That’s how linemen get to their blocks and that’s how you make yards. So I try to be patient until I see the hole. I go through and that’s just the way I learned running it best, which is what a running back is supposed to do, I feel.”

Round 3, No. 82 overall: Tracy Walker, S, Louisiana

My take: The Lions again avoided going after one of their top overall needs -- defensive line -- in the third round by taking Tracy Walker, a safety from the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns. Considering the defensive tackle and end options still on the board at the time (Stanford’s Harrison Phillips, Virginia Tech’s Tim Settle, Michigan’s Maurice Hurst), this is a surprising pick. Yes, safety was a need for the Lions but not nearly as high as the defensive line. He does have familiarity with Lions star cornerback Darius Slay -- as Slay tweeted at Walker on Thursday wishing him luck in the draft. The two went to the same high school, albeit years apart. His height (6-foot-1) and long arms (33 ½ inches) offer potential for him, but his NFL.com prospect grade of 5.49 (NFL backup or special-teams potential) screams potential overreach for a player when good defensive line prospects were available. General manager Bob Quinn defended the pick Friday night by saying Walker was the higher rated prospect on the team’s draft board at pick No. 82. That means he had Walker rated higher than defensive tackles Harrison Phillips, Tim Settle and Maurice Hurst, for instance. “Good size, very athletic, playmaking, ball skills, toughness, tackling,” Quinn said. “Speed. ... When you’re evaluating players who might not be at an SEC school or a Big Ten school, you try to watch them against their best competition and those games were really important to us ...” Quinn would not say Friday night whether Hurst, once thought of as a first-round pick, is on the Lions’ draft board. Walker said “it definitely was a surprise for me” that he got drafted in the third round by the Lions. “Honestly, I expected to be fifth round, to be honest with you,” Walker said. “I’m definitely blessed. I’m the type of person, I’m very conservative and I expect the worst. Like I said, I was blessed to be drafted in the third round. I definitely, I always expect the worse.”

Instead, for Walker, this is the best case for him -- taken in the third round and to the team that also has his second cousin: Slay.

How he fits: Quandre Diggs is in the last year of his contract and Miles Killebrew's progression has been slow. Tavon Wilson's deal can conceivably be cut after the 2018 season and Glover Quin is 32. So this feels like a pick for the future, somewhat like Teez Tabor was last year. Perhaps, Walker becomes a special-teams player this year and moves into a bigger role in 2019, when the Lions might have a different look in the secondary. He’s a clear tackler, too, which has him potentially as a good fit for Detroit.

Round 4, No. 114 overall: Da'Shawn Hand, DE, Alabama

My take: It’s a gamble because they are giving up a 2019 third-rounder to do it, but the Lions made a pretty smart move with going up to get defensive lineman Da'Shawn Hand out of Alabama. Hand was one of the better recruits in his high school class (picking Alabama over Michigan) and has always had the potential to be a dominant player. It never really showed at Alabama, but the traits are there -- as is the coaching from the Crimson Tide. That includes his new defensive line coach Bo Davis, who worked with him in Tuscaloosa. He also has familiarity with a guy he’ll be playing next to, A'Shawn Robinson. He has versatility and speed (4.83-second 40-yard dash) and has a shot to be a player who can make a difference on the defensive line. This is a good pick. That the Lions traded with New England isn’t surprising, either, considering they’ve already done it one other time in this draft. Being reunited with Davis and Robinson is potentially helpful for Hand. “It’s going to be a great thing,” Hand said. “I’m just happy that I’m a part of the Detroit Lions and that I know somebody actually. Bo Davis, me and him, you know, we go way back and he helped develop me to the player I am so I’m just glad to be reunited with those guys.”

How he fits: He’s a guy who will most likely play defensive end and try to rush the passer, but he can also go inside in nickel packages -- similar to what Kerry Hyder and Anthony Zettel do. Hand, though, was more highly-touted (and now higher-drafted) than both of them. His production in college wasn’t great, which is a concern, and he never had more than three sacks in a season. But he gives the Lions an option on the defensive line at multiple spots.

Round 5, No. 153 overall: Tyrell Crosby, OL, Oregon

My take: Crosby in the fifth round is good value at this part of the draft. The former Oregon Ducks tackle was expected to be selected higher in the draft and, at 6-5 and 310 pounds, gives Detroit a big-bodied player who can compete for jobs. He is a good pass-blocker and Pro Football Focus wrote that he did not allow a sack or quarterback hit during his senior year. He was expected to be a Day 2 prospect -- and about an hour before he was selected, he expressed his frustration on Twitter.

This is a smart pick for Quinn, as he’s made protecting Matthew Stafford and fixing the run game a priority. Crosby could help do that eventually.

Crosby said he was confused listening to the injury and concussion issues that had been reported, but every team he met with told him he was healthy and would be available to play if he had a game tomorrow. He declined, though, to say how many concussions he’s had.

He said his draft slide was “frustrating,” but he’s over it now.

“I didn’t expect it but honestly at the end of the day I’m a professional football player,” Crosby said. “Things happen in life and you really just, at the end of the day, you realize how grateful you are, especially looking back, how small a percentage of college players make it to where I made it today.

“Though things happened and I might have gone later than I expected, at the end of the day I’m excited to be a Lion.”

How he fits: He’s likely a reserve to start off his career, as the Lions' starting offensive line is already set with four veterans and then first-round pick Frank Ragnow either at center or guard. But he could end up being a starting tackle in the future, as Rick Wagner’s guaranteed money is only for injury in 2019 and gone in 2020 and Taylor Decker’s contract ends in 2020 as well (provided the team picks up the fifth-year option). Add in T.J. Lang and Graham Glasgow as free agents after the 2019 season and this makes sense from a depth perspective. Crosby said he played both left and right tackle at Oregon but never played guard. Said he’s “kind of looking forward to the future,” and not surprisingly said he would play any spot they needed him.

Round 7, No. 237 overall: Nick Bawden, FB, San Diego State

My take: The fullback is back in Detroit as the Lions took Bawden with its seventh-round pick in the draft. Bawden is a versatile fullback who is a dynamo on special teams. Originally a quarterback for the Aztecs, he made one start as a freshman. He was asked to change positions and after being told no to linebacker, became a fullback instead. He’s more of the traditional fullback than a Jaylen Samuels or even a Khalid Hill in that he’ll be a good short-yardage option as well as someone who can block well for second-round pick Kerryon Johnson. He blocked for the NCAA’s leading rusher the past two seasons. If the Lions are serious about putting together a run game, he’s a good selection late.

How he fits: He won’t get too much work in the offense, but he’ll definitely have packages where he can be used. Bawden spent the past two years transforming his body to get up around 250 pounds by the start of last season.

“You just got to be on point with all your blocking,” Bawden told ESPN last month. “You’ve got to have great technique because the guys are bigger, faster, stronger -- so, everybody you’re going against, you have to have the best technique you’ve had because blocking is really what fullbacks are really for, let’s be honest.”