Detroit Lions have the third-most 2023 NFL Draft capital in league

The NFL Combine is underway in Indianapolis, which means a strong focus on the 2023 NFL Draft this week. Once again, it’s an exciting time to be a Detroit Lions fan, because they are chock-full of draft capital this year. In addition to their own picks in the first, second, third, fifth and sixth rounds, they also have picks from the Rams (first round), Vikings (second round), and Broncos (sixth round).

Although the Lions are not projected to receive any compensatory picks this year, they still are among the top teams when it comes to draft capital thanks to the Rams’ first-round draft pick landing at sixth overall. They are just one of three teams that have two picks in the top 20 this year (Seahawks and Texans are the other).

Just how much draft capital do the Lions have? Well, based on PFF’s Wins Above Replacement (WAR) model, the Detroit Lions have the third-most draft capital of all NFL teams this season. Take a look:

There are other ways to place value on each team’s draft haul as well. A common method—especially when it comes to NFL Draft trades—is the “Jimmy Johnson” or “Rich Hill” value chart, which assigns value to each individual pick in the NFL Draft. Here’s where the Lions stand in each of those measures:

Jimmy Johnson value chart

1. Texans: 5029.1
2. Bears: 3830.4
3. Seahawks: 3768.2
4. Lions: 3514.8

Rich Hill value chart

1. Texans: 1451
2. Bears: 1265
3. Seahawks: 1113
4. Lions: 1033

Any way you slice it, this has the opportunity of being a special draft class for the Lions. And with the job general manager Brad Holmes has done through two drafts thus far, some really talented players could be wearing the Honolulu Blue very soon.