I HATED to hear the Lions had lost D.J. Chark to Carolina. With him in the lineup last season, the offense felt complete. But, he's gone, and the Lions have to replace him.
In consecutive years, Holmes has signed a 6'4", 205-210lb, sub 4.5-40 guy to be the Lions X-receiver. Tyrell Williams didn't work out, but D.J. Chark did. There are not a lot of these type of WR's available in any given year. While I think MARVIN JONES is a fine possibility to replace Chark because of the affinity he and the organization and the town still have for each other--and because he can still play-- he doesn't quite fit Holmes' X-WR archetype. Also, at 33, he doesn't fit the age profile of FA's Holmes usually goes for.
Of the guys who are free agents (or likely soon to be free agents), these 4 guys at least fit the Holmes X-WR profile (ranked in order of preference):
1. COREY DAVIS (6'3' 209, Age 28) - The Jets are clearly moving on from him--but may be holding out to trade him. He never ran the 40, but he was fast enough last year to average almost 17 yards a catch. That type of average is not something you typically see slow guys achieve.
2. JUSTIN WATSON (6'2" 216, 4.44-40, Age 26) - Another guy who's just a hair short for what Holmes likes. But he averaged 21 yards per catch in KC last year. And, he'll come relatively cheap having just made vet minimum last season.
3. MILES BOYKIN (6'4" 220, 4.42, Age 26) - Now we're dipping into "Breshad Perriman" territory (aka- "body like Tarzan, plays like Jane). Athletically, he's just what Holmes likes for his X-WR. But Boykin seemed to cause a few incomplete passes and interceptions by loafing through his pass patterns in Baltimore. He's very imprecise. On the upside, the did put some excellent special team coverage reps on film last season in Pittsburgh. And, he would DIRT cheap with the Lions being his last best chance to prove he can be a good NFL player.
4. DENZEL MIMS (6'3 208, 4.38-40, Age 25) - The Jets almost certainly will be cutting Mims soon. So far in his career, he's been a body-catching ball dropper who runs sloppy routes, gets no separation and make mind numbingly stupid penalties. But his athletic profile is perfect, and he'll come DIRT cheap. If Antwan Randle-El thinks he can fix Mims, then maybe the Lions give him a shot.
Those 4 guys --and Jones--are pretty much it on the veteran X-WR front (No I'm not including slowpoke Kenny Golladay as an option). There aren't many more options in college either whom I really like. And some of the guys OTHER people like, I don't like. Take A.T. Perry, for instance. I think he runs REALLY sloppy routes and is very "handsy" in his route running-which will lead to penalties. I'm also not a huge fan of Andre Iosivas. While he does remind one of Christian Watson at times-- with his body type and his speed-- Iosivas doesn't show me he has that "THE BALL IS MINE" dawg in him. Overall, he's not physical enough for me. Still, I would draft both those guys late day 3, but it appears the hype on them is such that the Lions would have to spend a much higher pick to get them.
Here are 5 Brad Holmes X-WR types who DO intrigue me:
QUENTIN JOHNSTON, TCU, 6-foot-3, 208 (No 40 time), 40.5 (VJ), 11-foot-2 (BJ) -- I love his size and his Run after the catch (RAC) ability. He does seem to body catch a lot, but he's made a point of saying he's trying to eliminate that. Plus, his hands looked good and soft in the Combine gauntlet drill. I wouldn't want to spend pick #6 on him. But if the Lions can get him near the bottom of round 1 or the top of round 2 (if they trade down), he'd be a great option at the Lions X. One team resource allocation problem I have: I do wonder if Holmes would bring in such a highly drafted rookie knowing he's got to pay Amon Ra and probably Jamo soon. Then again, "soon" for those guys is as late as 2025 and 2027, so maybe it won't be an issue
JONATHAN MINGO,
Ole Miss, 6-1, 220 4.46 (40), 39.5’ (VJ), 10-foot-9 (BJ) - Of the college guys, he fits the Brad Holmes X-WR archetype profile less than anyone on this list. But he plays like a Dan Campbell guy--physical, passionate and smart. Kind of reminds me of Eric Moulds. An absolute Dawg and a high-level producer who would fit in well with the character of this team.
BRYCE FORD-WHEATON, West Virginia, 6-foot-4, 221 4.38 (40), 41’ (VJ), 10-foot-9 (BJ), 6.97 (3C) - Will this perfect physical specimen turn out to be D.K. Metcalf or Denzel Mims? Obviously, I think he could be Metcalf. One thing I love about him is his crafty RAC ability. Seems to perform as expected in contested catch situations. I think some team is going to pull the trigger on BFW earlier than most draft pundits seem to expect--maybe even as early as late day 2.
MATT LANDERS, Arkansas, 6'4" 200 4.39 (40), 37’ (VJ), 10-foot-10 (BJ) - The fact that the Patriots talked themselves into spending a second round pick on another skinny speedster with outstanding RAC ability last season in Tyquan Thornton makes me think some team is also going to draft him earlier than the pundits believe. The fact the Lions can start Josh Reynolds while Landers gets use to the physicality of the NFL makes me think he could work in Detroit.
SHAQ DAVIS, SC State, 6-foot-4, 221 4.4 (40), 34’ (VJ), 10-foot-10 (BJ) - Another big, fast, physical RAC stud. We all know Brad Holmes like's his HBCU guys. Could Davis be this year's 6th round HBCU pick who enjoys James Houston like success? Davis has great ability to make that happen.
That's my list. I'm not saying these are THE most talented WR's in the 2023 draft. I am saying that they would seem be what Brad Holmes is looking for in an X-WR. Let me know if you think I missed someone.
This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pride Of Detroit or its writers.
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