Lions’ Fans Should Revel In the Latest Brad Holmes Praise
Credit: Junfu Han via Imagn Images
The Detroit Lions’ fan base has long deserved an era like the one they’re going through right now, and much of it is thanks to Brad Holmes’ ability to build and maintain a strong roster. Holmes has rightfully earned a reputation as one of the NFL’s best general managers, and much of it is due to his ability to build an immensely talented group through the draft.
On a conference call Wednesday, former GM and current ESPN analyst Mike Tannenbaum had huge praise for Holmes’.
“I think if you, if you add three or four meaningfully contributing players, and you do that over three, four or five years, you have a cost controlled roster that has sustained success,” Tannenbaum said. “So I know we get so caught up on, you know, when you pick and what they should be, but I think that’s a general rule of thumb. I would certainly put Brad Holmes up there in the elite category. I’d argue with anybody, how not?
“You know, look, we need another year with Arnold and Rakestraw from last year, but I think those guys are going to continue to contribute, but really the bulk of their roster, I think he’s seen players that can, you know, in meaningful ways, help, just up and down,” Tannenbaum said. “From Gibbs to LaPorta, on and on and on. I think… if he’s not an elite drafter or talent evaluator/roster builder, I’m not really sure who is right now. So I think they’ve done a heck of a job, and their results speak for themselves.”
It’s so difficult to argue with. Brad Holmes inherited the GM job of an organization that was a punchline for decades. In five short years, he made all those years a distant memory.
The trade he made for Jared Goff in 2021 was the catalyst for building a Championship contender. Goff was coming off a tenure in Los Angeles where he regressed every single season; in particular, 2019 was a season where he led the league in pass attempts but only had 22 touchdowns to show for it. Holmes turned around and swung for the fences by trading Matthew Stafford to the Rams for Goff and significant draft capital, and he used that capital to give the Lions and Goff a roster under which they could thrive. In a sense, Holmes became an anomaly – a man who traded away a Hall of Fame quarterback and walked away looking like a genius.
It hasn’t just been him building the elite roster; he’s done well by maintaining it. He has already extended franchise players in Goff, Penei Sewell, and Amon-Ra St. Brown, and he still has an opportunity to give paydays to the litany of star players that the Lions have drafted over the last few seasons. The ability to build a culture and roster that the Lions faithful has desperately been searching for is why Holmes has earned a reputation as one of the best GMs in the NFL and theLions faithful should enjoy every compliment that comes his and their way.
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