After months of going over the data,, the film, and staring at these guys names, these are the top 25 prospects for the Detroit Lions in the 2026 NFL Draft<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/USATSI_23017631-scaled.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPenn State offensive lineman Vega Ioane (71) celebrates with running back Quinton Martin after the freshman scored a touchdown during the Blue-White game at Beaver Stadium on Saturday, April 13, 2024, in State College. The White team defeated the Blue team, 27-0.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDan Rainville \/ USA TODAY NETWORK<\/p>\n
The 2026 NFL Draft is two weeks away, and after months of going over the data and looking at all of these players\u2019 names, watching film, and staring at analytics until I pass out, these are the top 25 players for the Lions. If they walk out with any of them, they had a good draft.<\/p>\n
Top-25 2026 NFL Draft prospects for Detroit Lions<\/p>\n
1: Vega Ioane, IOL, Penn State<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 16th
AtoZ Sports Big Board Ranking: 16th
The Beast Ranking: 12th<\/p>\n
I know Lions fans have their hearts set on a tackle or an edge with the 17th pick, but if they get a shot at Ioane, we\u2019re talking about the guy who is truly the best player available at the 17th pick. <\/p>\n
He hasn\u2019t allowed a sack in two seasons, and he only allowed four pressures in 2025. Having an interior of Ioane, Cade Mays, and Tate Ratledge is a game-changer for Detroit. They won\u2019t need to update for the next decade. <\/p>\n
2: Akheem Mesidor, Edge, Miami<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 32nd
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 21st
The Beast Ranking: 28th<\/p>\n
No edge rusher in this draft is more ready to go right now than Mesidor is. We keep talking about run defense a lot when it comes to Detroit. Well, this guy is the top run-defending edge in the class. He had a 90.5 run defense grade in 2025, per Pro Football Focus. <\/p>\n
He also had 55 pressures and nine sacks to boot. The concern here is that he will be 25 years old in his rookie season. That might not be a total deal-breaker, but the Lions are probably looking for someone younger.<\/p>\n
3: Kadyn Proctor, OT, Alabama<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 27th
AtoZ Sports Big Board Banking: 24th
The Beast Ranking: 19th<\/p>\n
It\u2019s no shock when you see Proctor mocked to the Lions a lot, and it\u2019s no shock that the Lions reportedly love him. He just fits in many different ways. He\u2019s a solid pass and run blocker. <\/p>\n
He can play on either the left or right side, and he has that Sewell-like play style that has him blocking downfield. His athleticism is off the charts for a player his size. If he were to drop a little bit of weight, he\u2019s prime time for the Lions at right tackle. Proctor allowed 19 pressures and two sacks in 2025.<\/p>\n
4. Caleb Lomu, OT, Utah<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 23rd
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 28th
The Beast Ranking: 25th<\/p>\n
Lomu could fit right in at left tackle. He was an elite pass blocker at Utah in 2025, allowing just eight pressures and zero sacks. The question with him is in the run-blocking department. He had a down year in that area.<\/p>\n
5: Blake Miller, OT, Clemson<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 31st
AtoZ Sports Big Board Ranking: 36th
The Beast Ranking: 29th<\/p>\n
When you\u2019re thinking about a right tackle who can start for the Lions in 2026, you probably want a guy who has a lot of experience at the position. That\u2019s Miller. He\u2019s been Clemson\u2019s starting right tackle since his freshman season.<\/p>\n
He allowed 14 pressures and two sacks in 2025, and he\u2019s solid in all the areas the Lions want a tackle to be solid in. Plus, personality-wise, he\u2019s just a Dan Campbell guy all around. <\/p>\n
6: Derrick Moore, Edge, Michigan<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 61
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 65th
The Beast Ranking: 77th<\/p>\n
Moore is another bull-rushing edge rusher from the Big Ten. He was blowing up guys at the Senior Bowl, and that\u2019s what we saw at Michigan, where he put up 41 pressures and 11 sacks. He\u2019s also quite good at stopping the run, which we know the Lions want to do pretty badly. It helps that he plays just right up the road in Ann Arbor. You know the Lions have had scouts there to see him.<\/p>\n
7: Zion Young, Edge, Missouri<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 42nd
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 38th
The Beast Ranking: 37th<\/p>\n
Not long ago, there was another Missouri edge that everyone thought the Lions might take. That was Darius Robinson. This guy is a better prospect. He\u2019s coming off a big 51-pressure, eight-sack season, and he had an elite run-defense grade. Right up the Lions\u2019 alley.<\/p>\n
8: Kyle Louis, LB, Pitt<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 93rd
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 89th
The Beast Ranking: 75th<\/p>\n
With Alex Anzalone gone, Louis fits right into his role. He\u2019s a sure tackler, he can be a ball hawk in coverage, and he can rush the passer as well. He\u2019s just perfect for that Will linebacker spot. One of my personal favorite players in this draft. We also know the Lions have been around Pitt a couple of times this year, so they\u2019re familiar with him.<\/p>\n
9: T.J. Parker, Edge, Clemson<\/p>\n
Average Draft Position: 33
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 30th
The Beast Ranking: 31st<\/p>\n
He had a quietly productive season at Clemson this year with 41 pressures and six sacks. He also had five forced fumbles (zero in 2025) and 20 tackles for loss in his career. The guy can do his thing, and we know the Lions had scouts at Clemson this year. <\/a><\/p>\n 10: Cashius Howell, Edge, Texas A&M<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 34 There\u2019s a little trade-off with Howell and Parker here. Howell is a better pass rusher, recording 41 pressures and 11.5 sacks this past season, but Parker is the better run defender. <\/p>\n It\u2019s not that Howell is bad; it\u2019s just that Parker is better. There\u2019s a lot of value to having a guy who can rush the passer, but you also want a guy who can do more than one thing. The Lions have seen Texas A&M play a couple of times this year.<\/a><\/p>\n 11: Gennings Dunker, OT, Iowa<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 54th It\u2019s seriously like watching a dude from the 80\u2019s, and it\u2019s not just because he has a mullet. He has the build and the play style of an old school player who just wants to hit some dudes. <\/p>\n He is tremendous in the run game. He\u2019s the kind of guy who is looking for blocks that he can make just so he can get some hurt out there. He\u2019s a Dan Campbell-style guy. Dunker allowed 10 pressures and two sacks in 2025.<\/p>\n 12: Gabe Jacas, Edge, Illinois<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 48th Jacas had 41 pressures and 11.5 sacks in the Big Ten in 2025. This guy is all strength. He\u2019s the type of guy who can push just about any lineman out there, and he has the burst to get at these guys before they know what hit them. <\/p>\n The question is, can he grow his game behind that power?<\/p>\n 13: D\u2019Angelo Ponds, CB, Indiana<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 50th Ponds is the best slot corner in the draft. If the Lions move on from Amik Robertson, Ponds can step in and start immediately. He is small at just 5-9, but he plays like he\u2019s 7-feet tall. His size has not affected his play at all, even against bigger receivers.<\/p>\n 14: Jalon Kilgore, DB, South Carolina<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 125th The thing to like about Kilgore is positional versatility. He can play safety, outside corner, nickel, and slot. You can put him anywhere in the secondary, and he is going to play it well. The only real question is, do the Lions feel like they have their fill of players like this already, or can you never have enough of these guys?<\/p>\n 15: Jaishawn Barham, Edge, Michigan<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 95th If the Lions are looking to fill that Sam Linebacker spot, which it looks like they are, Barhama is the very best player to do that with in this draft. He can pass rush, set the edge in the run game, and drop into coverage. He makes a lot of sense for the Lions.<\/p>\n 16: Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 59th His 92.7 coverage grade was the highest among all linebackers in the country in 2025. The perfect type of player the Lions would want with Alex Anzalone moving on. He doesn\u2019t bring the pass-rush ability that Anzalone brings, but man, he can cover well.<\/p>\n 17. Tyler Onyedim, DT, Texas A&M<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 162nd Let\u2019s face it, the Lions have been doing their due diligence on interior defensive linemen. They want to be better in the middle just as much as they want to be better on the edges. Onyedim is a steal for where the Lions could grab him. He can pass rush, he can run stuff. He doesn\u2019t have to be a day one or two pick. <\/p>\n 18: Max Iheanachor, OT, Arizona State<\/p>\n Average Draft Spot: 37th If the plan is truly to have Larry Borrom be the starting right tackle in 2026, then Iheanachor makes a ton of sense for the Lions. He could probably use a year to bake in the NFL, and that scenario with Borom would give him a chance to do that. Iheanachor is a solid athlete who is new to football, but he\u2019s not Giovanni Manu. He took to Division 1 football like a fish to water. He just needs a little more time.<\/p>\n 19: Zakee Wheatley, S, Penn State<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 97th This is another one of the best safeties in the class. He\u2019s a playmaker, and that\u2019s why he should be a name you watch to be on the rise when it comes to draft time. <\/p>\n The big concern is technique. He can take wrong angles at times, and he\u2019s inconsistent off the snap. These are things that can be coached up.<\/p>\n 20: Malachi Lawrence, Edge, Central Florida<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 55th If we\u2019re looking at a value pass rusher in the second or maybe third round, Lawrence fits that bill. He had 40 pressures and seven sacks in 2025, and he\u2019s gotten better every season. The one concern is that he could be a little better against the run. <\/p>\n 21: Kaytron Allen, RB, Penn State<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 153rd With David Montgomery gone, here\u2019s a guy who is essentially just a younger version of him. His comp is Montgomery by just about everyone. He could fit that role beautifully if the Lions do indeed look to draft a running back. They have a lot of guys in that room already. <\/p>\n 22: Oscar Delp, TE, Georgia<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 111th Delp is one of the best pass-blocking tight ends in the nation in 2025. Out of tight ends with a minimum of 300 snaps, Delp was the fifth-highest grade pass blocker. <\/p>\n His run blocking is solid, too. If the Lions look to move on from Brock Wright as their main blocking tight end, Delp fits the bill.<\/p>\n 23: Dontay Corleone, DT, Cincinnati<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 104th A nose tackle who can rush the passer. You don\u2019t see it too often. Cincinnati didn\u2019t use him that way in 2025, but they did to great success in 2023 and 2024. I like a guy at that position who has that extra piece beyond space-eating and run-stuffing. Corleone is that guy. <\/p>\n 24: Jadon Canady, CB, Oregon<\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 115th The Lions need more slot corners. Right now, they just have Roger McCreary, and that\u2019s it. Besides Ponds, Canady is the best slot corner in this draft, and unlike Ponds, he\u2019s done it a lot. He\u2019s not a corner that people expect to move to the slot. He\u2019s already been there, and he\u2019s done it very well.<\/p>\n 25: Nadame Tucker, Edge, Western Michigan <\/p>\n Average Draft Position: 188th Another guy who\u2019s right up the road, though a little farther up. Tucker had 59 pressures and 12 sacks in 2025. The only real concern is that 2025 was his only full year of college football. <\/p>\n He was at Houston for three seasons and mostly played a backup or special teams role.<\/p>\n \t\t\t Detroit Lions News<\/p>\n 2026 NFL Draft<\/a> Detroit Lions News<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After months of going over the data,, the film, and staring at these guys names, these are the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":861307,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2071],"tags":[4955,146,113,153,2506,7,147,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-861306","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-detroit-lions","8":"tag-2026-nfl-draft","9":"tag-detroit","10":"tag-detroit-lions","11":"tag-detroit-lions-news","12":"tag-detroitlions","13":"tag-football","14":"tag-lions","15":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116370310994697672","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=861306"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/861306\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/861307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=861306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=861306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=861306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 25th
The Beast Ranking: 39th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 54th
The Beast Ranking: 71st<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 58th
The Beast Ranking: 49th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports Big board ranking: 51st
The Beast Ranking: 38th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 99th
The Beast Ranking: 88th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports Big Board Ranking: 136th
The Beast Ranking: 100th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 55th
The Beast Ranking: 40th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports Big Board Ranking: Unranked
The Beast Ranking: 75th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports Big Board Ranking: 40th
The Beast Ranking: 33rd<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 75th
The Beast Ranking: 78th<\/p>\n
AtoZSports Big Board: 63rd
The Beast Ranking: 36th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports big board ranking: 128th
The Beast Ranking: Unranked<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports Big Board Ranking: 131st
The Beast Ranking: 86th<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports Big Board: 112th
The Beast Ranking: Unranked<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports Big Board: 194th
The Beast Ranking: Unranked<\/p>\n
AtoZ Sports Big Board: 146th
The Beast Ranking: Unranked<\/p>\n![\"Florida](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/USATSI_24780046-scaled.jpg\")
\t\t<\/p>\n