When the curtain drops on the 2025 NFL Draft in Green Bay in less than a week, unpredictability will prevail. After the Titans take Cam Ward, nobody is really certain of any of the remaining picks for any team. Projecting picks is fun, but knowing the exact player pool that the Lions will be swimming in when Detroit goes on the clock at No. 28 can make one drown in possibilities.
This mock draft can be a lifebuoy. This one is from my sweetest dreams. It’s not going to happen, because it’s completely unrealistic. But a boy can dream…
With little regard for players who will be taken already (within reason in the first round), these are the picks I fantasize about Lions GM Brad Holmes making during the 2025 NFL Draft. Living the dream!
Round 1
Awakening on Thursday morning, my loving wife of almost 30 years breaks character and brings me and wishes me “Merry Draftsmas” by bringing me my ideal breakfast in bed: A shrimp cocktail, a white grapefruit and a cup of steamy kopi luwak in my favorite Lions mug.
Can this day possibly get any better?!?
It sure can! The draft stars align as Roger Goodell saunters to the podium and announces, “With the 28th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions select…Josh Simmons, offensive tackle, Ohio State.”Simmons would have been the top offensive line prospect in this draft if not for a torn patellar tendon last fall. As long as he recovers, he still will be the best offensive lineman this draft produces–and I say that as someone who likes quite a few of the high-end blockers (Donovan Jackson, Armand Membou, Grey Zabel, Will Campbell). Simmons’ injury status is optimal for Detroit, too. Here’s why:
The Lions have to pay Aidan Hutchinson. And Kerby Joseph. And Sam LaPorta. And Jameson Williams. And Jahmyr Gibbs. And Brian Branch. And Jack Campbell. All within the next 24 months. Something’s gotta give, and that’s Taylor Decker and his cap hits of over $21 million in 2026 and 2027, when the longtime left tackle is 33.
Decker has been great for years, but prioritize paying to keep young players. Simmons gets a redshirt year to get fully healthy and a little stronger, working with OL coach non-pariel Hank Fraley, and then takes over for Decker at a significant discount on his rookie contract. It’s soon enough that Decker–one of my favorite Lions ever–can still score another nice payday elsewhere a la Lomas Brown back in the end of his Detroit playing days. Or the Lions could even trade him after 2025. That part of the dream sucks, but it’s the reality of the business of football. Having a worthy succession plan is all part of the dream.
Round 2
The dream rolls into Friday night with bliss. I’m at Manhattan Beach at the AVP tour. Phil Dalhausser’s partner takes ill, and suddenly the goat needs an emergency partner. He points at me in the front row and begs me to play with him, just one match. I’m miraculously back in my playing shape and jumping higher, passing better and moving quicker than was ever conceivable. After I dig a monster cross-court hit like it was nothing, Dalhausser’s buttery hands set me up on the right line and I pound it, Sean Rosenthal style, on the line just behind the astonished blocker. Game, set, match–and just in time for the Lions second pick of the draft.
Tyleik Williams, DT, Ohio State
Yeah, two Ohio State players. They are the national champs for a reason–they’ve got a plethora of great players. Williams was the unsung man in the middle of the Buckeyes defense, and arguably the best run defender in this entire draft class. The strength, the explosion off the line, the preternatural ability to shed blocks, the eyes to find the ball, they’re all great with Williams.
His game is ready to step right into the Lions defensive tackle rotation. While he’s not known for his pass rush, Williams did bag five sacks as a freshman before he bulked up. With DJ Reader, Roy Lopez and Levi Onwuzurike all free agents after the season, Williams is a ready-made replacement who can get his NFL feet wet with them still in Detroit. Infusing talent that can contribute right away before assuming a bigger role at a more cost-controlled rate in 2026 and beyond, that’s the dream with Williams.
Round 3
As the Lions prep to go on the clock late Friday night with pick No. 102–the final pick of the draft’s second day–I’m sitting on the side of the stage at a Dream Theater concert. As John Petrucci shreds through the majestic coda of “The Ministry of Lost Souls” and Mike Portnoy casually flips me a stick after a thundering drum fill, I enjoy the fantastic virtuosity wrapping up before the Lions go on the clock once again.
With “Home” still joyfully ringing in my ears, I hear Lions CB Terrion Arnold make the announcement from the stage in Green Bay,
“With the pick number 102 in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions select Ashton Gillotte, defensive end from Louisville.”
Jordan Rudess high-fives me as I prepare to order a Gillotte jersey. That he’s lasted to No. 102 is something of a dream fulfilled already, but the Lions taking the extremely underappreciated Cardinals pass rusher relieves all my Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence. I’d have been happy if Gillotte was the pick at 60. Here’s what I wrote about the former CrossFit champ back in February,
Gillotte is a power-based, “crush-the-can” type of EDGE the Lions have typically coveted. While he’s not long or particularly athletic, Gillotte consistently wins from a standard DE alignment against both the run and the pass.
There are times when his outstanding bull rush and high football IQ can dominate, particularly against zone-run schemes and quarterbacks who hold the ball too long. There are also times when his athletic limitations and unrefined hand usage render him ineffective. There was some growth to his technical prowess over the course of the final two seasons, so the young Gillotte still has some upside, albeit tempered with an athletic ceiling.
Pull me under, I’m not afraid to keep dreaming…
Round 4
It’s Saturday morning and I’ve just awoken from a wonderful sleep. The Lions have drafted three dream warriors already, and I’m strolling on a warm beach, drinking a smoothie and watching dolphins frolic just off the shoreline. The leader of the pod swims dangerously up to the shore, and somehow I can understand him. He tells me exactly where to fish to land the best catch, and then lets me know the Lions are on the clock and going to make me happy. Who knew dolphins knew so much about the NFL Draft?
Sure enough, the pick announcement at No. 130 overall makes me salute my dreamy cetacean friends.
Kevin Winston, S, Penn State
I see Winston as an optimal replacement for Ifeatu Melifonwu as the third safety, a hybrid box safety/undersized LB role with a lot of blitzing and downhill attacking. He’s coming off a knee injury that basically wiped out his 2024 season for the Nittany Lions, but Winston has real potential to grow into a bigger role as an all-around safety. That the Lions don’t need that right away is the perfect situation for Winston to get his legs back under him, quite literally.
Round 6
A nice little catnap through the fifth round, in which the Lions don’t have a pick, reinvigorates me. I dreamt of a simpler time. It’s 1977 and my parents take me to my first-ever movie in a theater, “Smokey and the Bandit.” The pinnacle of CB culture, grandiose moustaches and the legend of Burt Reynolds.
But what’s that in my garage? No, it can’t be…Bandit One! The Pontiac Firebird from the movie, equipped with the 400 cubic inch V8 engine and the 6.6 liter decal. The gold firebird on the hood looks perfect. It takes me back to that wonderful time when I made the actual drive from Atlanta to Texarkana and bought a 12-pack of Coors with “Freebird” cranked as I peeled out of the gas station parking lot. I’m in sports media, I can’t afford the Snowman’s semi full of beer…
The trip down memory lane takes me on a mental detour through Fayetteville. It’s pertinent because that’s where I find the Lions’ sixth-round pick, a player from my own backyard here in West Michigan:
TeSlaa offers size, speed and playmaking from both the slot and aligned outside. Arkansas didn’t use the 6-4 speedster a ton, but the athletic upside is there. TeSlaa grew up in Hudsonville as a Lions fan, and it would be a dream for him to play in Detroit, he told me at the combine. His dream is my dream, and it comes true in this happy phantasmagoria.
Round 7
By this point in the draft weekend, I’m dreaming for it to be over. It’s an incredible experience but also an exhausting event to cover. Detroit has two picks in the draft’s final round, but Brad Holmes does me and all the other Lions media a favor and packages the two picks to trade up for one single draft target. There aren’t enough spots on the projected 53-man roster for two seventh-rounders to make the roster anyway.
The Lions package picks No. 228 and 244, sending them to the Atlanta Falcons for No. 217, the second pick of the seventh round. It’s a move to land one of “my guys” in the draft. It’s my dream, after all…
Jordan Oladokun, CB, Bowling Green
He’s the kind of player who can quickly become a fan favorite in Detroit. Oladokun isn’t fast (the 4.60 40 checks out), and he lacks length and hand size as an outside-only cornerback prospect. Oladokun’s game is reminiscent of a poor man’s Will Johnson. Michigan fans might recall Oladokun picking off J.J. McCarthy in the Big House in 2023. It’s what he does. From Bowling Green’s football program:
Jordan Oladokun is 1-of-3 CBs who yielded 0 TDs. Of those three, Jordan & Jahdae Barron (Texas) have the most INTs (5)
No. 2 in fewest allowed receiving yards (219)
No. 2 in allowed reception % on targets (42.6)
No. 8 in fewest allowed receptions (26)
He’s not going to do that in the NFL, but his smarts, toughness and strong special teams experience give Oladokun a chance to join his brother Chris, the Chiefs’ No. 3 QB, as a seventh-rounder (Steelers in 2022) who sticks for years.
May your draft dreams come true!
This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Detroit Lions dream mock draft picks
When the curtain drops on the 2025 NFL Draft in Green Bay in less than a week, unpredictability will prevail. After the Titans take Cam Ward, nobody is really certain of any of the remaining picks for any team. Projecting picks is fun, but knowing the exact player pool that the Lions will be swimming in when Detroit goes on the clock at No. 28 can make one drown in possibilities.
This mock draft can be a lifebuoy. This one is from my sweetest dreams. It’s not going to happen, because it’s completely unrealistic. But a boy can dream…
With little regard for players who will be taken already (within reason in the first round), these are the picks I fantasize about Lions GM Brad Holmes making during the 2025 NFL Draft. Living the dream!
Round 1
Awakening on Thursday morning, my loving wife of almost 30 years breaks character and brings me and wishes me “Merry Draftsmas” by bringing me my ideal breakfast in bed: A shrimp cocktail, a white grapefruit and a cup of steamy kopi luwak in my favorite Lions mug.
Can this day possibly get any better?!?
It sure can! The draft stars align as Roger Goodell saunters to the podium and announces, “With the 28th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions select…Josh Simmons, offensive tackle, Ohio State.”Simmons would have been the top offensive line prospect in this draft if not for a torn patellar tendon last fall. As long as he recovers, he still will be the best offensive lineman this draft produces–and I say that as someone who likes quite a few of the high-end blockers (Donovan Jackson, Armand Membou, Grey Zabel, Will Campbell). Simmons’ injury status is optimal for Detroit, too. Here’s why:
The Lions have to pay Aidan Hutchinson. And Kerby Joseph. And Sam LaPorta. And Jameson Williams. And Jahmyr Gibbs. And Brian Branch. And Jack Campbell. All within the next 24 months. Something’s gotta give, and that’s Taylor Decker and his cap hits of over $21 million in 2026 and 2027, when the longtime left tackle is 33.
Decker has been great for years, but prioritize paying to keep young players. Simmons gets a redshirt year to get fully healthy and a little stronger, working with OL coach non-pariel Hank Fraley, and then takes over for Decker at a significant discount on his rookie contract. It’s soon enough that Decker–one of my favorite Lions ever–can still score another nice payday elsewhere a la Lomas Brown back in the end of his Detroit playing days. Or the Lions could even trade him after 2025. That part of the dream sucks, but it’s the reality of the business of football. Having a worthy succession plan is all part of the dream.
Round 2
The dream rolls into Friday night with bliss. I’m at Manhattan Beach at the AVP tour. Phil Dalhausser’s partner takes ill, and suddenly the goat needs an emergency partner. He points at me in the front row and begs me to play with him, just one match. I’m miraculously back in my playing shape and jumping higher, passing better and moving quicker than was ever conceivable. After I dig a monster cross-court hit like it was nothing, Dalhausser’s buttery hands set me up on the right line and I pound it, Sean Rosenthal style, on the line just behind the astonished blocker. Game, set, match–and just in time for the Lions second pick of the draft.
Tyleik Williams, DT, Ohio State
Yeah, two Ohio State players. They are the national champs for a reason–they’ve got a plethora of great players. Williams was the unsung man in the middle of the Buckeyes defense, and arguably the best run defender in this entire draft class. The strength, the explosion off the line, the preternatural ability to shed blocks, the eyes to find the ball, they’re all great with Williams.
His game is ready to step right into the Lions defensive tackle rotation. While he’s not known for his pass rush, Williams did bag five sacks as a freshman before he bulked up. With DJ Reader, Roy Lopez and Levi Onwuzurike all free agents after the season, Williams is a ready-made replacement who can get his NFL feet wet with them still in Detroit. Infusing talent that can contribute right away before assuming a bigger role at a more cost-controlled rate in 2026 and beyond, that’s the dream with Williams.
Round 3
As the Lions prep to go on the clock late Friday night with pick No. 102–the final pick of the draft’s second day–I’m sitting on the side of the stage at a Dream Theater concert. As John Petrucci shreds through the majestic coda of “The Ministry of Lost Souls” and Mike Portnoy casually flips me a stick after a thundering drum fill, I enjoy the fantastic virtuosity wrapping up before the Lions go on the clock once again.
With “Home” still joyfully ringing in my ears, I hear Lions CB Terrion Arnold make the announcement from the stage in Green Bay,
“With the pick number 102 in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions select Ashton Gillotte, defensive end from Louisville.”
Jordan Rudess high-fives me as I prepare to order a Gillotte jersey. That he’s lasted to No. 102 is something of a dream fulfilled already, but the Lions taking the extremely underappreciated Cardinals pass rusher relieves all my Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence. I’d have been happy if Gillotte was the pick at 60. Here’s what I wrote about the former CrossFit champ back in February,
Gillotte is a power-based, “crush-the-can” type of EDGE the Lions have typically coveted. While he’s not long or particularly athletic, Gillotte consistently wins from a standard DE alignment against both the run and the pass.
There are times when his outstanding bull rush and high football IQ can dominate, particularly against zone-run schemes and quarterbacks who hold the ball too long. There are also times when his athletic limitations and unrefined hand usage render him ineffective. There was some growth to his technical prowess over the course of the final two seasons, so the young Gillotte still has some upside, albeit tempered with an athletic ceiling.
Pull me under, I’m not afraid to keep dreaming…
Round 4
It’s Saturday morning and I’ve just awoken from a wonderful sleep. The Lions have drafted three dream warriors already, and I’m strolling on a warm beach, drinking a smoothie and watching dolphins frolic just off the shoreline. The leader of the pod swims dangerously up to the shore, and somehow I can understand him. He tells me exactly where to fish to land the best catch, and then lets me know the Lions are on the clock and going to make me happy. Who knew dolphins knew so much about the NFL Draft?
Sure enough, the pick announcement at No. 130 overall makes me salute my dreamy cetacean friends.
Kevin Winston, S, Penn State
I see Winston as an optimal replacement for Ifeatu Melifonwu as the third safety, a hybrid box safety/undersized LB role with a lot of blitzing and downhill attacking. He’s coming off a knee injury that basically wiped out his 2024 season for the Nittany Lions, but Winston has real potential to grow into a bigger role as an all-around safety. That the Lions don’t need that right away is the perfect situation for Winston to get his legs back under him, quite literally.
Round 6
A nice little catnap through the fifth round, in which the Lions don’t have a pick, reinvigorates me. I dreamt of a simpler time. It’s 1977 and my parents take me to my first-ever movie in a theater, “Smokey and the Bandit.” The pinnacle of CB culture, grandiose moustaches and the legend of Burt Reynolds.
But what’s that in my garage? No, it can’t be…Bandit One! The Pontiac Firebird from the movie, equipped with the 400 cubic inch V8 engine and the 6.6 liter decal. The gold firebird on the hood looks perfect. It takes me back to that wonderful time when I made the actual drive from Atlanta to Texarkana and bought a 12-pack of Coors with “Freebird” cranked as I peeled out of the gas station parking lot. I’m in sports media, I can’t afford the Snowman’s semi full of beer…
The trip down memory lane takes me on a mental detour through Fayetteville. It’s pertinent because that’s where I find the Lions’ sixth-round pick, a player from my own backyard here in West Michigan:
TeSlaa offers size, speed and playmaking from both the slot and aligned outside. Arkansas didn’t use the 6-4 speedster a ton, but the athletic upside is there. TeSlaa grew up in Hudsonville as a Lions fan, and it would be a dream for him to play in Detroit, he told me at the combine. His dream is my dream, and it comes true in this happy phantasmagoria.
Round 7
By this point in the draft weekend, I’m dreaming for it to be over. It’s an incredible experience but also an exhausting event to cover. Detroit has two picks in the draft’s final round, but Brad Holmes does me and all the other Lions media a favor and packages the two picks to trade up for one single draft target. There aren’t enough spots on the projected 53-man roster for two seventh-rounders to make the roster anyway.
The Lions package picks No. 228 and 244, sending them to the Atlanta Falcons for No. 217, the second pick of the seventh round. It’s a move to land one of “my guys” in the draft. It’s my dream, after all…
Jordan Oladokun, CB, Bowling Green
He’s the kind of player who can quickly become a fan favorite in Detroit. Oladokun isn’t fast (the 4.60 40 checks out), and he lacks length and hand size as an outside-only cornerback prospect. Oladokun’s game is reminiscent of a poor man’s Will Johnson. Michigan fans might recall Oladokun picking off J.J. McCarthy in the Big House in 2023. It’s what he does. From Bowling Green’s football program:
Jordan Oladokun is 1-of-3 CBs who yielded 0 TDs. Of those three, Jordan & Jahdae Barron (Texas) have the most INTs (5)
No. 2 in fewest allowed receiving yards (219)
No. 2 in allowed reception % on targets (42.6)
No. 8 in fewest allowed receptions (26)
He’s not going to do that in the NFL, but his smarts, toughness and strong special teams experience give Oladokun a chance to join his brother Chris, the Chiefs’ No. 3 QB, as a seventh-rounder (Steelers in 2022) who sticks for years.
May your draft dreams come true!
This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Detroit Lions dream mock draft picks
