Before the Falcons selected tight end Kyle Pitts at No. 4 overall in the draft, they received a trade offer for that pick from the Lions.
We know this because the Falcons posted a video of footage from inside their draft room, with General Manager Terry Fontenot addressing who was calling from Detroit — presumably fellow G.M. Brad Holmes — by saying, “Yeah, we’re gonna pick.”
In an interview with Robert Mays of TheAthletic.com, Holmes addressed that call but didn’t delve too much into the details.
“We did have dialogue with Atlanta on that pick, and I’ll just leave it at that,” Holmes said. “But yeah, we did, we did have dialogue there. And they just decided to stay tight, and they could have had the same train of thought, just like we did — that they had their player in mind. I totally understand that. You just kind of want to just make sure that you’re not anchored, and you have all options available. You just can’t be scared to make those moves, if you can make ‘em.”
Based on video from their own draft room, the Lions were still able to get the player they really wanted in offensive tackle Penei Sewell at No. 7 overall. But there was no guarantee that Cincinnati would select wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase with the fifth pick instead of an offensive lineman. Or that Miami would choose receiver Jaylen Waddle at No. 6.
So while everything worked out, Holmes probably shouldn’t feel bad about exhausting every avenue to get the right player to start a new era in Detroit.