The Detroit Lions are likely to be in the market for a receiver very soon. Especially after there has been some clear depth issues across the board for this unit. According to Lions GM Brad Holmes, the team could be looking to add one at some point during camp.
Speaking of Holmes and receivers, a guy that he once showed a lot of interest in when he was the director of college scouting for the Rams just hit the market and would be good fit for Detroit. We’re talking about Juju Smith-Schuster.
Smith-Schuster is now available and Holmes has a chance to finally link up with him. At one point there seemed to be a lot of interest. The Rams met with Smith-Schuster multiple times ahead of the 2017 NFL Draft when Holmes was the teams top scout.
When asked which teams had shown the most interest in him a week before the 2017 draft, Smith-Schuster said the Rams and Cowboys. The Rams met with him at the combine and went so far as to even have Smith-Schuster work out with Jared Goff there. They were also at his pro day and had him in for a pre-draft visit.
Ultimately when it came to draft, the Rams might have been hoping to get Smith-Schuster at the top of the third-round with the 69th pick and he nearly made it there. The Steelers scooped him up with the 62nd pick in the second round and the Rams wound up taking Cooper Kupp instead. It all worked out in the end.
Smith-Schuster is coming off a bad season in New England. He had a concussion and an ankle injury that kept him out of some games. On top of that, the Patriots had one of the worst passing offenses in football and benched Mac Jones midway through the season.
In 2022 Smith-Schuster had a much better season with the Chiefs that saw him be the Chiefs leading receiver with 78 receptions for 933 yards and three touchdowns.
The way he fits in with Detroit is that he brings a lot of what Josh Reynolds brought to the table, but with more speed and athleticism. This is a guy that has multiple 90 plus yard touchdowns in his career because he can separate. In 2022, 47 of his 78 catches for the Chiefs were for first downs. He makes things happen.
Smith-Schuster can play on the outside too. He’s done that in the past with both the Chiefs and the Steelers as well as playing in the slot. It was the Chiefs that had him out wide more than any other team and he had a big season for them.
The final thing is that he wouldn’t come with a massive price tag. Smith-Schuster would be on his third team in four seasons and the Lions could have the ball in their court on the negotiations. This is one that’s definitely worth looking at since the fit is so good.