The Detroit Lions traded up to drat Utah running back/safety Sione Vaki in the 2024 NFL draft. The Lions got a great player and he is in no way a consolation prize. We here at A to Z Detroit have been big fans of Vaki for a while and ultimately believe he was the better pick, but he may not have been the original idea.
That might have been former Michigan Wolverines running back Blake Corum. Lions head coach Dan Campbell gushed over him Friday and maybe let out a little secret.
“Another player we really loved. We had a lot of love for Corum, brought him in here and had the local day and all that and got to sit down with him. Of course, you know, he was in our backyard so we certainly got to see a lot of him. We have a lot of respect for the way he plays the game. His background, he’s just another one of those football playing dudes. He runs hard, he’s smart, he’s explosive, he’s quick and he’ll suit them well.”
There’s no doubt the Lions wanted to add a running back in the draft and they wanted someone that could do special teams stuff as well. They showed a ton of interest in both Corum and Vaki along the way, but they were probably only going to get one of them.
Corum went to the Rams with the 83rd pick in the third-round. The Lions had the 73rd pick going into the draft, but when the opportunity to draft Terrion Arnold presented itself, the Lions had to move off their third-round pick to move up for him. You can’t blame them for making that move because Arnold is that guy, but it did mean that Corum would have to fall if Detroit wanted him.
That, as we know, didn’t happen. Vaki fell and the Lions were the smart team that traded assets to move up and get him. The rest is history. Again, we think the Lions did the right thing by getting Vaki, but the similarities in terms of size and versatility are there and they’re hard to ignore. The Lions may have loved both of these guys and caught a break when they weren’t able to draft one of them.
The Lions will get a look at what Corum can do in the NFL on Sunday night and I think they’ll be pleased they took Vaki instead.