To wrap up their 2022 draft picks, the Detroit Lions took Arizona State cornerback Chase Lucas with the 237th overall pick.
The Detroit Lions lost their original seventh-round pick, No. 234, upon further review of last year’s Trinity Benson trade. But they got a seventh-rounder (pick 237) back in a Day 3 draft pick deal with the Philadelphia Eagles, and with their final selection in the 2022 NFL Draft the Lions took Arizona State cornerback Chase Lucas.
Lucas was a five-year starter at Arizona State, starting 49 of 53 games and earning Freshman All-American honors in 2017. After a nice start (five interceptions in his first two seasons) didn’t tally an interception in either of his last two seasons (14 total games), and picked off just one pass in 2019. But he did not allow a touchdown in his coverage last season.
From 2017-2021, Lucas forced 32 incompletions, the most in the Pac-12.
Chase Lucas instantly becomes one of the Lions’ oldest cornerbacks
Lucas played outside and in the slot for the Sun Devils, with high marks for his football IQ. He also ran a sub-4.5 40 at the NFL Combine, with an 8.86 Relative Athletic Score spurred by a 39-inch vertical, a 6.78 three-cone.
As Jeremy Reisman of Pride of Detroit noted, Lucas is one of the oldest prospects in this year’s entire draft class at 25 years old. He also becomes the third-oldest cornerback on the Lions’ roster.
The Lions can use some depth at corner, with Jeff Okudah working his way back from an Achilles’ tear and Jerry Jacobs working his way back from a torn ACL he suffered in Week 14 last season. Jacobs is sure to miss time into the season, and Okudah has a lot to prove entering his third NFL season.
Detroit taking a cornerback before their final pick of the draft might have been nice. But for Lucas, it just means he’s in line for a legit chance to earn a roster spot, and possibly a significant role, right out of the gate.