From time to time this offseason Tim Twentyman will answer 10 good questions from his Twitter account @ttwentyman in a feature we call "10 Questions with Twentyman."
20man: Good question to set the stage for the rest of the column.
Offensively, the two biggest Lions free-agents-to-be are right guard Graham Glasgow and slot receiver Danny Amendola. Backup quarterback Jeff Driskel is also a free agent. Wide receivers Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones Jr. are entering the final years of their deals, but I wouldn't be surprised if Golladay gets an extension before the season coming off his first Pro Bowl season. Left tackle Taylor Decker is also entering the final year of his five-year rookie deal.
Defensively, cornerback Rashaan Melvin started 12 games opposite Darius Slay at outside corner, and he's an unrestricted free agent. Defensive tackles A'Shawn Robinson and Mike Daniels are also scheduled to hit free agency.
A couple other key names headed to free agency are: Safety Tavon Wilson, punter Sam Martin, safety/linebacker Miles Killebrew and tight end Logan Thomas.
20man: The most recent comparison was probably two years ago when the New York Jets went from No. 6 to No. 3 to get quarterback Sam Darnold. They gave Indianapolis three second-round picks to do so -- Two picks that year and one in 2019.
What makes Miami interesting at No. 5 this year is they have three first-round picks (5, 18 & 26). Depending on how bad the Dolphins want to move up, potentially for a quarterback, the Lions could be in a great position to acquire No. 5, one of their other first-round picks, and potentially a Day 2 pick. That's a nice haul, and the Lions could still get an impact defensive player (Okudah, Simmons, Brown or someone else) at No. 5.
20man: I'll start with cornerback Jeff Okudah out of Ohio State. The Lions are one of three defenses to record a league-low seven interceptions in 2019. Slay is scheduled to become a free agent following the 2020 season. Okudah has terrific length (6-1, 200 pounds), athleticism and the skill to fit Detroit's defensive style. He's clearly the best cornerback in this draft.
Auburn defensive tackle Derrick Brown is another one. The Lions could lose some bodies in the middle to free agency and potentially retirement, and Da'Shawn Hand has battled injuries in both his first two seasons. Brown is big pocket mover and playmaker from the interior.
Clemson hybrid Isaiah Simmons (6-4, 230) is an interesting one for me. I sometimes worry about players who don't have a defined position, but watching him on tape, he was a playmaker rushing the quarterback, playing an off-the-ball linebacker role and even stepping back in coverage at safety. Some work has to be done on him, but something tells me a creative defensive mind can help him be an impact player right away.
I'll also throw Alabama wide receiver Jerry Jeudy in here, if the Lions decide to go that route. He'd be an immediate impact player benefitting from not having to carry the load right away in Detroit playing alongside Golladay and Jones. That's a perfect situation for a young receiver to excel in.
20man: Very true. I think sometimes people forget that free agency precedes the draft, and what happens in the month leading up to the draft in free agency can impact a team's draft strategy.
It's a pretty nice initial list of free agent interior defenders, but we have to also remember that franchise tags and re-signings could change this list the closer we get to the start of the league year and free agency in March.
At the top of the list is Chris Jones (Kansas City). He's one of the best interior defenders in the game, and it seems unlikely the Chiefs would let him get away. He's followed by Arik Armstead (San Francisco), D.J. Reader (Houston), Javon Hargrave (Pittsburgh), Leonard Williams (New York Jets), Michael Pierce (Baltimore), Shelby Harris (Denver), Jarran Reed (Seattle), Ndamukong Suh (Tampa Bay) and Gerald McCoy (Carolina).
20man: The biggest difference is the size. Simmons is unofficially 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds. Peppers was 5-11, 213 as measured at the Combine. That's a big difference. Peppers was playing a hybrid linebacker role out of position his final year at Michigan out of necessity.
Simmons has the size to be a natural fit as both an on-the-ball or off-the-ball linebacker. His game also has some really good safety traits to it. He can cover and he's instinctive. He can line up in the slot and run with tight ends and running backs.
Peppers was a safety that played out of position in college. Simmons, because of his size and athleticism, was a player used in a lot of different ways to maximize his playmaking potential. As prospects go, Simmons is the much better talent heading into the draft than Peppers was.
20man: I still think Okudah could make the most impact, and that's coming from someone who's on record as saying he doesn't like drafting corners high in the first round unless they check off all the boxes, and I mean all the boxes.
Jalen Ramsey did in 2016, Marshon Lattimore in 2017 and Denzel Ward in 2018. When it's all said and done, Okudah has a chance to do that.
The Lions had the worst pass defense in the NFL this past season and tied for the fewest interceptions (7). They obviously need to bolster their pass rush, but Okudah is the kind of cover corner who could really complement Slay on the other side.
20man: There's always that possibility. Teams can never have too many good backs, especially with the attrition we see at that position. But I will say this: I talked to Lions running backs coach Kyle Caskey at the Senior Bowl, and he was pretty high on his trio of Kerryon Johnson, Bo Scarbrough and Ty Johnson.
20man: It's the access to the prospects that makes it a good week. These coaches sat in the meeting rooms, film rooms and got to perform a week-long interview with 69 players that 31 other teams didn't. Who can retain info? Who fits scheme? Who can take instruction? Who loves ball? These are the kinds of things teams spend months trying to answer ahead of the draft. Detroit and Cincinnati, who coached the South Team at the Senior Bowl, got a head start on everyone in that regard.
San Francisco coached the game last year and ended up taking two impact rookies they got to know at the Senior Bowl in wide receiver Deebo Samuel and linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
20man: Depends on your definition of overly aggressive. I don't see them reaching for players, if that's what you mean.
My guess is they'll be looking for players who can make an immediate impact. They'll get one at No. 3 (if they stay there) and they should get two more picking in the top of the second and third rounds on Day 2. The first three picks should always be immediate impact players, in my opinion.
After that, I could see this being a draft where experience and production outweighs some flashing physical skills, maybe getting some guys who are closer to playing and helping earlier than guys with higher ceilings that might take longer to develop.
20man: For those of you out there who might not be familiar, that's Utah edge rusher Bradlee Anae and Michigan edge rusher Josh Uche.
Both players worked with the Lions coaching staff at the Senior Bowl last week, and both players helped their stock in Mobile.
Uche checked in at 6-1, 241 pounds and showed good speed and bend off the edge as a stand-up pass rusher. He also showed some athleticism in space, which was important for him. Anae is a little bigger at 6-3, 251. He's a technician with a lot of pass-rushing moves and good anticipatory skills.
They were both active and disruptive in the game on Saturday, too, which was good to see.
Anae, Utah's all-time sack leader, is likely a second-round pick. Uche could also be a Day 2 pick. The Lions got a good look at both players last week. I could certainly see at least one being a Lion next season.
