Inside the Article:
Many had a seventh-round grade on Western Kentucky DT Brodric Martin, but Detroit Lions GM Brad Holmes strongly disagreed. In fact, Holmes loved Martin so much that he traded up into Round 3 to land him. Following the draft, Holmes spoke to the media and explained why he moved up in the draft to take Martin.
Key Points
- The Lions traded up to select Martin in Round 3
- Holmes spoke to the media after the draft and explained that he loves Martin's potential due to his athleticism, size, and rawness.
- Holmes believes that Martin has the potential to be a difference-maker for the Lions and his physical traits make him a rare find in the NFL.
Brad Holmes talks about trading up to select DT Brodric Martin
After Round 3 concluded, Holmes met with the media and talked about Martin's potential in the NFL.
“He just has, like we say, he’s got a lot of meat on the bone,” Holmes said. “He’s got a lot of upside. He’s a big man, he’s athletic, he plays hard. He chases to the ball. I don’t think I’ve seen many 330-, 340-pound guys run to the ball like he does and so when you get that — he’s got some rawness, but we’re really excited about his upside.”
“You see him playing in some better competition games like Auburn and then you see some stuff late, he just has a lot of physical traits that get you really excited about his upside,” Holmes said. “I’m not sure, like, his testing numbers and all this stuff. This guy’s a big man, but he moves a lot better on film. He had a really good pro day, his workout was good and it’s hard to find big, athletic big guys like that.”
Bottom Line: Martin has the potential to be a difference-maker for Lions
There are a ton of prospects out there who have potential, but when you look at what Holmes had to say about Martin, you cannot help but get a bit excited. As I noted earlier, Martin had a 7th-round grade from multiple draft experts, but Holmes clearly believes the youngster has the potential to be a difference-maker for the Lions in the future.
