1. Edge rusher
Aidan Hutchinson was on pace to be an NFL Defensive Player of the Year candidate before a broken leg derailed the rest of his season. He had 7.5 sacks and 45 pressures in five and a half games. The 7.5 sacks still led the Lions last year. He'll certainly be motivated to have a monster season, and the Lions are expecting the same.
Holmes re-signed veteran Marcus Davenport, who was good opposite Hutchinson to begin the year with a sack and four quarterback hits in the Week 1 win over the Rams before suffering a torn bicep Week 3 and missing the rest of the season. But Davenport has played in just six games the last two seasons because of injury and has played more than 11 games in a season just once in the last five years.
"I need to prove myself as a healthy component and I think everything else will fall in place," he said after signing a one-year contract for the 2025 season this offseason. "Once I prove to myself then everything else should take care of itself."
Can he stay on the field for an entire season?
Detroit also returns veteran Josh Paschal on the edge, who will be entering the final year of his rookie contract. Paschal is a powerful edge setter and is good against the run, but only has 5.0 sacks in three seasons.
The Lions also return Isaac Ukwu and Nate Lynn on the edge, but there's only two games of experience between those developing prospects. Levi Onwuzurike and Myles Adams can play on the edge too, but they're more productive inside.
The Lions released Za'Darius Smith, who they traded for at the deadline last season. He was due a large roster bonus and it will be interesting to see if he could still be an option to return. He and Charles Omenihu are probably the top veteran options still available along the edge in free agency.
When it comes to the draft, this edge class is loaded. In fact, this entire defensive line class is one of the best in recent memory. If Holmes is looking for young edge help in the draft, he could find an immediate impact player well into Day 2. It's that deep.
It would actually be a bit shocking if Detroit didn't walk away from this draft with a couple good defensive line prospects, given how much Holmes and Campbell value trench play and just the pure strength of the class overall upfront. It won't be surprising if best available is a defensive lineman more than once.