Lions trade up with Cowboys to fill clear defensive need

Terrion Arnold

The hosts have moved up the first-round order. Detroit has acquired the No. 24 overall pick from the Cowboys, sending Dallas the 29th selection along with No. 73 overall. The Lions will add a seventh-round pick next year. With the pick, the Lions have selected Alabama corner Terrion Arnold, becoming the second team to add a prospect at that position.

Arnold found his way out of Tallahassee as a consensus top-three safety out of John Paul II Catholic HS (FL). Unlike Latham and McKinstry, Arnold didn’t see the field at all in 2021, redshirting his true freshman year. Still, he came in as a starter as a redshirt freshman the following season. Alabama didn’t try him at safety at all, immediately seeing his potential as a cornerback. He missed a few games in 2022, starting seven of 11 appearances, but would start every game in 2023.

In just two seasons as a starter, Arnold recorded six interceptions (five this year) and 20 passes defensed. While perhaps quarterbacks were tempted to force the ball in Arnold’s direction to avoid teammate Kool-Aid McKinstry, Arnold proved to be formidable in his own right. Arnold is slightly smaller than his counterpart but boasts tremendous footwork and hip mobility to blanket opposing receivers. The ball-hawking cornerback paired with McKinstry to serve as the nation’s deadliest duo by far.

Now Arnold heads to Motown, where he slots in as an immediate potential starter as a rookie. As they watched Cameron Sutton and Jerry Jacobs depart in free agency, the Lions opted to add Carlton Davis to start across from Brian Branch, who impressed as a rookie last year, ranking as Pro Football Focus’ eighth-best cornerback in the NFL.

Detroit should provide Arnold the immediate opportunity to earn the starting job across from his former Alabama teammate. Expect Davis, Branch and Arnold to see a lot of the field together in extra-defensive back packages. At 24th overall, the Lions somehow nailed the second-best cornerback on the board, with some even viewing him as the top option.

Ely Allen contributed to the post.

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