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Brad Holmes

Lions Contemplating Jared Goff Extension

May 2nd, 2023 at 12:25pm CST by Adam La Rose

After the Lions drafted one of the more high-profile quarterbacks in this year’s class, questions were raised regarding the long-term future of Jared Goff in Detroit. A new deal keeping him in place could be on the horizon, though.

During an appearance on 97.1 WXYT-FM, general manager Brad Holmes confirmed that extension talks have begun between the team and Goff’s representatives. “Yeah, we’ve had internal dialogue there,” Holmes said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “We’ve had dialogue with his agent and we’re in a good place right now.”

Goff, 28, earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2022 for his impressive performance in guiding the Lions to a late-season push for a playoff spot. The former first overall pick posted his highest passer rating since 2018, and went nine straight games to close out the campaign without throwing an interception. However, he is only under contract for two more seasons (at cap hits of $30.975MM and $31.975MM), and the absence of guarantees in 2024 would make it easy for the team to move on that year.

For that reason, many have pointed to this season as being Goff’s last in the Motor City. Prior to the draft, no talks had taken place regarding an extension, which seemed to leave the door open to an eventual successor being drafted. The Lions did indeed add a signal-caller, selecting Hendon Hooker in the third round after a somewhat surprising fall down the board. The Tennessee product generated first-round buzz but was expected to hear his name called no later than the second round.

Hooker is coming off a torn ACL which will limit his availability as a rookie. That will hinder his acclimation to the pro game, something which is of particular concern considering his age (25) upon arrival in the NFL. Holmes confirmed that the reigning SEC Offensive Player of the Year will essentially have a redshirt campaign as the No. 3 quarterback in 2023.

“Obviously he’ll be a rookie and he’s going to have to transition into playing in a different type of scheme, but we’re really excited about his upside, so how NFL ready are a lot of quarterbacks that you acquire?” Holmes added. “And that’s just part of the normal development process and again, just a testament of I think we have the right situation for him, just to come and sit back, see how Jared and [backup] Nate [Sudfeld] do things and just develop.”

Expectations will be raised for the Lions’ offense, which added running back Jahmyr Gibbs in the first round – later than they were willing to draft him – this season. Another strong campaign from Goff could make his financial situation even more interesting (and the team’s decision with him more difficult), especially with his potential replacement now in the fold.

Lions GM Brad Holmes Backs Jared Goff As Starting QB

January 15th, 2023 at 4:57pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Lions engineered a remarkable turnaround late in the season, and nearly managed to clinch the NFC’s final playoff spot on the back of their offensive efficiency in particular. Detroit’s play under center is now likely to lead to continuity at the position into 2023.

Lions general manager Brad Holmes endorsed Jared Goff as the team’s top signal-caller when speaking to the media in his season-ending news conference. That would have come as a surprise not long ago, as their acquisition of the 28-year-old was widely thought to simply make him a ‘bridge’ starter likely resulting in a younger option being drafted not long after.

That sentiment remained true well into the start of the 2022 season, when the Lions sat at 1-5 and they appeared to be destined for one of the top spots (if not the No. 1 slot) in this spring’s draft. However, Goff helped guide the team to a 5-1 record to close out the season as they continued to showcase their surprising production both in the passing game and on the ground.

Goff himself was efficient in the process, going nine straight games without throwing an interception to finish the season. The former Ram added 15 touchdowns and averaged over 266 yards per game during that span, adding to his chances of his new team committing to him for the long haul. He is under contract for two more years with cap hits of $30.9MM and $31.9MM, but there is no guaranteed money remaining on his deal.

“I think it’s a lot easier to get worse at quarterback than to get better at quarterback, in this league,” Holmes said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (subscription required). “And so, I think what Jared has done this year, he captained the ship of a top-three offense, and I want to say he was top-10 statistically in most of the passing categories. And again, you know how we approach the draft like we’re never going to turn down a good football player, so if there’s a football player we really love, we’re going to make sure every stone is unturned. But I do think that Jared has proven everybody that he is the starting quarterback for us.”

Indeed, the Rams’ collapse this season leaves Detroit with the No. 6 pick in this year’s draft owing to the Goff-Matthew Stafford swap from last year. The Lions’ own pick sits at 18, so they will have multiple opportunities to draft someone to compete with Goff in the near term or succeed him down the road. Regardless of what this offseason brings, though, the matter of the Lions’ 2023 QB situation appears to be far more certain now than it was in the fall.

Lions Interested In Re-Signing WR DJ Chark, DL John Cominsky

January 12th, 2023 at 9:30pm CST by Ben Levine

The Lions have interest in retaining free agents on both sides of the ball. When asked about the impending free agencies of wide receiver DJ Chark and defensive lineman John Cominsky, Lions GM Brad Holmes made it clear that he’d like to re-sign the two players.

“Those guys had good years and, look, as long as their fits for our culture and what we’re trying to build and where we’re going, yeah, absolutely [we’d like to re-sign them],” Holmes said (via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press).

After starting his career with the Jaguars, Chark inked a one-year, $10MM deal with the Lions last offseason. The wideout ended up starting 10 of his 11 games, hauling in 30 receptions for 502 yards and three touchdowns. Chark suffered an ankle injury in Week 3 that kept him off the field until the middle of November.

Following three forgettable seasons in Atlanta to start his career, Cominsky was claimed by the Lions in May. He ended up starting eight of his 14 games in 2022, ranking second on the team in QB pressures and hits. For his efforts, Pro Football Focus ranked Cominsky 47th among 119 qualifying edge defenders, including one of the best grades at the position for coverage. The defensive end seems to share his GM’s sentiment, telling Kyle Meinke of MLive that he’d like to stick around Detroit.

“I do want to be here,” Cominksy said. “I’ve told all the coaches. I’ve told players. I want to be here. I want to be with these guys. We have a young room (and) I would love to be that veteran in that room. (Josh) Paschal, Demetrius Taylor, Aidan Hutchinson and James Houston. I love all those guys. To be here and to be a leader and mentor for them, I would love that.”

The NFL’s Longest-Tenured GMs

June 30th, 2022 at 10:48am CST by Sam Robinson

Wednesday, we took a look at how the 2022 offseason changed the HC landscape. While 10 new sideline leaders are in place for 2022, not quite as much turnover transpired on the general manager front. Five new decision-makers, however, have moved to the top of teams’ front office hierarchies over the past six months.

The Bears, Giants, Raiders and Vikings rebooted their entire operations, hiring new HC-GM combos. The Minnesota move bumped out one of the previous top-10 longest-tenured GMs, with 16-year Vikings exec Rick Spielman no longer in power in the Twin Cities. The Steelers’ shakeup took the NFL’s longest-tenured pure GM out of the mix. Kevin Colbert was with the Steelers since 2000, and although he is still expected to remain with the team in a reduced capacity, the 22-year decision-maker stepped down shortly after Ben Roethlisberger wrapped his career.

Twelve teams have now hired a new GM in the past two offseasons, though a bit more staying power exists here compared to the HC ranks. Two GMs (the Cardinals’ Steve Keim and Chargers’ Tom Telesco) have begun their 10th years at the helms of their respective front offices. They have hired three HCs apiece. The Buccaneers’ Jason Licht is closing in on a decade in power in Tampa Bay; Licht will now work with his fourth HC in Todd Bowles. Beyond that, a bit of a gap exists. But a handful of other executives have been in power for at least five seasons.

Here is how long every GM or de facto GM has been in place with his respective franchise:

  1. Jerry Jones (Dallas Cowboys): April 18, 1989[1]
  2. Mike Brown (Cincinnati Bengals): August 5, 1991[2]
  3. Bill Belichick (New England Patriots): January 27, 2000[3]
  4. Mickey Loomis (New Orleans Saints): May 14, 2002
  5. John Schneider (Seattle Seahawks): January 19, 2010; signed extension in 2021
  6. Howie Roseman (Philadelphia Eagles): January 29, 2010; signed extension in 2022
  7. Les Snead (Los Angeles Rams): February 10, 2012; signed extension in 2019
  8. Steve Keim (Arizona Cardinals): January 8, 2013; signed extension in 2022
  9. Tom Telesco (Los Angeles Chargers): January 9, 2013; signed extension in 2018
  10. Jason Licht (Tampa Bay Buccaneers): January 21, 2014; signed extension in 2021
  11. Chris Grier (Miami Dolphins): January 4, 2016[4]
  12. Jon Robinson (Tennessee Titans): January 14, 2016; signed extension in 2022
  13. John Lynch (San Francisco 49ers): January 29, 2017; signed extension in 2020
  14. Chris Ballard (Indianapolis Colts): January 30, 2017; signed extension in 2021
  15. Brandon Beane (Buffalo Bills): May 9, 2017; signed extension in 2020
  16. Brett Veach (Kansas City Chiefs): July 11, 2017; signed extension in 2020
  17. Brian Gutekunst (Green Bay Packers): January 7, 2018
  18. Eric DeCosta (Baltimore Ravens): January 7, 2019
  19. Joe Douglas (New York Jets): June 7, 2019
  20. Andrew Berry (Cleveland Browns): January 27, 2020
  21. Nick Caserio (Houston Texans): January 5, 2021
  22. George Paton (Denver Broncos): January 13, 2021
  23. Scott Fitterer (Carolina Panthers): January 14, 2021
  24. Brad Holmes (Detroit Lions): January 14, 2021
  25. Terry Fontenot (Atlanta Falcons): January 19, 2021
  26. Trent Baalke (Jacksonville Jaguars): January 21, 2021
  27. Martin Mayhew (Washington Commanders): January 22, 2021
  28. Joe Schoen (New York Giants): January 21, 2022
  29. Ryan Poles (Chicago Bears): January 25, 2022
  30. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah (Minnesota Vikings): January 26, 2022
  31. Dave Ziegler (Las Vegas Raiders): January 30, 2022
  32. Omar Khan (Pittsburgh Steelers): May 24, 2022

Footnotes:

  1. Jones has been the Cowboys’ de facto general manager since former GM Tex Schramm resigned in April 1989.
  2. Brown has been the Bengals’ de facto GM since taking over as the team’s owner in August 1991.
  3. Belichick has been the Patriots’ de facto GM since shortly after being hired as the team’s head coach in January 2000.
  4. Although Grier was hired in 2016, he became the Dolphins’ top football exec on Dec. 31, 2018

Lions “Open For Business” On No. 2 Pick

February 4th, 2022 at 12:43pm CST by Adam La Rose

While it’s still early days when it comes to the draft process for 2022, Lions general manager Brad Holmes has made it clear that he’s not leaving out any options during the offseason, even with regards to the team’s second overall pick in April. He stated the team is “definitely open for business” when asked about the availability of that selection (Twitter link via NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero). 

During an interview with Pelissero at the Senior Bowl, Holmes said “I’m never scared to move around” during the draft. In a year without a consensus top choice, not to mention one where Detroit has another first round pick (as a result of the Jared Goff trade), moving down the board would make a good degree of sense.

The two highest-rated prospects in this year’s class, according to most, are edge rushers Kayvon Thibodeaux and Aidan Hutchinson. While the Lions would be guaranteed at least one of them by remaining at No. 2, they could end up with both being on the board if the Jaguars use the first pick on Alabama tackle Evan Neal, as some believe they will.

Prioritizing the defense in the draft would certainly make sense for the Lions, as they finished 31st in the league in points allowed in 2021. That could still be accomplished with the likes of cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. or safety Kyle Hamilton, though, if the team moved down slightly.

With plenty of holes to fill this offseason, Detroit has a number of decisions to make to rebound from the first season of the Dan Campbell era. Flexibility in the draft would certainly go a long way to helping rebuild the roster, even if it were to mean moving out of a top-two draft slot.

 

Lions GM Discusses QB Position, Draft

March 11th, 2021 at 8:42pm CST by Ben Levine

Following the Jared Goff/Matthew Stafford trade, the Lions quarterback depth chart is already going to look a whole lot different in 2021. Based on some recent comments from general manager Brad Holmes, it might not just be the top of the depth chart that’ll see changes. During an appearance on the Huddle and Flow podcast, the executive noted that the team will definitely consider drafting a quarterback, even with the seventh-overall pick.

“I don’t think when you’re picking this high that you can be ‘out’ on any position,” Holmes said. “But obviously, quarterback is such an important position and I just think it’s good drafting business, always, to be very, very thorough on that quarterback class – regardless of what your situation is. When I was with the Rams, I always said, regardless of what you have at quarterback [you have to be thorough], and especially now, it’s the same approach. It is a good crop coming out this year, but it’s definitely not a position that will be ignored by us by any means.”

This isn’t a massive surprise. After all, Goff has underwhelmed over the past two seasons, and the quarterback obviously wasn’t the main asset acquired in the Stafford deal (that honor belongs to the pair of future first-rounders). However, the team still has at least two (pricey) years of Goff, so they can take a patient approach at the position knowing Goff will probably be under center for at least 2021.

We leaned earlier this week that even the Lions’ backup quarterbacks aren’t safe. The front office has reportedly had trade discussions with teams about backup Chase Daniel.

Lions To Add John Dorsey To Front Office

January 24th, 2021 at 12:41pm CST by Rory Parks

The Lions have a brand new power structure, having recently hired Brad Holmes as general manager and Dan Campbell as head coach. Now, Detroit is adding a more experienced voice to the mix, with Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reporting that the team is expected to hire John Dorsey as a senior personnel executive (Twitter link). Dorsey, 60, had been working as a consultant for the Eagles.

Dorsey, who drew interest from the Texans for their GM post before Houston elected to hire Nick Caserio, has served as general manager for both the Chiefs and Browns. Neither of those tenures ended on a particularly positive note, but that wasn’t due to Dorsey’s abilities as a talent evaluator. His reputation in that area is sterling, and he is largely responsible for the construction of the current iteration of the Browns — who nearly advanced to the AFC Championship Game this year — and for Kansas City’s starry corps of Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, and Travis Kelce.

In addition to his drafting of Mahomes and Cleveland QB Baker Mayfield while serving as a general manager, Dorsey was the Packers’ director of college scouting when Green Bay drafted Aaron Rodgers in 2005. And as a young scout in 1994, he recommended that the Packers sign Kurt Warner as a UDFA.

His eye for quarterback talent is especially important this year, as the Lions are preparing to trade Matthew Stafford and may well turn to the draft for his replacement. Plus, Dorsey’s experience should be an asset to Holmes, who is getting his first shot as a GM after working as the Rams’ director of college scouting for the past eight seasons.

Campbell will also have a major role in personnel decisions, as Justin Rogers of the Detroit News writes. Rather than a traditional HC-GM-owner structure, Holmes, Campbell, and vice president of football operations Mike Disner will report directly to president Rod Wood and owner Sheila Ford Hamp.

Lions To Hire Brad Holmes As GM

January 14th, 2021 at 11:23am CST by Zachary Links

The Lions have agreed to hire Rams’ director of college scouting Brad Holmes as their new GM, (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter). Holmes will receive a five-year deal, tying him to the club through the 2025 season.

Holmes worked his way up as talent evaluator in the Rams organization, the only franchise he’s ever known as an exec. He began as a public relations intern in St. Louis. Today, he’s the leader of the Lions’ front office.

Holmes, 41, pushed the Rams to select Aaron Donald No. 13 overall in 2014. The Lions had their chance to get the most dominant defensive lineman since Ndamukong Suh — they chose tight end Eric Ebron instead. Holmes is also credited with choosing Jared Goff over Carson Wentz in 2016.

“I think he would do an excellent job (as GM),” said Holmes’ former North Carolina A&T coach Bill Hayes (via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press). “I know he’s going to put in the work. That’s the first thing about it, he’s going to put in the work, he’s going to make the effort and he’s a team guy all the way. He’s not one of those egotistical maniacs. He’s going to be a team guy. He can be trusted. He’s extremely trustworthy, so I feel strongly that he would do a super job.”

Saints assistant GM Terry Fontenot was also a leading candidate for the job, but he appears to be on the cusp of landing with the Falcons. With Holmes in place, the Lions will zero in on their head coaching search.

2021 NFL General Manager Search Tracker

January 12th, 2021 at 8:02pm CST by Zachary Links

This year’s NFL GM carousel figures to be more active than usual. The Falcons, Lions, Panthers, Texans, and Jaguars are all on the hunt for a new front office leader. And that’s only the official list. The real tally shows six clubs looking for a GM, since the Washington Football Team is expected to install a GM to work alongside head coach Ron Rivera. By mid-January, we could easily see a couple more jobs opening up — that’d put ~25% of the NFL on the market.

We’ll keep track of the GM candidates for each club here, along with their current status. If and when other teams decide to make general manager changes, they’ll be added to this list. Here’s the current breakdown:

Updated 1-19-21 (7:02pm CT)

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers 

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Washington Football Team

Latest On Lions GM Search

January 12th, 2021 at 7:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

Rams college scouting director Brad Holmes is in Detroit for a second interview, which will occur Tuesday. He is the first such GM candidate to meet with the Lions a second time during this cycle. He may not be the only exec the Lions meet with twice.

The Lions want to bring Vikings assistant GM George Paton and Saints execs Jeff Ireland and Terry Fontenot back for second meetings, according to Albert Breer of SI.com (on Twitter). Detroit also added Indianapolis assistant GM Ed Dodds to its interview list, meeting with him Tuesday. The Lions were evidently impressed, with Breer noting they would like to speak with Dodds again.

Dodds recently bowed out of the wide-ranging Panthers GM search, leaving only the Lions pursuing him. The former Seahawks exec may be connected to another ex-Seattle staffer. The Lions have been connected to 49ers DC Robert Saleh about their HC vacancy for weeks, and the Detroit News’ Justin Rogers notes some believe Dodds would want to bring Saleh with him to Detroit (Twitter link). Saleh and Dodds were both with the Seahawks from 2011-13, though Saleh was only a defensive quality control coach at that point.

A Michigan native, Saleh interviewed for the Lions job last week but remains in the mix for other gigs — a list that now includes Philadelphia. Saleh has also been connected to an Adam Peters HC-GM pairing, but Peters is not a Lions GM candidate.

Paton and Fontenot remain in the mix for the Broncos GM post, having booked second interviews with Denver. While the longtime Vikings exec has been quite particular in past GM searches, he has remained a sought-after candidate. Fontenot, who interviewed for the Jets’ GM job in 2019, and Ireland — the former Dolphins GM — each went through virtual interviews for the Detroit job last week. Holmes is a Falcons finalist as well.

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