"Brad Holmes! Brad Holmes! Brad Holmes!"
Whenever an NFL general manager's name gets shouted in unison by a contingent of their team's fanbase in the heart of downtown, they’re doing something right.
In Detroit on Thursday night, the reaction to the hometown Lions trading up five spots to take Alabama cornerback Terrion Arnold at No. 24 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft was nothing short of euphoric. For the 30 or so Lions fans standing at the corner of Woodward Avenue and State Street, it warranted a chanting of Holmes' name.
"Brad Holmes deserves a statue," Andrew Yost, a 21-year-old Lions fan, said moments after the selection was made.
It was widely known that Holmes and Detroit's front office were in search of a young, long-term cornerback after inconsistency in the secondary plagued them at times last season. The Lions also lost defensive backs C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Cam Sutton this offseason. Arnold, a 21-year-old Tallahassee native, was regarded as the second-best cornerback in the draft pool behind Toledo cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, who was picked No. 22 overall by the Philadelphia Eagles.
After the first 14 picks Thursday night were all used on offensive players, a number of defensive prospects – Arnold included – fell further down the board than most expected. Holmes identified the opportunity to trade up and seized it, securing a player who fans have seemingly already bought into.
"I like the Alabama guys because you know they'll be ready coming in," Colton Leziak said, a resident of the Detroit suburbs for over a decade. "We needed a corner so bad. I'm so happy right now."
Arnold was a key piece on a stout Alabama defense this past college football season, intercepting five passes in 14 games en route to earning a first-team All-American Honors position. Unlike the other 31 players drafted Thursday night, Arnold's name was called in the place he'll call home for years to come.
"Detroit, y'all got a star, man," Arnold shouted on stage toward the One Pride faithful. "I'm home, man, I'm home. These fans gonna be crazy, man."
