The Detroit Lions’ links to two teams may help facilitate draft day transactions.

With the 2024 NFL Draft just days away, one of the hot-button subjects surrounding the Detroit Lions is whether they will stay put and choose No. 29 or make a trade.

Lions general manager Brad Holmes is aggressive in acquiring players, and he has used his available trade money to make many draft day transactions in each of his three previous drafts.

In 2021, Holmes completed a one-day draft trade with the Cleveland Browns to move up and grab Derrick Barnes in the fourth round.

In 2022, Holmes moved up again, trading with the Minnesota Vikings to nab Jameson Williams in the first round, then trading with the Philadelphia Eagles in the fifth round, using the acquired pick to add Malcolm Rodriguez.

In 2023, Holmes made six deals in total, with five of them coming in the first three rounds. The Lions traded with the Arizona Cardinals to go back in the first round and get Jahmyr Gibbs.

Then he traded with the Green Bay Packers in Round 2 in order to move up and choose Brian Branch. Next, Holmes traded back with the Kansas City Chiefs and then arranged a deal with the Denver Broncos to trade back again before acquiring Hendon Hooker.

His fifth trade was a move up into the third round to get Brodric Martin, and Holmes once again negotiated the deal with the Cardinals. The final deal sent D’Andre Swift to Philadelphia, where Holmes earned a future fourth-round pick (in the 2024 draft) and the pick he used to acquire Antoine Green.

After Holmes’ wheeling and deals last year, there’s been a ton of conjecture on whether he will continue to be aggressive and make trades in this selection.

When challenged about the potential of trading out of the first round, even if the draft is being conducted in Detroit, Holmes vows that he’ll do what’s best for the team and is not scared to make a move.

“We have to do the right thing for the organization, and if it makes sense and it lines up and it’s the right thing to do, we have to do the right thing,” Holmes said.

One of the reasons Holmes was able to make so many deals last offseason was due to a wealth of draft capital—third most in the 2023 draft, per PFF’s estimate.

In 2024, the Lions rank at the bottom of the NFL (29th, per Sharp Football Analysis and Tankathon’s forecasts), which could lead to Holmes looking to trade back and acquire additional assets. So, which teams have an abundance of draft cash in 2024 and could be trying to trade back into the first round?

According to the 2024 draft pick value projections, the two teams with the biggest draft capital are the Arizona Cardinals and Washington Commanders.

With an overwhelming amount of draft picks, NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zeirlein feels both teams could be in the market to use their assets to move up into the latter portion of Round 1.

Trading draft picks is an art form, and with the value boards differing for each team, general managers will often negotiate agreements with other general managers whom they have formed ties with. There have been three teams Holmes has struck several agreements with throughout his stint with the Lions:

The Lions’ current regime has not previously completed a trade with Washington in the past three drafts, although the Commanders did employ Lance Newmark—the former Lions senior director of player personnel—to be their assistant general manager this offseason.

As is the case with Sears, the Newmark hire might enhance the links between these two front offices, and if Washington is actually wanting to get back into the first round, the potential to make a transaction should be easier.

Rounding out the top 5 clubs with the most draft capital are the Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Chargers, and New England Patriots.

The Bears only maintain this lofty rank because they have two picks in the top 10, but beyond that, they only have two more picks for the remainder of the draft, making them an improbable trade partner.

The Chargers and Patriots are striving to mold their squad in the images of their new head coaches, making them prospective contenders, but the front office links are not quite as strong as with the Cardinals and Commanders.