Last week Bleacher Report writer Kristopher Knox did this cool idea where they tried to take a page out of the NBA's book and see what it would be like if the NFL did three team trades. It's something that has happened in the past for the NFL. The most notable one being the trade that involved the Bills, Rams and Colts in 1987 . The deal brought Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson to the Colts.
Knox did make a trade for the Lions in that article, but I wanted to try my hand at making one as well, so I put this one together with the Raiders and the Titans. Here's how the deal works out:
Lions get: Treylon Burks, Malik Wills, Ameer Abdullah and a 2025 fifth-round pick from the Raiders
Titans get: Malcolm Rodriguez, Janarious Robinson and a 2026 sixth-round pick from the Lions
Raiders get: Hendon Hooker, 2025 seventh-round pick from the Lions and 2025 fourth-round pick from the Titans
Why it works for the Lions
Obviously some Lions fans aren't going to be happy about sending Hendon Hooker and Malcolm Rodriguez away, but it works best for the future of the team.
With Willis the Lions get a little younger at backup quarterback and they get a guy that has some NFL experience, but could use some stability and solid coaching for his position.
If it doesn't work out, the Lions now have the ability to reset and then draft their quarterback of the future in 2025 or 2026 and get a guy that's much younger and can develop on the bench for a while and still be in his 20's when he takes over.
They also get a solid athlete with tremendous size in Treylon Burks. The Titans have not been good with developing receivers, but the Lions have been. Having Burks on the roster gives the Lions a chance to make this very young former first-round pick the player he was expected to be coming out of the draft in 2022. It would also be the third Titans receiver the Lions have made better.
Ameer Abdullah returning to the Lions is kind of a bonus. The team doesn't have to hold onto him if it doesn't work out, but he presents a good special teams option and a guy that can be a kick return man. Something the Lions have struggled with finding. Plus he's another option the Lions can do some things with on offense.
Why it works for the Titans
The Titans need some linebacker help and some help on the edge. They get both in this deal.
Malcolm Rodriguez has shown that he can be a decent linebacker, but he's buried on the Lions depth chart and there doesn't seem to be a way for him to get unburied. In Tennessee he can fight for a starting spot and he'd likely get one on the linebacker unit that Pro Football Focus had ranked as the 27th unit in the league.
With Robinson the Titans get a guy that can immediately be a starter on the edge for them. Like Rodriguez, Robinson is a guy that's buried behind players that are just better than he is. The Titans could use some edge help after losing sack leader Denico Autry. Robinson would be prefect.
Why it works for the Raiders
The Raiders currently have no discernable future at quarterback. Gardner Minshew is what he is and Aidan O'Connell didn't exactly light up the world in 2023. Adding Hooker to their roster makes for a very interesting quarterback battle in Las Vegas.
It's not that I think Hooker can't or won't be good. He very well may be, but he just doesn't work in Detroit because he's already 26-years-old and he'll be 30 when his rookie deal is up. It's not super fair to him to have to sit out the rest of his 20's on the Lions bench when he could go to Las Vegas and actually have a chance to be a starter in the NFL. It works out for him and the Lions.
The Raiders also bring in a couple day three picks that I'm sure they'd be happy to have.
Related: 2025 mock draft has Lions making odd decison that would put promising rookie's future in doubt
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