Brad Holmes delivered his pre-draft press conference earlier this week. There were multiple notable takeaways in regards to medical and injury philosophy when it comes to the NFL draft.
In my Brad Holmes 2026 Pre-Draft Presser: Injury Philosophy & Draft Needs, I analyzed Holmes’ philosophy of drafting injured players, the risks of older prospects, and the strategy of best player available vs. positional need.
Here is the excerpt on the Lions’ draft strategy when it comes to a potential second contract:
Age and the second contract: Lions respect Father Time
“You got to be prepared for that because it’s real. A guy’s 24-25 years old now, he’s going to be looking at 30 by the time a second contract comes. Maybe he hadn’t played a long time and he doesn’t have as much wear and tear, but Father Time is Father Time,” Holmes said.
First of all, I love that Holmes has a long-term view on team building and is thinking about second contracts that are still years away. General managers get fired all the time which means they may sacrifice long-term success for short-term rewards. As a lifelong Lions fan, I have a long-term outlook and am happy that Holmes has a similar perspective.
From a medical standpoint, I really like that Holmes mentioned wear-and-tear as a factor in his draft considerations. Just because a player does not have an injury history doesn’t mean that there isn’t wear-and-tear on the joint cartilage. The older the player, the more likely that wear-and-tear is going to become an issue. This is why in all of my NFL draft medical reports, age is always a factor in my medical concern level regardless of injury history.
Aging is simply an unavoidable reality that must be considered when giving out big contracts. Giving Aidan Hutchinson a massive four-year contract extension at age 25 carries far less risk than if he was 28.
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This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Lions, Brad Holmes respect ‘Father Time’ in NFL draft evals
Reporting by Jimmy Liao, MD, Lions Wire / Lions Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
