After proving skeptics wrong in the 2023 season, Lions General Manager Brad Holmes issues a warning to the NFL.
During his year-end press conference, general manager Brad Holmes of the Detroit Lions responded to his detractors. After the Lions’ season came to an end in the NFC Championship game against the San Francisco 49ers, he defended his choices and draft selections.
“When you look back at those [draft picks – and those picks were not welcomed by many in this room – every single move was intentional and was made with intention,” Holmes stated to reporters.
“We did not have multiple ones, multiple twos, or four picks in the first 100 back in 2021. You guys didn’t agree, but we did have that and we used it wisely. But we made good use of those picks.”
After Detroit’s successful season, when asked if he enjoyed proving his critics wrong, Holmes responded that it wasn’t about gloating but rather about accountability.
I will say this: I value accountability a lot,” he went on.
“I believe that all of you would have expected me to be responsible when I’m up here, especially if something didn’t go as planned. And I consider myself to be a very accountable individual.
“I believe that after hearing so much criticism about our draft, I told you to wait until they begin playing football before you start to feel grateful. Everyone forgot about the negativity when they started playing football and people started giving them credit. I think there are probably two people in this room who have admitted when they were wrong, and I respected and valued that.”
Holmes continued by expressing his dislike for the experts who, rather than being forthright in their criticism of the Lions and their conduct, choose to hide their genuine opinions behind closed doors. “And so just having accountability, that’s all it is,” he said. “I’m not up here to give my ‘I told you so’s,’ as I previously stated. ‘I told you so’s’ were present when we chose the players, in my opinion. You can sleep like a baby as long as Dan [Campbell] and I are satisfied with the players we’ve chosen.”
The Lions’ off-season moves and draft selections have drawn criticism, but Campbell and the team are unmoved. Detroit accomplished a remarkable feat in the 2023 NFL season, winning 12 games for just the second time in franchise history and winning the NFC North for the first time since 1993.
The Lions made it to the NFC Championship Game, where they lost 34–31 to the San Francisco 49ers, their second postseason victory since the Super Bowl.
Despite the fact that the team missed out on a Super Bowl berth in the end, Holmes comforted supporters by saying, “Look, it’s only going to get better.” Alright? We’re just going to get better, okay? “and “I don’t want anyone to believe that this was a magical, one-time event akin to Cinderella. No. It’s true. This is precisely what was intended to occur.”
Holmes went on to say, “Every decision Dan and I have made has been made with the sustainability of what we are creating in mind. Every action we take—in fact, every action we do not take—is intended to support the progress we have been making. It is true. See, it’s all done to normalize our situation.
