INDIANAPOLIS – Beginning his fourth year as the general manager of the Detroit Lions, Brad Holmes has proven to be a deft roster architect.
With Holmes, a proud graduate of a historically Black university, picking the players, coach Dan Campbell guiding them and both men working together to change the organization’s culture, the once-woebegone Lions moved into the NFL’s elite last season. For the first time in 32 years, the Lions (12-5) won at least 12 games during the regular season. What’s more, they finished atop a division for the first time since the 1993-94 season and won their first playoff game since the 1991-92 season.
While playing in its first NFC Championship Game since 1992, visiting Detroit held a 24-7 halftime lead against the San Francisco 49ers before experiencing a second-half collapse in a 34-31 loss. For Detroit and its fans, it was a bitter ending to an otherwise spectacular season.
Still, with a strong roster that includes an impressive young nucleus on offense, the future appears bright for the Lions. Talk about a sentence written rarely about that franchise in the past generation.
The effective Holmes-Campbell partnership has been the key to the Lions’ eye-opening turnaround, but neither leader is satisfied. They’re only getting started, which Holmes made clear late Tuesday afternoon during the NFL scouting combine.
“I’m a firm believer in surrendering the results to the process. The process will always be numero uno,” Holmes told reporters at the Indiana Convention Center. “Once you start kind of relishing in your achievements, that’s when you can maybe take your foot off the gas and you can get yourself in big trouble.
“This league is too hard to ever let your foot off the gas. I’ve always said, at length, no matter how good we get as a team, no matter how good our roster is gonna get, we’re always gonna take the same process and keep our foot on the gas to improve as much as we can.”
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Both hired in January 2021, Holmes, 44, and Campbell have steadily built the Lions.
After inheriting a team with a 5–11 record, Holmes and Campbell produced a 3-13-1 record in their first season. To the untrained eye, it appeared the Lions had regressed, which was a truly revolting thought for the franchise’s long-suffering fans.
Sometimes, however, it’s necessary to take a step backward in an attempt to take several forward. During the 2022-23 season, the team teased what was to come: Detroit enjoyed its first winning record (9-8) since the 2017-18 season (9-7).
Holmes helped lay the groundwork for last season’s success by nailing the 2023 draft.
Tight end Sam LaPorta and running back Jahmyr Gibbs had sensational rookie seasons. Both were selected to the Pro Bowl and LaPorta – whose 86 receptions set an NFL record for rookie tight ends – was also chosen as a second-team All-Pro. LaPorta and Gibbs became the first rookie teammates in league history to each produce at least 10 touchdowns in a season.
Gibbs joined Hall of Famer Barry Sanders (1989) and Billy Sims (1980) as the only Lions rookies to total at least 1,000 yards from scrimmage and 10 touchdowns. Other members of the Lions’ 2023 draft class, including linebacker Jack Campbell and defensive back Brian Branch, also had strong seasons.
Bottom line: Holmes can pick ’em.
No surprises there.
Talk to many of Holmes peers in player-personnel around the league, and they’ll tell you he has always had a keen eye for identifying talent. Even during his playing days as a standout defensive tackle at North Carolina A&T (Holmes was voted captain of the Aggies’ 1999 team, which won the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and Black College Football National Championship), Holmes displayed a knack for sizing up the strengths and weaknesses of opponents quickly.
He honed his skills while a scout with the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams. After starting as a scout in 2003, Holmes was the Rams’ director of college scouting from 2013 to 2020. During Holmes’ tenure leading the club’s scouting department, the Rams won the NFC West division twice, made three postseason appearances, and played in Super Bowl LII. When the Lions tapped him to be their general manager, Holmes became part of a surge in inclusive hiring of general managers and team presidents in the league.
Although Holmes is focused on his duties for the Lions, he also sees the big picture. He believes that doors will open for others, partly, if he continues to succeed in Detroit.
“It means a lot to me, just because I look at the people that came before me,” Holmes said. “I believe that it’s a responsibility that’s owed. You want to set the right example. You want to make sure the opportunities are [there] for the people that are coming behind you.”
It appears that the path to success Holmes is charting for the Lions could pay off in a big way for others as well.