The wait is finally over, and the Detroit Lions have solved one-half of its head coach/general manager puzzle, as Brad Holmes is coming to Detroit.
According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Lions have agreed to terms on a 5-year deal with the now-former Los Angeles Ram Director of College Scouting as its next GM.
There was a possibility the Lions did not get their man.
Holmes was also in the running for the GM position with the Atlanta Falcons. However, after reports surfaced of Holmes coming to Detroit for his second interview, one could surmise it was a mere formality before his officially appointed.
Holmes was the wildcard out of all of the potential candidates for the position. His name didn’t carry the flare like an Ed Dodds or a George Paton.
Paton recently accepted the GM position with the Denver Broncos.
Holmes has spent his entire career with the Rams. And more importantly, he can scout talent and knows the inner-workings of a winning organization.
Proof of that is his work with the Rams.
He had a hand in the Rams selecting Jared Goff over Carson Wentz, Aaron Donald, and Todd Gurley.
The Rams have gone through constant changes in their front office and coaching staff. Holmes has been a mainstay for the Rams.
Holmes scouted over 25 Pro Bowlers during his time with the Rams. Two of them have won the Offensive Player of the Year (Gurley, 2017) and Defensive Player of the Year (Donald, 2017 and 2018) honors.
Holmes spent his entire 18-year career in the NFL (up to this point) with the St.Louis/Los Angeles Rams.
He started his time as a public relations intern in 2003 before moving to the scouting department in 2004. Holmes worked several different scouting department positions, ranging from national combine scout, area scout, and national scout. He then became the director of college scouting in 2013.
Outside of the players mentioned above, Holmes was instrumental in the Rams drafting Cam Akers, Josh Reynolds, Tyler Higbee, and John Johnson.
Contact Kory Woods at kory@woodwardsports.com. Follow him on Twitter @koryewoods.
