The cohesion between Detroit Lions GM Bob Quinn and head coach Matt Patricia came into question with a conveniently timed rumor that there was dissent between the two. The allegation was that Patricia didn’t want the Lions to use the No. 3 overall pick on cornerback Jeff Okudah in the 2020 NFL Draft, but Quinn overruled him and took the Ohio state CB anyway.
This came directly on the heels of Okudah’s NFL debut, which did not go well for him or his Lions teammates. Okudah had a rough outing in Green Bay, giving up several completions and struggling to stick with Packers WR Davante Adams on some route releases.
Patricia flatly denied there was any dissension in the Lions draft room. He was asked about the notion that he preferred Auburn DT or Clemson LB Isaiah Simmons over Okudah.
A clearly agitated Patricia responded with a definite denial of the sourceless report,
“We usually don’t talk about any of that stuff. We like to keep that stuff internal, but since that is so blatantly not even close to true, I would like to just make sure that – that is not a true statement at all.”
Our take
It’s perfectly normal — and often beneficial — for differing opinions to get hashed on in pre-draft discussions. Patricia might have indeed preferred another player or position, but the Lions braintrust all concluded that Okudah was the right pick. Having a coach and GM not seeing the same on draft prospects is universal across every professional team sport. As long as it doesn’t fracture publicly, and it hasn’t here, it’s much ado about nothing,
The timing of the rumor was clearly a deliberate effort to capitalize on Okudah’s rough start and the growing heat on Patricia’s coaching seat. Simmons was a popular prospect amongst the Lions fan base and many in the media as well, though the rumor ignores he’s also having serious struggles of his own on the Arizona Cardinals.