Todd McShay gives Lions WR help in 2021 Mock Draft

ESPN’s Todd McShay published his first 2021 Mock Draft draft of the season and he gives the Detroit Lions help on offense at wide receiver.

ESPN’s Todd McShay published his first 2021 Mock Draft draft of the season and he gives the Detroit Lions help on offense at wide receiver — potentially one of the thinnest positions on the roster heading into next season.

Currently, the Lions only have two receivers under contract for the 2021 season, fifth-round draft pick Quintez Cephus, and opt-out holdover Geronimo Allison.

If slot receivers Tom Kennedy and Victor Bolden end up on the Lions roster at seasons end, they will be an exclusive rights free agent (ERFA) and restricted free agent (RFA) respectively, but the remaining receivers on the current roster — Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones Jr., Danny Amendola, Marvin Hall, Jamal Agnew, and Geremy Davis — are all scheduled to be unrestricted free agents.

Kenny Golladay has been in talks with the Lions about a contract extension and will likely command a hefty salary. And keeping him around has to be a massive priority for general manager Bob Quinn, but it also wouldn’t eliminate the idea of the Lions selecting a receiver in the first round.

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To help the at the position, McShay had the Lions selecting Minnesota wide receiver Rashod Bateman with the seventh overall pick:

Another early 2020 college season opt-out, another top-10 pick. Bateman won’t wow you with his wheels, but he produced to the tune of 60 catches for 1,219 yards and 11 touchdowns last season because of his precise route running, soft hands and physicality. He has some versatility in where he lines up — he will work the middle of the field and eat up press coverage. Oh, and essentially the entire Lions wide receivers room could be off to free agency in 2021, including Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones Jr., Danny Amendola and Marvin Hall, meaning “area of need” might be an understatement come April.

Bateman was the second receiver off the board — LSU’s Ja’Marr Chase went fifth to the Dolphins — with McShay projecting eight to be selected in the first round.