Detroit Lions significantly outbid Arizona Cardinals in 1st-round trade-up

It’s the time of year when NFL teams are starting to drop their behind-the-scenes videos for the 2024 NFL Draft. The Arizona Cardinals are the latest to reveal footage from their war room, and it tangentially relates to the Detroit Lions.

The video shows the Cardinals, slated to make their second selection with the 27th overall pick—two ahead of Detroit’s 29th pick—were in contact with the Dallas Cowboys for a potential trade-up to pick 24. In fact, according to the video, they had already worked out a framework of the deal.

“We’ll give you 27 and 104 and we would take 24 and 174,” Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort said in a phone call. “Okay, call me back. Obviously, (it’s) depending on if our guy’s there.”

The exchange happens at the five-minute mark in the video below:

That would be the last time this trade is referenced, as the Cardinals would end up just staying put and making their selection at Pick 27 (Darius Robinson). It’s not clear from the video why the Cardinals didn’t make the trade up. Was their player taken off the board, or were they simply outbid by the Lions? Dallas got a much more lucrative deal for the 24th pick from Detroit

Here are the parameters of the Lions’ trade:

Lions get:

• Pick 24
• 2025 seventh-rounder

Cowboys get:

• Pick 29
• Pick 73 (third-rounder)

And here is what was at least the first draft of the potential trade between the Cardinals and Cowboys.

Cardinals get:

• Pick 24
• Pick 174 (late fifth)

Cowboys get:

• Pick 27
• Pick 104 (early fourth)

If you’re curious, here’s the net gain/loss for each team by various trade charts.

Lions trade

Cardinals proposed trade

• Rich Hill model: Cardinals -4 value (loss of late sixth-round pick)
• Fitzgerald-Spielberger model: -201 value (loss of late seventh-round pick)

The Lions trade was clearly more valuable for the Cowboys, but before you go screaming “OVERPAY,” remember that this was just a framework deal between the Cardinals and Cowboys. There is no guarantee Dallas would have gone through with it without a counteroffer.

That said, it was undoubtedly a hefty price for the Lions to pay to move up five spots. But if Terrion Arnold is as good as they think he is, no one will be complaining about the price in a few years.