By Michael Stets
After taking back-to-back defensive players out of Florida with the first two picks of the 2017 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions added a new offensive weapon in round three, selecting Northern Illinois wide receiver Kenny Golladay with pick No. 96.
The Lions traded their original pick in the third round (No. 85) to the New England Patriots to move down to No. 96, and gained an additional fourth-round pick in return (No. 124). They all also own pick No. 127 of that round.
Golladay has both size (6′ 4″ 218 pounds) and speed, and turned in impressive 40-yard dash times at the NFL Scouting Combine (4.50 and 4.47). He finished the 2016 season with 87 catches, 1,156 receiving yards and eight touchdowns. The Lions third-round pick was a first team All-MAC selection and became the first player in school history to post back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons for the Huskies.
“I kind of kept an open mind on everything,” Golladay said on a conference call with reporters, explaining how he handled the pre-draft process.” I met with [Lions wide receiver] coach [Robert] Prince before my Pro Day. And then he was out at my Pro Day and worked me out some and sent me on some routes. And then I actually went on a visit to Detroit. It was all just good vibes, you know? It was definitely a learning process. I enjoyed it.”
Golladay said he’s “just a guy who fell under the radar,” when asked to describe his journey to the NFL, which began at St. Rita High School before his first college stop at North Dakota. However, the Chicago, Ill. native’s unique story has a few more layers to it than that.
“I got one offer and that was North Dakota and I just had that drive to play football,” said Golladay. “I’ve been playing my whole life. Even coming from a big city like Chicago, I took that path to North Dakota … Grand Forks. And I did what I had to do pretty much. I played my two freshman years, my sophomore year and stuff pretty much happened. The coaches ended up getting fired so I made my own highlight tape. I got all my film, made my own highlight tape and sent it my coach Todd Kuska at St. Rita. And I told him to do me a huge favor and that was send my tape out to the college coaches coming in. And he jumped right on It, man and it was a blessing I feel like. It took a week, maybe two.”
Golladay transferred to Northern Illinois, sat out in 2014, and is now a new weapon for quarterback Matthew Stafford. With the likelihood of Anquan Boldin not returning to the team, since he’s not currently under contract, the No. 3 wideout spot will be wide open at the start of training camp.
“Coach Prince definitely talked to me about it and there’s just a challenge that’s ahead of me and I’ve taken on many challenges and I”m ready to take on the next,” said Golladay, who totaled four 100-yard receiving games last season. “I’m just ready to put my best foot forward and go to work.”
With the next chapter of his football journey now underway, the Lions’ newest receiver is just looking forward to making a contribution in any way that he can while becoming a player that Stafford and the offense can rely upon.