Draft 2026: EDGE - Gabe Jacas, Mason Thomas, Dani Dennis-Sutton
Could one of these players be the Lions 2nd round pick?
The past 2 Super Bowl champs (Eagles & Seahawks) boasted highly disruptive pass rushes. If the Lions want to take the next step, they may need to add a top pass rusher within the first 2 rounds.
If the Lions decide to wait until the 2nd round to get an EDGE, here are 3 prospects who could still be available then. All of them are young and pretty clean medically which adds greatly to their value.
Medical concern level ranges from 0 (no concern) to 5 (might be worth the risk if the reward is high) to 10 (take him off your board, Brad).
(Ages in parentheses are at start of 2026 season and are factored into the concern level. Injury info and ages based on available public information and are unverified - subject to update. Games played data courtesy of sports-reference.com.)
Quick summary
Gabe Jacas, EDGE (22): remote hand injury - 0/10 concern
Dani Dennis-Sutton, EDGE (22): groin, dislocated elbow - 1/10 concern
Mason Thomas, EDGE (22): ankle sprains, quad - 3/10 concern
Gabe Jacas, EDGE (22) - Illinois
Projected round 2-3.
Concern level 0/10
2025: 12/13 games. Opted out of bowl.
2024: 13/13 games
2023: 12/12 games
2022: 13/13 games
Jacas finished with 35.5 TFL and 27 sacks in his 4 year career. He has a perfect record of reliability except for his bowl game opt-out.
His right hand injury as a child is a distant issue and isn’t a concern after proving himself for 4 years in college. There is no record of any other injury which means he is one of the cleanest prospects in the draft.
If he is available in the 2nd round, he could be an ideal, low-risk, premium-position selection for the Lions.
Dani Dennis-Sutton, EDGE (22) - Penn State
Projected round 3.
Concern level 1/10
2025: 13/13. Minor unspecified injury in Game 3.
2024: 16/16. Played through suspected groin injury suffered in Game 7.
2023: 13/13
2022: 13/13
High school: Missed part of season with dislocated elbow.
Dennis-Sutton compiled 34.5 TFL and 23.5 sacks in his college career which featured zero missed games.
A “groin” can sometimes be concerning for a core muscle injury or a hip joint issue, but it’s reassuring he was able to play through, plus another season afterwards. His dislocated elbow from high school is of low concern after a full college career.
Mason Thomas, EDGE (22) - Oklahoma
Projected round 1-2. #35 of Daniel Jeremiah board Jan 27.
Concern level 3/10
2025: 10/13. Injured quad, missed 3 games.
2024: 13/13 games
2023: 9/13 games. Ankle sprain, other side.
2022: 10/13 games. High ankle sprain.
Thomas finished his career with 25.5 TFL and 17 sacks.
He has missed multiple games in 3 of his 4 seasons. None of the injury types (ankle/quad) should be of long-term concern, but the frequency of missed games does raise general reliability concerns. Simple bad luck, especially with the ankles, is certainly a possibility.
For some 1st-round EDGE prospects, see my story below…
Draft 2026: EDGE - David Bailey, Rueben Bain, Zion Young
The NFL draft starts on April 23. As draft candidates for the Lions bubble up over the next few weeks, I’ll post my health concern levels for select prospects. The concern level will range from 0 (no concern) to 5 (might be worth the risk if the reward is high) to 10 (take him off your board, Brad).