The Detroit Lions have traded offensive guard Laken Tomlinson to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a fifth-round pick in 2019, per the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. The move is only the latest by the Niners this week, who also traded away tight end Vance McDonald to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Tomlinson, a first-round pick in 2015, is the second offensive lineman taken in the first round of that draft to be traded in as many days. On Wednesday, the Kansas City Chiefs acquired 2015 first-rounder Cameron Erving from the Cleveland Browns.
Detroit doesn't exactly have a sparkling offensive line with many expendable parts, but they didn't see Tomlinson fitting into their rotation moving forward.
On the flip side, San Francisco's regime, headed by John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan, has placed a premium on draft picks ever since they arrived, but they might see Tomlinson as a project who, at age 25, still has an opportunity to grow into a solid NFL player. He'll have a pair of proven mentors in star offensive tackle Joe Staley and Trent Brown.
Tomlinson started 10 games at guard and tackle for the Lions last year, but with the addition of their own project in former number two overall pick Greg Robinson, Detroit was able to move the Duke product for a future asset.
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