Detroit Lions begin signing rookie class, ink third-round pick Alim McNeill to 4-year deal

The Detroit Lions got the first of their seven draft picks under contract Thursday, the day before the start of rookie minicamp.

Defensive tackle Alim McNeill, the Lions' third-round pick out of North Carolina State, signed a four-year contract worth $5.1 million.

Rookie deals are slotted under the NFL's collective bargaining agreement, but third-round picks have some wiggle room on base salaries after Year 1.

McNeill, the eighth pick of the third round, maximized his deal, which includes a $1.09 million signing bonus and base salaries that escalate from $660,000 this fall to $1.334 million in 2024. He also has $25,000 workout bonuses in 2022-24.

The Lions took Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell with the seventh overall pick, and fortified their defensive line with their next two selections, Washington's Levi Onwuzurike and McNeill.

McNeill, 6 feet 2 and 330 pounds, projects as an athletic nose tackle for the Lions. He had 10 sacks in three seasons at N.C. State and was a first-team All-ACC selection last season.

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"For a big nose tackle (he is) powerful at the point of attack," Lions general manager Brad Holmes said. "He has a lot of upside, he has quickness. He has the ability to do some stuff inside in sub nickel stuff, so he has some upside as a rusher as well. Just to be able to add these two key cogs on the middle of our defense is a huge (thing for us)."

Historically, the Lions have signed most of their rookies before the start of minicamp.

They still six unsigned picks: Sewell, Onwuzurike, late-round choice Ifeatu Melifonwu, fourth-rounders Amon-Ra St. Brown and Derrick Barnes, and seventh-rounder Jermar Jefferson.

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions sign third-round pick DT Alim McNeill