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The offseason move voted as No. 2 by the fans is the trade to get running back Jahvid Best in this year’s NFL Draft.

The Detroit Lions had already selected defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh with the second-overall selection, and with the new NFL Draft format, would have to wait until the following evening to make their second pick at 34th overall.

But the Lions wanted Best in the first round and made a move to get him, swapping picks with the Minnesota Vikings to move up from 34 to 31.

“This was a target guy,” said Head Coach Jim Schwartz after the Lions made the selection. “We considered (him) a blue-chip player.

“I think things get hectic on the sideline, but Tom (Lewand) was on the phone making this trade and I wanted to grab the phone from him and start beating him with it to get him going (laughter). But I’ll tell you what: Martin (Mayhew) and Tom did a great job on this.”

Best brings explosive speed to the table, which noticeably impressed his teammates throughout the last month of the offseason program.

There were times Best would break away during a team drill, drawing ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from veteran teammates.

“I think he gives us something that we haven’t had in the last few years and that’s a little bit smaller of a back,” said veteran tackle Jeff Backus.

“He’s somebody that can cut on a dime, somebody that can hit a home run any time he touches the ball. I think the fans watching our games are going to be really excited to see him play because he’s got some special talents.”

Best has the ability to change field position or the scoreboard in one play and defenses will ultimately have to respect that.

Incorporating that factor into the Lions’ offense should undoubtedly spread the defense out -- something the Lions have looked to do in recent seasons.

“We’ve got a lot of speed at the running back position (and) we’ve got a couple different styles of running backs, so that’s real good for us,” said wide receiver Calvin Johnson. “It’s hard for one guy to be the workhorse for the whole season.”

The Lions’ coaching staff didn’t waste any time acclimating Best, either. At the team’s rookie orientation, Offensive Coordinator Scott Linehan threw as much as he could at him to get him ready for the veteran practices later in the offseason.

Best has handled it well, though he says the experience of breaking in to an NFL roster definitely has him feeling like a rookie.

“The pace picked up,” said Best of his first practices with his veteran teammates. “The playbook – the install – everything was kind of big. But once I got a grasp of it, everything started to slow down and now we’re just out there having fun.”