Defensive lineman Brodric Martin got in a workout as soon as he learned the Detroit Lions were picking him in the third round of the NFL Draft on April 28.

“I didn’t know I was going to go that early,” Martin told reporters at the Lions’ rookie minicamp. “I was in Tuscaloosa in a hotel. I had a draft party for Saturday. I knew I’d get drafted, I was just thinking a little later than what I did. It’s crazy because I was in the hotel where I was going to have my draft party at, and I was on the sixth floor. Just up there grabbing something to eat, and I had gotten the call from (Detroit) coach (Dan) Campbell. He said, ‘You want to be a Lion?’ And I said, ‘Yeah. Yeah!’ And I ran down six flights of stairs just to get to the TV and my momma because she was down there setting up for the party and all that for the next day. …

“I’m going to tell you: I ain’t never seen my momma jump ever in my life. My momma jumped at least this high up off the ground and hugged me, and I was like, ‘This is probably the best feeling in the world.’”

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Martin played at Northridge High School in Tuscaloosa and North Alabama before being selected from Western Kentucky at No. 96 in this year’s draft. Expected to be a Saturday choice, when the fourth through seventh rounds were held, Martin went on Friday night instead.

“Brodric, let’s call him under the radar,” Lions general manager Brad Holmes said. “A non-combine guy and showed up at the East-West All-Star Game and did a really, really nice job. And that’s really when he popped up on my radar. …

“You see him playing in some better competition games like Auburn and then you see some stuff kind of late, and he just has a lot of physical traits that get you really excited about his upside. I’m not sure of his testing numbers and all that stuff. This guy’s a big man. But he moves a lot better on film. He had a really good pro day. His workout was good. And it’s hard to find big, athletic guys like that, so he just has, as we say, a lot of meat on the bone. He’s got a lot of upside. He’s a big man. He’s athletic. He plays hard. He chases to the ball. I mean, I don’t think I’ve seen many 330-, 340-pound guys run to the ball like he does. He’s got some rawness, but we’re real excited about his upside.

“He’s another one we brought in for a visit, and he just kind of lit the room up with his personality and his mindset. He’s a really good kid that has a pretty unique story. We’re just really, really excited. I think (defensive-line) coach John Scott’s going to do some really good things with him.”

Martin knows he has a lot to learn in the NFL, but he doesn’t want to be a long-term project either.

“I want to play this year,” Martin said. “I want to do this now. Although I came from a small school and all that, I’m looking to play. There’s nothing about waiting that I want to do.”

Martin said he’d prayed since he was 5 years old to be able to play in the NFL.

“It’s way better than what I thought,” Martin said. “I’m blessed. This is surreal. I still don’t believe it. I walked up in here and I see the locker with my name on it, and I’m not going to lie, I about shed a couple of tears because it’s actually, like, here. It’s happening. I come in here smiling, and I ain’t frowned yet. I’m just smiling. This is a blessing.”

A defensive end and tight end for Northridge who also played basketball and threw the shot for the track team with the Jaguars, Martin started his college football career in 2017 with a redshirt season at North Alabama.

But over the next three seasons at UNA, Martin started every game before transferring to Western Kentucky.

In two seasons with the Hilltoppers, Martin reached a career high with seven tackles in a 49-41 loss to UTSA in the 2021 Conference USA championship game, and after WKU’s 44-23 victory over South Alabama in the New Orleans Bowl on Dec. 21, he played in the East-West Shrine Bowl in Las Vegas.

The Lions return their top two defensive-interior players from last season with nose tackle Alim McNeill and defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs, an Alabama alumnus. But Martin looks as though he can contribute, Detroit defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said.

“I come from the Bill Parcells model, and this is a size-and-speed league,” Glenn said, “so with a man of that size and ability to play big, play long, be able to take two at times to allow the linebackers to play free. Every player that we drafted is going to need development. It’s not just Brodric. (Iowa linebacker) Jack (Campbell)’s going to need it. (Alabama defensive back Brian) Branch’s going to need it, every player that we have, and it’s our job as coaches to make sure we coach them so they can understand exactly what we’re expecting from those guys.

“It’s hard to find guys with that size. If you look at him and he has a little brace on, he reminds you of Linval Joseph, to be honest with you, and if he can be that — pretty damn good, man.”

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.