2016 Draft - Day 3 - Detroit Lions Rounds 4 through 7

4. S Miles Killebrew; 5a. G/T Joe Dahl; 5b. OLB Antwione Williams; 6a. QB Jake Rudock; 6b. DE/DT Anthony Zettel; 6c. LS Jimmy Landes; 7. RB Dwayne Washington

On Day 3 of the 2016 NFL Draft the Detroit Lions made zero moves, in fact there was not one Lions trade of any kind in the whole draft, and trades were something that most fans were expecting a lot of. So the Lions sat and picked right where they were at, and in the 4th round at pick 111 they drafted Miles Killebrew, a 6'2" 217 pound Safety from Southern Utah that I had ranked 97th. Whatever contact the Lions had with Killebrew were kept secret as he was not on our list of known contacts, so this pick surprised me (us) a little... but not in a bad way. After all, the Lions needed a Safety, he wasn't picked too early and in fact might be considered a bottom 3rd rounder by some. He's tall, has good weight, and that was what we knew before looking deeper. His NFL profile http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/miles-killebrew?id=2555315 says this about him "Violent player who looks to punish and intimidate with the force of his strikes, but who won't compromise his form as a tackler just for the highlight reel hit. Killebrew is average in coverage, but has the size and physicality that makes him stand out in the box." and even if I read nothing else about him that would be enough. I'm excited to see what he can do once he settles into his job with the Lions.

Round 5 comes along and in my opinion there is still a lot of talent available. At pick 151 the Lions draft Guard (and sometimes tackle) Joe Dahl of Washington State, a 6'4" 304 pound offensive lineman. He will be battling Darren Keyton, Braxton Cave, Gabe Ikard, and Travis Swanson (along with their 3rd round pick C Glasgow) for a combination of starting center, backup center, and backup guard. As he could play some tackle in a pinch I think he'll have an upper hand at the backup guard position right from the start. His NFL profile http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/joe-dahl?id=2555136 pulls no punches on his weaknesses and fully credits him for his positives. A year in the NFL environment will likely do him a world of good, so much that he could start challenging for a starting job if anyone struggles, or due to injury.

The Lions second pick of round 5 is at 169 and the Lions draft OLB Antwione Williams from Georgia Southern with the pick. He's 6'3" and 247 pounds and I had him ranked 259th, or as a late 7th rounder. That doesn't mean anything much though, teams regularly have players at this point in the draft ranked one, two and even three rounds different then others, even other teams. Now I really REALLY wanted the Lions to draft RB Darious Jackson here and was screaming for them to do so for the next several picks, but instead Dallas went ahead and drafted him later. Williams will be battling Brandon Copeland and Jerry Franklin for a roster spot. Luckily he should be on special teams like Copeland so the Lions won't lose out there whichever one makes the final roster. The NFL profile on him http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/antwione-williams?id=2556114 says "Williams' tackle production in 2015 looks great on the resume, but what will intrigue teams is his size and length. While he fills up a stat sheet, there is still plenty of meat that Williams leaves on the bone. The good news is that some of his issues aren't related to physical limitations and he has the tools to improve. Worthy of a third day pick and could fight for a backup spot in 2016. " Maybe he makes the team, but I can name at least 5 guys I would have rather drafted here. We'll see if this choice was worthy.

The Lions have 3 picks in the 6th round and the first player taken at 191 was QB Jake Rudock of U of M. At 6'3" and 207 he's a bit light for a Quarterback. In fact many kickers, punters, and Safeties are bigger then this guy. His NFL profile http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/jake-rudock?id=2556232 kindly states his improvement over the past couple of years and that he's a 7th rounder or undrafted pickup. I got to say, I hate this pick. If the Lions wanted a decent backup QB they should've gone with Woodrum, at least he can throw the ball 56mph... and anyone under 55mph has never made it in the NFL to my knowledge.

At 202 the Lions spent their 2nd pick in round 6 on DE Anthony Zettle of Penn State. At 6'4" and 277 pounds he appears to fit the suit, and I had him ranked at 159 so to me he was a bit of a steal. His profile http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/anthony-zettel?id=2555268 says he's undersized for a DT, and he is, if he was a DT. It also says his arms are too short to play DE. That may be, but that doesn't mean he can't play DE, and play it well, properly trained. He's not going to take Ansah's job away, but he should rotate in with Taylor and give the Lions some depth on the left side of the dline. He's relentless, and that to me means he will work extra hard to earn his spot on the team. For a 6th round pick, I like that.

At 210, the comp pick for losing Nick Fairley, the Lions inexplicably drafted a long snapper, Jimmy Landes from Baylor. They already have the best long snapper in the league in Muhlbach on the team, and his one year vet minimum deal costs the cap only a small amount more then a rookie contract costs, so I see zero benefit in wasting a pick in the 6th round on a long snapper. I absolutely positively HATE this pick. It's down right stupid. Idiotic. Amateurish. I won't say any more about it.

For the Lions final pick in round 7 at pick 236 the Lions drafted Dwayne Washington a Running Back from Washington (no the City is not named after him). I had him ranked almost exactly the same as the long snapper. At 6'2" and 226 pounds he sounds immediately like a guy who isn't going to take any punishment at all. His profile http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/dwayne-washington?id=2556118 tells us about his problem fumbling, but since it doesn't show his hand size we don't know if it's a physical thing (small hands equals fumbles, guaranteed) or a focus issue. He was never going to be drafted by another team imo and should not have been by the Lions either. There was talent available, DT Zimmer, TE Sandland, QB Woodrum, and many others, but the pick was, well, maybe not wasted (or maybe so) but definitely not used to it's fullest potential.

In the end I loved the 1st days' pick. I understood you can't turn down the 2nd round pick that fell and the 3rd round pick is not the center I wanted nor do I like his profile but perhaps he can be turned into something good. I loved the 4th round pick and the first 5th round pick. I also liked the second 6th round pick. I totally disliked the 2nd 5th round pick, the first 6th round pick, the third 6th round pick, and the 7th round pick. That's a 5 - 5 split for me... not the grade I was looking for. If the undrafted signings don't turn this around for me I'm going to go into the rest of this off season feeling very let down... and concerned... for this GM is likely to be here for at least 2 more years. But, before I go all doom and gloom on everyone, I will first check out the undrafted signings tomorrow and then wait the long wait for OTA's, mini and summer camp to progress to the end and see where things are then. One thing for sure, no kool-aid and no rose colored glasses... color me unimpressed.

Day 2 - 2016 NFL Draft - Detroit Lions

DT A'Shawn Robinson & C/G Graham Glasgow

On day 2 of the 2016 NFL Draft the Detroit Lions elected to select DT A'Shawn Robinson at pick 46 in the 2nd round. I had him ranked 26th overall and a 1st round pick, as I am sure many other draftniks did (1st round, not so much at 26 overall). I am also going to go out on a limb and assume the Lions also did not expect him to fall to them in the 2nd round. This might have altered their draft plan a little, but you just can't pass on a top 15 or top 20 first round pick when they fall to you in the mid 2nd round. So here he is and the Lions used up nearly all their time on the clock before making the selection. Now the question is, what did they get?

We'll check first with the official NFL site and his draft profile at http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/ashawn-robinson?id=2555265 and here we see that he needs to work on some things yet could probably come in rotation during run plays right away because "Has boom in his punch and dislodges guards and centers if they try and wait on him. Pure power to toss a one-­on-­one block aside. Athletic enough to give reasonable chase to the ball. Well-schooled in using length to stuff cut blocks. Has frame and length to eat blocks and allow linebackers to run free. Heavy tackler. Running backs do not break his tackles and he rarely fails to finish when he's locked in on his target." The pick I wanted for the Lions was still on the board and went to the Chicago Bears at pick 72, so we fans and the Lions team will have to deal with him twice a year for the next 4 years (DE Jonathan Bullard) but at the same time, it's not every year you get a chance at a mid-first round pick in the second round... so I can't fault the Lions for altering their strategy (if they in fact did) and make this choice.

Huddle Report has this to say about A'Shawn http://www.thehuddlereport.com/archive/2016profiles/AShawn.Robinson.htm A’Shawn is a powerful athletic defensive tackle with the athleticism to play in any style of defense and in any style of defensive front. He is as big as a Winnebago and his ability to play in a 2-gap system and stuff the run is what he will bring with him for the team that selects him. A’Shawn has just enough foot speed and change of direction skills to create havoc when he splits a double team and gets into the backfield. He has improved dramatically this year from game to game in his hand usage, which has helped him to become better stuffing the run and getting into the backfield on passing plays to allow teammates to make sacks.

CBS has many things on him as well http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/2082728/ashawn-robinson including "Big-boned frame with proportionate thickness throughout. Powerful core and limbs to control the point of attack and stack-and-shed. Smooth athleticism with the lateral range to mirror and scrape down the line of scrimmage in pursuit. Hip flexibility and body control to work tight spaces. Shows the ability to lock out, press the hole and make stops in the gap. Plays with shock in his hands to work through the trash. Can sink and drive his lower body to create separation from blocks or push the pocket. Strong ball awareness and backfield vision to recognize things quickly. Uses his big hands and long arms to knock the ball down at the line of scrimmage. Drawing constant double-teams and keep blockers busy." So while he will get snaps even in his freshman year in the bigs, he's going to be learning how to be an NFL pro at the same time, and probably helping Ansah take some of the double team heat off during obvious run plays... until he grows into the replacement for Ngata (which is where I think this is going). Many if not most have him at a first round grade, and almost nobody I know expected him to fall to the middle of the 2nd round. This was a surprise gift, if you ask me, and not one to be gifted back.

In the 3rd round the Lions find themselves at the end of round 3 with a lot of talent falling to them, including my favorite for them S Justin Simmons who was selected by the Denver Broncos at pick 98 (3 later). Here it is pick 95 and the Lions elect to go with Michigan center Graham Glasgow (despite taking Swanson in the 3rd last year, well, Mayhew did not Quinn, so there's that). I was looking for the Lions to take one of two centers in round 4, both are already gone in round 3 at picks 66 and 79. Since the Lions choose a center instead of a safety in round 3 let's take a look at this pick.

At first glance, he is not at all what I would expect the Lions to draft http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/graham-glasgow?id=2555182 From his off field issues to his needed improvements, he just doesn't strike me as the right choice at this pick. As a guard and center backup perhaps, but as an immediate replacement for Swanson, perhaps not. Let's just say he is going to need to mature quick and also produce fast in order to steal the starting job. "Three-year starter who relies on power over athleticism to win his reps. Glasgow's strength at the point of attack will appeal to power running teams, but his inconsistent connection percentage on second level blocks may worry some teams. Glasgow needs to improve his hands, but he has enough upside to be a quality backup at two positions or maybe an eventual starter." As you can see, he's basically the opposite of the finesse center that is Swanson.

The Huddle Report (film) has a lot of the same on Glasgow. http://www.thehuddlereport.com/archive/2016profiles/Graham.Glasgow.htm "I’m not sure why Graham is a better run blocker than pass blocker. The truth is offensive linemen who are tall (6’6”) usually have a problem bending and getting into their opponent at the correct pad level to really be effective blocking for the run and are usually much better pass blocking because of that height. Go figure -- Graham is just the opposite. Nevertheless Graham is a good pass blocker and with better techniques should become an excellent pass blocker so I think selecting him early in this draft makes a lot of sense. He can play the all important center position and also play Left Guard and with his size might be able to play tackle in a pinch." and then there is the CBS profile at http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1868371/graham-glasgow "Glasgow is a prospect on the rise after enjoying a strong senior season and earning a Senior Bowl invite following a strong showing during Shrine Game practices.

It has been an impressive turnaround for Glasgow. He entered the 2015 season needing to prove himself to coaches after a spring suspension for violating the terms of his probation from a guilty plea to driving while impaired the previous year. At the time, he was working at center following Jack Miller's decision to leave the program. Glasgow returned from that suspension to earn the starting job a center.

The former walk-on left Michigan with 37 career starts and offers versatility. During all-star games he saw time a center and guard, where he started in 2014 after seeing nine starts at center and four at left guard as a sophomore." This is not a player I would have drafted. Quinn and the Lions did, so we shall see if they made the right choice. I personally will be forever comparing Glasgow's career to Safety Justin Simmons now of the Broncos. Hopefully I will get to admit my error in years to come.

The Lions have now tempered my enthusiasm from day 1. While I was impressed with day 1 the unexpected drop of Robinson to them in day 2 seems to have reeked havoc with the draft plan... perhaps I am off base on this... it just doesn't seem like the other teams have behaved the way that was expected and this caused whatever plans were prepared to be scrapped. Now it's entirely possible things are going to script and the profiles I am reading and posting aren't accurate at all. This wouldn't be the first time that has happened. Yet I just get this feeling that things aren't quite going as planned, and that a new plan is being forced out on the fly due to circumstances, not that it can be controlled anyway, just that things aren't going anywhere near as predicted.

Let's just say I am not as aglow as I was after day 1, and am now forced to cross my fingers instead of feeling confident that all is well. One thing I can declare though, the Lions are definitely NOT ignoring the trenches, since all 3 picks so far are trench picks (OT, DT, C/G). It just remains to be seen how this all works out from here.

2016 NFL Draft - Round 1 - Detroit Lions

OT Taylor Decker

In my forum, late at night on the 24th or April, I did my Lions mock for this year http://badnetrat.proboards.com/thread/9487/lions-draft-mock-today instead of posting it here. It's a little late but I shall paste that post now:

1st round:
OT Taylor Decker Ohio State; alternates include: Ronnie Stanley Notre Dame and Jack Conklin MSU

2nd round:
DE Jonathan Bullard Florida; alternates include: Emmanuel Ogbah Oklahoma State, Shilique Calhoun Michigan State, or a S Karl Joseph West Virginia

3rd round:
S Jalen Mills LSU; alternates include: Justin Simmons Boston College, or a DE Matt Judon Grand Valley State

4th round:
C Max Tuerk Southern California; alternates include: DT Hassan Ridgeway Texas, among many many others.

5th and 6th rounds:
RB Darius Jackson Eastern Michigan and DT Justin Zimmer Ferris State among others.

7th round:
QB Josh Woodrum Liberty among others.

Some undrafted guys:
Ben McCord TE Central Michigan
Nick Beamish C Central Michigan
Sharrod Neasman SS Florida Atlantic
Alex Huettel OG Bowling Green
Perez Ford OLB Northern Illinois
Lars Hanson OT Sacramento State
Brett McMakin OLB Northern Iowa
Mike Rose DE NC State
Chris Mayes DT Georgia (or there are 4 other DTs I like as well)
Johnny Holton WR Cincinnati
Blake Frohnapfel QB Massachusetts
Frankie Williams CB Purdue
Mike Jordan CB Missouri Western State
Jay Lee WR Baylor
Ryker Mathews OT Brigham Young

and I still haven't had the time to research as much as I usually do. I did get my big board done, with 1191 names on it. Unfortunately, I didn't get to review nearly as many as I would normally do and it don't look good for the next 3 days either.

Still, needed something in writing to show against the actual happenings from later this week.


And, as you can see, I got round 1 right on the nose for the Lions after all. I had also, in other threads, added a WR in Mitch Mathews to the undrafted list and a center to the 4th round in Isaac Seumalo... in fact I put Isaac Seumalo ahead of Max Tuerk and the others above, making him the pick I truly hope the Lions make.

If the Lions can somehow add DE Bullard or DE Ogbah in the 2nd; S Jalen Mills or S Justin Simmons in the 3rd, then snag C Isaac Seumalo or C Max Tuerk in the 4th along with the rest of my guys listed above I would be one of the happiest draftniks on the planet.

What tomorrow (and the next day) brings remains to be seen, but for tonight we have to get familiar with our new (probable) Right Tackle; Taylor Decker. First off, he's from Ohio State, but let's not hold that against him. he's 6'7" tall (tall) and weights in at 310 pounds (also big). I have him at 14 on my big board and since he was drafted at 16 he is neither a reach nor a sleeper. A former scout for the Bears (of 30 years) had him 12th on his board. There should be no issues with anyone saying he was taken too soon, or that he dropped, or any other derogatory remark in that regard. So without any further ado, some links and comments about offensive tackle Taylor Decker.

http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/taylor-decker?id=2555206 "Tough guy who scouts believe has the locker room presence and field demeanor to be an instant leader along an offensive line."

http://thehuddlereport.com/archive/2016profiles/Taylor.Decker.htm "His natural leadership skills and his football intelligence are outstanding. His ability to understand blocking assignments like an offensive line coach is more mature than most players coming out of college and these strong attributes will help to make him an outstanding lineman for the team that selects him. He has solid athletic talent and uses good techniques"

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1983776/taylor-decker "Decker started the last 42 games for the Buckeyes, splitting time between left and right tackle, and was part of a senior class that won 50 games at Ohio State. He had a rough debut against Buffalo's Khalil Mack (Oakland Raider top-five pick in the 2014 NFL Draft) in his first career start, but has been an ascending talent since, learning from past mistakes and developing his skill-set.

He has reliable character, a can-do attitude and pro-ready make-up that fits NFL locker rooms. Decker can struggle at times with speed off the edge, especially flexible rushers who can bend underneath him, but he has the frame, balance and forceful hands to neutralize quickness and control the point of attack. "

Okay, so he's big, strong, smart, a leader, is coach-able, healthy, and has no off field issues... in other words, a potential permanent fixture on the OLine and quite possibly will become the best player on the Lions offensive line before his 2nd year. Not sure what you were expecting for the 16th pick in round 1, but for me, I'll take this upgrade to the line any time. Sure, if you read the cons in the links above you will see he has things to work on, which college kid doesn't, but do they all know they actually do have to work on it? This kid does, and he will.

Day 1 of the Lions 2016 draft is in the books, and I am glad I got to see it happen. The upcoming two days could really make things interesting, should it go anywhere near as I suspect it will. Even if it's not the players I envision at this point in time, I have a feeling I'll be happy with the results. Before today I wouldn't have said that, by the way, I was leery as to what Quinn was all about. But, he did not panic and move up like some teams did. He did not snag a guy who dropped because he was suddenly a "good value" yet had warts. He held his ground and got a very solid football player that will in fact help the team win games. Bodes well for the next couple of days if you ask me. Here's to a great start!

2016 Detroit Lions Pre-Draft Off-Season Review

How the Lions got to this point.

The Lions signed a new GM in early January, the New England Patriots Director of Pro Scouting Bob Quinn. He in turn replaced a number of people in the Lions front office and then remodeled the entire Lions weight room after replacing the top trainers. Since the results of all those moves have yet to be seen, I'll refrain from having an opinion one way or the other on those actions. Instead, I'll focus on the transactions that have occurred to the roster. It is the off season after all.

On 1/4/2016 in what will become the final moves by interim GM Sheldon White the Detroit Lions sign LB Khaseem Greene, TE Casey Pierce, WR Ryan Spadola, WR Corey Washington and OT Tyrus Thompson to 2016 Reserve/Future contracts. Four days later Bob Quinn is hired and interim GM Sheldon White is out of a job, he had replaced the former GM Martin Mayhew mid-season in 2015. Sheldon White was the Lions VP of Pro Personnel before becoming interim GM and he was not retained in that role either. Martin Mayhew later was hired by the New York Giants as director of football operations there.

The Detroit Lions under Bob Quinn then made the following roster moves:
1/21/2016 The Detroit Lions sign WR Austin Willis to a 2016 Reserve/Futures contract.
2/11/2016 The Detroit Lions sign linebacker Jerry Franklin.
2/12/2016 The Detroit Lions sign offensive tackle Lamar Holmes.
2/16/2016 The Detroit Lions terminate the contract of running back Joique Bell.
2/19/2016 The Detroit Lions release defensive tackle C.J. Wilson.
3/2/2016 The Detroit Lions place cornerback Rashean Mathis on Reserve/Retired.
3/4/2016 The Detroit Lions re-sign defensive tackle Tyrunn Walker.
3/8/2016 The Detroit Lions place wide receiver Calvin Johnson on Reserve/Retired.
3/10/2016 The Detroit Lions re-sign wide receiver Corey Fuller.
3/10/2016 The Detroit Lions sign defensive back Tavon Wilson.
3/10/2016 The Detroit Lions re-sign defensive tackle Haloti Ngata.
3/11/2016 The Detroit Lions sign cornerback Johnson Bademosi, cornerback Crezdon Butler, wide receiver Marvin Jones, longsnapper Don Muhlbach, quarterback Dan Orlovsky, linebacker Tahir Whitehead and defensive tackle Stefan Charles.
3/12/2016 The Detroit Lions sign safety Rafael Bush.
3/16/2016 The Detroit Lions re-sign tight end Timothy Wright.
3/21/2016 The Detroit Lions sign wide receiver Jeremy Kerley.
3/29/2016 The Detroit Lions sign cornerback Darrin Walls
3/30/2016 The Detroit Lions sign guard Geoff Schwartz.
4/5/2016 The Detroit Lions sign defensive end Wallace Gilberry, tight end Matthew Mulligan and running back Stevan Ridley.
4/8/2016 The Detroit Lions re-sign running back George Winn.
4/18/2016 The Detroit Lions re-sign defensive tackle Khyri Thornton.
4/19/2016 The Detroit Lions re-sign center Braxston Cave, defensive end Brandon Copeland and defensive back Isaiah Johnson.
4/25/2016 The Detroit Lions sign punter Kyle Christy.

Other then WR Marvin Jones, who received a contract very similar to Golden Tate's, the contracts for everyone else is either a 1 year or 2 year deal and most of them have relatively small signing bonuses with many many incentives built-in to them. Should those players remain on the roster and get a lot of playing time (meaning they won their respective jobs/roster spots) they will be paid fairly well, though I'm sure not as well as they would like. However, if they are unable to win their roster spot or starting job (due to performance or the draft results), they can be affordable to either cut or trade. The moves should allow Quinn to have a fairly decent roster with some depth to it in case of injury. It also gives Quinn room in the draft to select players they think fit the team without having to reach or feel pressure to take someone they maybe shouldn't.

The only roster spot at the moment with no depth at all is defensive end. In fact, the Lions only have 3 players signed that play that position and they usually have 4 or even 5 on the roster for the season. If Mayhew was still GM this would be a sure indicator that DE would be the first pick of the draft. Since it is not Mayhew no one knows who the Lions will select in the first round. A large number seem to think the Lions will go WR to replace Calvin Johnson who retired in March. An equal number still think that DT is the pick to replace Suh (even though it's two years now and the Lions have 7 DTs on the roster at the moment). Even more believe they will go offensive tackle (to challenge Reiff and/or Ola/Schwartz). Finally I'm now hearing a lot of pundits suggesting the Lions will take the best Center in the draft and replace Swanson, arguably the worst member of the offensive line last year. Any of them could be right. All of them could be wrong. No one, except perhaps 5 or so people that work in Allen Park, have any idea what the Lions might do Thursday night, and they don't even know who will be available when the Lions finely get on the clock.

Myself, I think they just might trade down. Although a part of me knows that Quinn might get aggressive to build the roster at a particular spot and try to trade up, despite my hoping he never ever trades up. If no trades occur (or even if they do) I think the pick would be or could be DE, OT, S, CB, C, or DT... pretty much in that order, depending on who is there when they pick. Heck, it wouldn't even surprise me a ton if the pick was a linebacker. That is how much I don't know about Quinn. Is he the type to take the best player that can help the team now? The best player period? The best player for the team at any point in the future even if he doesn't help now? or the player they need the most now even if he's not the best available? I know what Quinn has said, but I don't know when the clock is ticking, exactly what will happen. And to be honest, almost no one anywhere else does either. Plenty of guesses, but actual knowledge is just not available.

What would I do if I were GM? It would depend on what trade offers (down) I get and who is still available. I could see selecting a DE to learn behind Devin Taylor and who can rotate in more and more as the year progresses to play opposite Ansah. I could see selecting a DT to play behind Ngata and Walker to also rotate in and learn the job to be an eventual replacement for one of them. I could see selecting an offensive tackle that could maybe play left side (replacing Reiff) or at least competes to start instead of Ola or Geoff Schwartz on the right side. I could see selecting Ryan Kelly to start at Center putting Swanson as the backup guard/center for depth, even though I normally would not advocate selecting a center in round one. Then after trying to decide on those four trench positions I could see entertaining the thought of selecting a top tier Safety to play opposite Quinn, or a top tier LB to play either opposite Levy or between Levy and Whitehead. Finally, I could see selecting a corner to play opposite Slay. All are viable options in my opinion. All depends on who is available and how they are truly ranked (by the pro's, not just by draftniks and/or myself). But the final truth of it is, as long as the pick works out, any one of those options would help the team win games now and/or later. Making sure the pick made will in fact work out is the primary concern (as it should be).

I'm a little more sure of what won't happen, since there is no sense drafting a player to fill a role that is already filled. In the first round they will not draft a QB, a RB, a WR, a TE, a G, a P, or a K... in my opinion. They may draft or sign an undrafted player to fill the QB#3 spot, the power RB spot, the tall fast deep WR spot (after a few years of development), or the blocking TE spot... all on day 3. Just not in round 1. Probably not in round 2 either for that matter. Maybe.

The Lions only (currently) have 3 picks on the first 2 days of the draft and I can see them finding a top DE, C, OT, S, and/or CB during that time. Since they can not address all five spots as it stands now the whole thing is indeterminable. Plus, we don't know how they truly feel about some of the players currently on the roster, nor do we know what offers are still outstanding in free agency... offers that won't be addressed until after the draft is over and players, their agents, and front office people see what is what.

All of this, of course, is what makes the draft so appealing to so many fans. Myself included. It's only about 48 hours (approximately) until the Lions are on the clock... only then will we know what Quinn is thinking, and a few hours later, should you read this blog, how I feel about what the Lions did. Perhaps I shall "see" you then.