"If I Were GM" - Detroit Lions

The Detroit Lions enter the 2010 offseason having made progress from last year’s 0-16 season. Does moving from the first pick one year to the second pick the next year count as improvement? It sure does when your team was the worst in NFL history the year before. Detroit still has several holes that they need to fill this year, among those being the offensive line, defensive line, and the secondary. The Lions own the second pick in every round except the seventh, which they traded to Buffalo in September in exchange for safety Ko Simpson. Detroit also has an extra fifth-round pick which they acquired during a draft-day deal with the Denver Broncos during the 2009 draft. Here is my position-by-position breakdown of the Lions and how I’d address each need If I Were GM:

Quarterback – The quarterback position may be the easiest one for the Lions to address in 2010, because they likely won’t have to. After selecting Georgia’s Matthew Stafford with the first pick in the draft in 2009, Detroit has its quarterback of the future and the leader of their offense. The only need that they would have to upgrade this position is to find a reliable backup, which neither Daunte Culpepper nor Drew Stanton are. Signing a veteran through free agency to mentor Stafford would be a smart decision.

Running Back – The running back position is where it begins to get a little messy for Detroit. In addition to suffering an ACL injury in December, starting running back Kevin Smith also played the majority of the season with a separated left shoulder, which happened during the third game of the season. While Smith

has been a productive back the past two years (455 carries, 1,723 yards, eight touchdowns) for the Lions,

it is almost certain that he won’t be capable of being the workhorse back next year that he was for his first two years in the league. With that said, it’s expected that the team will look for a new starting running back this offseason. There are two options for the Lions here: find a back via free agency or find one in the draft like they did with Smith. In free agency, without having to give anything up for a restricted free agent, the top unrestricted free agent who I think could still be a workhorse back is the Minnesota Vikings’ Chester Taylor. Willie Parker, Kevin Faulk, and Larry Johnson all are unrestricted free agents as well, but they don’t present the potential that Taylor could bring to the Lions. In Taylor’s one year as a starter for the Vikings in 2006, he rushed for 1,216 and six touchdowns on 303 carries. Taylor has the body type and the combination of strength and speed that teams look for in an every-down back. If the Lions went with an unrestricted free agent, Taylor would be their best bet. As for restricted free agents, Pierre Thomas, Leon Washington, and Darren Sproles highlight this list. Thomas is the only one who presents a workhorse-type of back, however he’s dealt with injuries and wouldn’t be worth  giving up the picks to acquire. In the draft, the team could look for a starter in the second or third round in the mold of Georgia Tech’s Jonathan Dwyer or Fresno State’s Ryan Mathews. Each of these players have the tools needed to become an every-down workhorse for the team that drafts them. The Lions have several options at the running back position; Chester Taylor would be their best bet, as they wouldn’t have to give up or use valuable draft picks to acquire him.

Wide Receivers/Tight End – The Lions have two players in their receiving core that they can build around; wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who is one of the best in the game, and tight end Brandon Pettigrew. However, the rest of the receiving core is the major question mark. Bryant Johnson and Dennis Northcutt have combined to give Detroit two underachieving players who could not draw coverage away from Calvin Johnson. Derrick Williams is a prospect for them, who despite catching just six passes for 52 yards in his rookie season, could develop into a nice slot receiver for the team. As for their No. 2 and No. 4 receiver spots, the Lions could easily fill these holes through free agency or the draft. The restricted free agent market is going to be filled with talented wideouts this year: Vincent Jackson, Miles Austin, Brandon Marshall, Braylon Edwards; however, all of those players would command draft picks that Detroit can’t afford to give up. In the unrestricted free agent market, Terrell Owens and Antonio Bryant are two players that I think the Lions could take a serious look at. Bringing in Owens would present some off-field distractions, however he would also give the team a very dangerous receiving core with another down-field threat that could draw the coverage away from Johnson. Bryant wouldn’t offer as much explosion as Owens, however he likely wouldn’t bring the distractions that Owens would. In the draft, Demaryius Thomas, Johnson’s former teammate at Georgia Tech, would be an intriguing fit in the second round, while Damian Williams and Mardy Gilyard are two other players that I think they could consider in the late-second to early-third round. Going after Owens and/or Bryant may be their best option for an immediate-impact player.

Offensive Line – What’s interesting about the offensive line in Detroit is that they gave up 43 sacks, yet head coach Jim Schwartz said after the year that left tackle Jeff Backus deserved some Pro Bowl votes. Whether or not they decide to upgrade the line is one thing, however it’s clear that it certainly could use an upgrade. At offensive guard, former tackle Jon Jansen finished the year out opposite Daniel Loper. The only consistency that the line has gotten has come from the center position where Dominic Raiola has been the full-time starter for the team since 2002. At tackle former first-round pick Gosder Cherilus hasn’t quite lived up to the value of the pick that was used to take him and we’ve already discussed Backus. With this being “If I Were GM”, I’d  look towards the draft to address their offensive line issues; at guard, Mike Johnson and Jon Asamoah would be interesting fits in the second-to-third round, if not the fourth round for Asamoah. Each would fill the need of finding a young guard to insert in their lineup. At tackle, the Lions could consider signing a restricted free agent like Jammal Brown, Willie Colon, Marcus McNeil, or Jared Gaither, however any of them would require likely a first round pick, something that Detroit can’t afford to give up. Finding a tackle like Chad Clifton, an unrestricted free agent, could allow for the Lions to move Backus inside to guard. There are several options for Detroit, but one thing is for sure, and that is that they must address their line at some point this offseason.

Defensive Line – The defensive line is where the Lions draft class could be centered around in 2010. With the No. 2 pick in the draft, Detroit is in position to land one of Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy, the two top defensive tackles in the draft. With Suh likely going to St. Louis, McCoy appears to be the most likely player to land in the Motor City. With the talented but raw Sammie Lee Hill playing the one-technique in Detroit’s 4-3 scheme, McCoy would be a fantastic fit as the three-technique on their line. This would solve a lot of problems that the Lions have had on defense. With one of the worst run defenses in football, McCoy would bring a breath of fresh air for a defense that hasn’t quite figured out how to stop opposing running backs. As for pass rushers, McCoy would likely command double teams on the interior of the line, and would provide Cliff Avril and Jason Hunter with open lanes or one-on-one matchups to rush the passer. At end, Avril is a young player who recorded 5.5 sacks on the year and Hunter tallied five as well. Each could remain as starters in 2010, however I think it’d be smart for Detroit to bring in another end through the draft to provide competition at the position. Drafting Jerry Hughes in the second round or a player like Willie Young or O’Brien Schofield in the middle of the draft would do exactly that.

Linebacker – The linebacker core in Detroit is a pretty simple situation. DeAndre Levy had a great rookie year and is a player that the team will build around for the future, as is Ernie Sims. Middle linebacker Larry Foote is a free agent, however I’d be surprised if he wasn’t brought back. At the other outside linebacker position Julian Peterson had a solid year, however he will enter the 2010 season as a 32-year old linebacker with a $7.5 million salary. Some think that they will ask Peterson to take a pay cut, and if he refuses, then they could cut him. Outside of Jordon Dizon, the team lacks depth in their linebacker core. Bringing back the same unit from last year should be the team’s goal, as they all had a good year. Levy is the middle linebacker of the future, which means that Foote may need to move into a reserve role next year if he returns; if he comes back and Peterson doesn’t, then he could remain in the middle with Levy filling Peterson’s spot with Sims manning the other spot.

Defensive Backs – The Lions owned the worst pass defense in the league this past season, meaning there will be a lot of work to do here this offseason. If I were the general manager of the team, I’d blow up the secondary outside of Louis Delmas, who was one of the team’s most valuable players last season. With the

second pick in the draft, the Lions could take Tennessee safety Eric Berry, who would give the Lions two of the top young safeties in the NFL, however that seems unlikely. They could also look at Joe Haden to fix their secondary, but like Berry, that looks unlikely. As for unrestricted free agents, Houston’s Dunta Robinson would be an ideal player to look at. It’s uncertain as to whether or not Robinson will be brought back by the Texans, however if he leaves, he would be a player that Detroit should look at. He’d bring an immediate-impact player who has the talent to really improve the team’s secondary. Nick Harper could be another option. At safety, I could see the team looking at a restricted free agent like Dawan Landry in Baltimore, who they likely wouldn’t have to give up a first round pick for, but would still receive a player who could come in and help out immediately. As for the draft, the corners that I could see them targeting are Syd’Quan Thompson and Perrish Cox in the third-round range, while Walter Thurmond III would be a nice late-round pick who has the talent to come in and play right away, but will fall in the draft due to a knee injury that ended his senior year early. Thurmond could be a great player to pair with Delmas at safety, as he’s a cover corner who likes to be a center-field type and try to make plays on the ball when it’s in the air. With Delmas being more of a strong safety, I like the way that Thurmond would fit with them. For other free safety types, I think that Morgan Burnett, Robert Johnson, or Myron Rolle could all be players that they could look at.

Overall – The Lions, similar to in 2009, still have a boatload of holes that they need to fill. With another high pick they are in position to trade another game-changing type of impact player who can become a centerpiece that they can build around for the future; this time it will be on the defensive side of the ball, where they need the most help. Gerald McCoy has Detroit Lion written all over him at this point in the draft process. As for the rest of the roster, there are certain players in free agency (Chester Taylor, Dunta Robinson, etc.) who I think would be excellent players to bring in to be immediate-impact players. Finding the right combination of free agents and young players in the draft is what makes teams successful. Hopefully the Lions will find that right combination in 2010.

Projected Draft Class for Detroit:

1st Round - Gerald McCoy DT Oklahoma

2nd Round - Jerry Hughes DE TCU

3rd Round - Syd'Quan Thompson CB California

4th Round - Jon Asamoah OG Illinois

5th Round - Antonio Brown WR Central Michigan

5th Round (from Denver) - John Jerry OG/OT Ole Miss

6th Round - Walter Thurmond CB/S Oregon