For those who don't know me, I go by the handle m2karateman, and I occasionally write articles for Lionbacker, a Detroit Lions fan website. http://www.lionbacker.com/
I am also a frequent poster within the forum of that most excellent website, and I also occasionally post within the forums of Footballs Future as well.
So, with this blog I'd like to take a closer look at the Detroit Lions newest additions in the NFL Draft. There are many Lions fans who are disappointed with the outcome of the draft, while many "experts" out there have the opposite opinion. The Lions actually have Mel Kiper and Todd McShay agreeing on something, the idea that the Lions had one of the best drafts among the NFL teams this year. I don't know whether that is scary good or scary bad.
First, let's take a look at what the draft is. The draft is a tool used to create parity year over year between the teams in the NFL. That parity is created when teams who didn't compete with higher quality teams (playoff teams) get to choose first among the talent available from the college ranks. T-A-L-E-N-T. It's about the procurement of talent, not the filling of positions that lack talent.
If and when the occasion comes about that the best talented available also fills a dire need, there is much to rejoice. In that regard, one could look at a team like Arizona this year. They certainly had other more desperate positional needs other than cornerback, but Patrick Peterson was the best talent available. Cincinnati, who chose just before Arizona, took wide receiver A.J. Green. He filled both a need and could have been considered the best talent available. Everyone knows Cincinnati was in the market for a quarterback, and could have reached for one there at the fourth pick. They didn't and chose the talent over the position.
When the Lions took Nick Fairley, they chose to stick with their draft board, which rated him as the highest available talent. Not the highest talent at a certain position, but the highest talent, period. They did the same in the second round when they selected Titus Young. Many fans felt that the Lions should have used that pick to take a cornerback like Brandon Harris, or a linebacker like Martez Wilson, which would have filled greater needs. Some folks support this idea by stating that it would be easier to sign a slot receiver in free agency than it will be to get a starting corner or linebacker. The same philosophy is being used for the Lions decision to move up and get Mikel LeShoure with the 57th pick in the draft. We could sign any number of power backs, like Michael Bush, in free agency. The problem with this theory is that not every player that a team targets in free agency gets signed. Remember that the Lions had wanted to go after Takeo Spikes a couple seasons ago, and many thought he would be pleased to come here. He went to San Francisco. Albert Haynesworth was reputed to be coming to Detroit, he went to Washington. It doesn't always work out. However, in the draft, you are guaranteed to have exlusivity with the player you select. No other team can get him from you unless you choose to trade him and get some form of compensation. There is no guaranteed exclusivity in the dealings with an unrestricted free agent.
Now, it may be that you don't agree that Titus Young or Mikel LeShoure, or even Nick Fairley were the best talents available when the Lions made those individual selections. We really won't know that answer for at least a couple seasons. But given the current regimes success in the past couple drafts, I'd give them the benefit of the doubt. One cannot argue with the idea that the Lions certainly added talent and have made the roster stronger with their picks. While defensive tackle wasn't a glaring need, Fairley was at one time considered to be in the mix as the top overall pick. He displayed uncanny athletic skills in the Bowl Championship game, almost single handedly taking over the game. Titus Young and Mikel LeShoure do fill some areas of concern, not dire need. Most Lions fans agreed that there was a need for a third quality receiver, and that a power back would be a nice compliment to the speed of Jahvid Best. Many folks felt that those positions would be filled in later rounds, not in the second round. But if you think about it, do you want those positions filled with just a body, or with a talent? What if Burleson gets hurt again? What if Best has further injury issues? Now, the Lions have a talent to fall back on rather than just someone who happens to have made the roster by default.
I have written an article reviewing the Lions picks in this past draft, and have graded each selection and also gave an overall grade. It is currently posted on the home page of Lionbacker. If you are a Detroit Lions fan, I would encourage you to review the website if you are not already familiar with it. Read the article and let me know how you feel about it. You don't have to agree with me, because it's all subjective. But I'd like to be after many, many years of watching how NOT to add talent via the draft (The Dark Ages, also referred to as the Millen Years) I think I understand and agree with how Martin Mayhew and Jim Schwartz are going about adding talent. And in my humble opinion, they're doing about as good a job as we could ask for. They aren't going to "hit" on every pick, but they aren't trying to force square pegs into round holes, either.
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