You are the Lions new GM with the 1st pick in the draft, wadda ya do???

[C-Gold]

Lions have the #1 pick, #1 pick of round 2, and Dallas's first pick ( maybe #22 or so.

Offense
16.5 PPG ( still better than the Redskins)
QB - Kitna is about average, but how much longer does he have?
RB- New RB shows some promise, I'd keep him
WR - Megatron is a future hall of famer
WR depth - is actually ok.
LT - Backus is average or better
C- Raoli is above average
RT- Cherrilus is a mauler who shows promise.

The offense can certainly use talent, you have only 1 real super star. I think with the T, T, C combo, your line is better than it gets credit for. You could use a guards, but Backus,Raoli, Cherrlis is better than a lot of teams. The QB Kitna does about what he can with what he has. When he got hurt, it showed how a real bad QBs do with what they have.

If you get the stud QB, you take him, but will Stafford/Bradford really be Stud QB's? Is it worth giving up a 1st rounder for Matt Cassell?

Defense
Defense gives up 32.4 PPG
Defense gives up 170 yards rushing and 5.0 per carry ( horribile)

End- Dewayne White is above average ( although overpaid)
DT- Shaun Cody is average
Cliff Avril shows promise, I like him
Ernie Simms is a good LB
Nece is average
Leigh Bodden is a good cover corner on a bad team
Bullocks is average


I say you go after some defense to address that historically bad D. The reason the Lions lose isn't because of their offense, it is because senior citizens in walkers could run on that D. Bring in a big impact DE to play opposite Dwayne White, see if you can bring in Ray Ma from USC to help stop the run. Trade that 1st pick down, and try and bring in 2 defenders and aquire extra draft picks.

Trade down
Draft stud DE
Draft stud LB
Draft a potential stud G ( you should be able to get one in round 3)
Draft an animal DT
Draft a S that can help play the run

and fire that damn coach. He is a moron.

 

[Steiner69eR]

I see where your coming from, but you have to draft a new face of the franchise of you are the GM. See: Atlanta Falcons + Baltimore Ravens

Obviously there are more 1st round QB busts than studs like these guys, especially in their first seasons, but I don't see how you cannot draft Stafford #1 overall.

 

[C-Gold]

I can't fault you for drafting stafford #1, but I think if you trade down and address that D ( with a more solid draft pick with less of a chance to bust), Kitna wouldn't be THAT bad of a stop gap while you try and rebuild that D.

If you get a stud lineman and a stud LB, you can have some nice solid impact to the horrible unit of your team.

 

[midman2161]

You either have to take Stafford at one, or trade down and stockpile draft picks to get a bunch of players on defense. It really depends on who they are going to target in free agency, but this team has way too many problems to fix in one draft. Awful D-line, some of the worst linebacking play I have seen (keep Ernie Sims but the rest have to go), and no pass defense to speak of.

 

[VIEJODINOSAUR]

Start with the defense and concentrate to rebuild it....main focus should be on defensive help....

 

[DIRTYDOG1]

Dirtydog, thanks for the comment but teams run because they are winning, not run to win.

:howdy:Hello C-Gold...

I hate to disagree with you on this my friend, but in truth you are totally wrong on this..

...Teams do in fact RUN to win, running the ball sets up play action and also allows you to take your shots downfield when the D-backs creep up to the line to help against the run, if your opponent doesn't respect your run game there is NO PASS GAME.

In my earlier posting I listed the top 8 rushing teams in the league which once again are the Giants, Baltimore, Minny, Carolina, Atlanta, Tenny, New England, and Washington...

...its by no small coincidence that these same 8 teams are also ranked in the top 8 in the NFL in rushing attempts per game.

You are correct that former Offensive coordinator Mike Martz (the mad bomber) called ALOT of passing plays, however, just because a team calls alot of passing plays doesn't give an offensive line an excuse for allowing a whopping 168 sacks to date since 2006...

Mike Martz is NOT the offensive coordinator this year...Jim Colletto is.

Jim Colletto is no stranger to offensive line play as he was the Ravens offensive line coach from 1999 to 2005 yet the Lions have allowed 51 to date which ranks them #31 in that category....the problem lies with the guys manning the O-Line.

You believe the Lions offensive line is okay, I'm sorry my friend but the stats simply do not bear that out because as already mentioned the Lion offense is virtually dead last in every single category...in the big picture the key to any offense is the offensive line.

Take care and be well

Dirtydog

:wink:

 

[DIRTYDOG1]

Quote:
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=6 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=alt2 style="BORDER-RIGHT: 1px inset; BORDER-TOP: 1px inset; BORDER-LEFT: 1px inset; BORDER-BOTTOM: 1px inset">Dirtydog, thanks for the comment but teams run because they are winning, not run to win. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
:howdy:Hello C-Gold...

I hate to disagree with you on this my friend, but in truth you are totally wrong on this..

...Teams do in fact RUN to win, running the ball sets up play action and also allows you to take your shots downfield when the D-backs creep up to the line to help against the run, if your opponent doesn't respect your run game there is NO PASS GAME.

In my earlier posting I listed the top 8 rushing teams in the league which once again are the Giants, Baltimore, Minny, Carolina, Atlanta, Tenny, New England, and Washington...

...its by no small coincidence that these same 8 teams are also ranked in the top 8 in the NFL in rushing attempts per game.

You are correct that former Offensive coordinator Mike Martz (the mad bomber) called ALOT of passing plays, however, just because a team calls alot of passing plays doesn't give an offensive line an excuse for allowing a whopping 168 sacks to date since 2006...

Mike Martz is NOT the offensive coordinator this year...Jim Colletto is.

Jim Colletto is no stranger to offensive line play as he was the Ravens offensive line coach from 1999 to 2005 yet the Lions have allowed 51 to date which ranks them #31 in that category....the problem lies with the guys manning the O-Line.

You believe the Lions offensive line is okay, I'm sorry my friend but the stats simply do not bear that out because as already mentioned the Lion offense is virtually dead last in every single category...in the big picture the key to any offense is the offensive line.

Take care and be well

Dirtydog

:wink:
<!-- / message -->

 

[C-Gold]

I also think it's funny you say the Redskins have an offensive line ( I agree with you), but the Deadskins fans say that the reason why Jason Leftwhich sucks is because he has no line.

Samuels made the pro bowl
Pete Kendal is a former pro bowler
Rauback is good
Randy Thomas is almost pro bowl quality
RT has had injuries, but Heyer is a decent backup


I mean, WTF do you expect? That line was leading the leagues leading rusher for a while. It isn't that the LINE SUCKS, it is that Jason Leftwhich holds onto the ball forever and has a long release when he isn't throwing a 1 yard WR smoke screen, or a screen to Portis or a TE drag.

Jason Leftwhich is a dumb lazy mobile quarterback that isn't smart enough to be more than a game manager.

 

[Ramonskee]

Michael Crabtree.
You may not have an offensive line but all you need is 2.75 seconds for Daunte Culpepper to air the ball deeeeeeeep to The Crab Man and watch them put up big numbers. Calvin Johnson on the other side of the field will also benefit from this. Oh, and the running game will get more freedom to run as opposing defenses will respect the Lions passing game more.

 

[DIRTYDOG1]

Lions have the #1 pick, #1 pick of round 2, and Dallas's first pick ( maybe #22 or so.

Offense
16.5 PPG ( still better than the Redskins)
QB - Kitna is about average, but how much longer does he have?
RB- New RB shows some promise, I'd keep him
WR - Megatron is a future hall of famer
WR depth - is actually ok.
LT - Backus is average or better
C- Raoli is above average
RT- Cherrilus is a mauler who shows promise.

:howdy:Hello C-Gold...

Here it is Christmas day (BTW Merry Christmas!!), and I find myself with some time on my hands before my wife and I visit my parents later this afternoon...

...anyway, hopefully you won't mind but I thought I would toss my proverbial two cents into the ring with regard to this topic of who the Lions should draft.

First of all let's get this out of the way now.....THE LIONS SUCK ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL.

Defensively these Pussy Cats rank DEAD LAST at #32 in the NFL in yards allowed per game giving up a whopping 398.60 yards to opponents, they are DEAD LAST #32 in yards per rush allowed as opposing ball carriers gain an eye opening 5.02 yards per rush...

...the Lions are DEAD LAST #32 in the league in yards per pass allowed giving up 8.32 yards per pass, and they rank #31 in the league in opposing QB completion percentage as they allow QB's to complete 68.85% of all passes (only the Colts are worse allowing a completion % of 68.60% .

Offensively these toothless Kitties rank near the bottom in virtually every category as well, in terms of total offense yardage these Pussy cats are ranked #30 with 264.47 yards per game (only Cleveland and Cincy are worse), the league average thus far is 326.12 per game...

...Detroit averages 81.80 rushing yards per game which is #30 in the NFL for a 3.80 yards per tote average which is 26th in the league and they are ranked #26 in the league in passing yards with 182.70 per game with an average of 5.87 yards per pass which is #25 in the NFL, the Lions TOP (time of possession) average is 26:47 minutes per game which ranks them #31 in that category.

As you pointed out in your posting these Lions are averaging 16.5 points per game which ranks them #27 in the league, only Wash, Cleve, Oak, STL, and Cincy average less points per game than the Lions...

....Washington is the only team with a winning seasonal record (8-7) out of the five teams that average less points per game than Detroit as the other four teams (Cleve, Oak, STL, and Cincy) have a combined shoddy record of 13-46 season to date.

Riddle me this...

...If Washington averages less points scored per game than Detroit, why then does Detroit have a 0-15 record while the Skins are 8-7 season to date?

The most obvious answer would be that Washington has the better defense which keeps them in games, however, I would beg to differ...

The real answer is that Washington's OFFENSE is the key to the Skins defense playing better than the Lion defense and more specifically its the Washington OFFENSIVE LINE...

Think of it this way, the longer a teams OFFENSE is on the field of play, it only makes sense that the LESSER amount of time their defense will be on the field which of course lessens the scoring opportunities of your opponents...

In the case of Washington, the Skin offense only averages 16.1 points per game which ranks them #28 in the NFL, however, this same Skin offense is ranked #8 in the league in terms of TOP (time of possession) as they are on the field for 31.29 min per game which then means that the Skin defense is only on the field for an average of 28:31 min per game...

There is no quck fix for what ails Detroit, however, with that being said if it were me I would first of all over-haul their offensive line and switch to a ball control ground oriented attack, from the outset by doing so you would relieve the pressure on your defense...

Other teams have shown that they can win with so-so QB's as long as the offensive line in front of them is a good one and as long as that same team has a decent running game...

Those that dont believe this might want to take a look at the current top eight rushing teams in the NFL:

1) New York Giants.........159 rushing yards per game
2) Baltimore Ravens........150 rushing yards per game
3) Minnesota Vikes.........148 rushing yards per game
4) Carolina Panthers.......147 rushing yards per game
5) Atlanta Falcons..........145 rushing yards per game
6) Tennessee Titans.......141 rushing yards per game
7) New England Pats.......141 rushing yards per game
8) Washington Skins.......131 rushing yards per game

Take note that Baltimore and Atlanta have rookie QB's and New England has a back up QB under center, meanwhile, Minny, Caro, and Tenny were led nto battle most of the season by old veterans.

The moral of the story is that Detroit is okay in the short term with Jon Kitna leading them and they are okay with their RB's and WR's, however, THEY HAVE TO SHORE UP THAT OFFENSIVE LINE which in turn will also help the defense.

Keeping in mind that the Lions allowed a staggering 63 sacks in 2006, allowed 54 sacks in 2007 and are currently ranked #31 in the league in sacks this year having allowed 51 thus far...

...If I were the G.M. of the Lions I personally would make my top draft choice a Left Tackle as a means of protecting Kitna's blind side and use that Left Tackle as a building block for my run game.

With that being said I think that the Lions should take either Andre Smith out of Alabama or Eugene Monroe out of Virginia, both are highly rated and would provide a good basis to start with, I would then continue to address the rest of the offensive line and then start building up the defensive line...it all starts in the trenches.

Take care and be well my friend

Dirtydog

:wink::wink:

 

[C-Gold]

You either have to take Stafford at one, or trade down and stockpile draft picks to get a bunch of players on defense. It really depends on who they are going to target in free agency, but this team has way too many problems to fix in one draft. Awful D-line, some of the worst linebacking play I have seen (keep Ernie Sims but the rest have to go), and no pass defense to speak of.

I think Cliff Avril, Ernie Simms and Dewayne White are players you can build around ( Cody is alright), but you need more than 4 players in your front 7. I mean, if the Lions do trade down ( you can't always find a partner, but some other bad team might want to trade up for a QB), then you have a chance to add 2 impact defenders to your front 7.


I totally disagree that the Lions have " no line". Jeff Backus, Domonic Raolia and Cherrlis is a formitable Tackle, Tackle, Center combo. I agree they can add a nice guard, but to say the Lions have no line is ignoring their play.

If the defense wasn't giving up 5 yards per carry, maybe their lions offense would score more than 16.5 ppg. I mean think about it. If the other team averages 5 yards per run, you could run two plays and get a first down. In reality, this 5 ypc average is skewed by the long runs, but that front 7 and defense is a joke. You won't beat anybody giving up 5 yards per fun and 32+ points per game.

Their offense sucks, but it score more points than Jason Campbell and the redskins, as bad as they are. Jason Campbell has a defense that gives up 17 ppg instead of 32 and the Redskins win some games.

 

[C-Gold]

Dirtydog, thanks for the comment but teams run because they are winning, not run to win.

The Lions gave up a ton of sacks last year, but that was because all they did was pass with Mike Martz calling the plays. They drafted Cliff Avril + G. Cherrilis last year ( I agree with those picks).

What lineman do you specifically not like? Their tackles are above average, and they have a good center. Their guards could be better but the Tackle and center positions are more important than guard.


One of the reasons the lions don't average a lot of rushing yards is because they are 0-15 and losing. Teams pass when they are behind and the Lions are always behind.

Those winning teams run the ball because they are ahead. Winning teams DO tend to be league leaders in rushing because they are winning.

 

[Gaz]

Michael Crabtree.
You may not have an offensive line but all you need is 2.75 seconds for Daunte Culpepper to air the ball deeeeeeeep to The Crab Man and watch them put up big numbers. Calvin Johnson on the other side of the field will also benefit from this. Oh, and the running game will get more freedom to run as opposing defenses will respect the Lions passing game more.

Yeh, they've tried that before

 

[C-Gold]

Dog-

If one team passes on 3rd downs and another team passes on every down ( Lions), of course they will give up more sacks. Last year they did draft G. Cherrilus and he will be a good starting tackle for years.

Of course the better teams in the NFL lead in rushing attempts. When you are up by a few scores later in games, you will be grinding it out running. When you are losing games, you throw. Numerous people have debunked the "run to win" myth.


Crimp- I think there is little to no chance they draft Larraniutis or Ray Ma with the Dallas pick. Both guys will be gone.

I think it is lazy and ignorant to say the Lions have no offensive line. Who don't you like? Their center? Jeff Backus? G. Cherrilus? They could sure use a nice guard, but their front 7 is historically bad.


What if they took...
365 pound DT Terrance Cody rd1 with Ray Ma or Larranitus
or
Texas DE Brian Orakpo rd 1 with the LB help with the 2nd pick.


They would still have the #1 pick of the 2rd round, #1 of the 3rd round and whatever else they got for trading down. They could draft a stud guard, a stud safety or a study tight end to go with their two front 7 play makers.

 

[Ramonskee]

Yeh, they've tried that before

I know they have but out of ALL those WRs they drafted, only Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams were worth a lick. But, I maybe going out on a limb here, in my eyes Crabtree will be better than both of those guys. And, to go a step further, Calvin and Crabtree are the best of those 3. I can see the marketing geniuses at work now, "C3: Calvin/Culpepper/Crabtree".

 

[kraz]

Every draft choice in the early rounds should be defence players. Every good team has a dominate defence. A team is always in the game if you stop the other team. Give me a running back and defence and we win.

 

[C-Gold]

Miami was a 1-15 team that could make the playoffs this year with 10 wins. What did parcells do?

- Well Miami was really about a 4 win team in 2007 that lost a bunch of close games, so that helped.
- Picked up a Vet QB off waivers.
- Wanted to trade the #1 pick down for more picks, but he ended up finding no suitors so he took the best LT.
- Drafted Phillip Merling for his front 7.
- Brought in a competant head coach.
- Traded away a highly paid won't play more than 1-3 more years Jason Taylor for a 2nd round pick!

Basically he tried to rebuild his offensive and defensive lines, while having a "decent" quarterback that some other team just discarded.


Atlanta was also a team that wasn't THAT bad, they were just lead by a dumb, lazy, criminal mobile quarterback who had " no line, and no receivers". Funny how Michael Turner is running behind that line, and funny how Roddy White goes from 0, to making the pro bowler with even a rookie pocket passer. Atlanta wasn't THAT bad either, they did improve, they just had horrible leadership from a childish thug playing QB.

Detroit has to get rid of that bozo head coach, and they need to rebuild that front 7. Imagine if they can trade that #1 pick down a bunch of slots and pick up another high pick or so. They can use Kitna in a Pennington role, draft say Ray Ma, bring in a stud D-lineman, a highly touted guard, a tight end, a secondary player and then another front 7 player.

I think Ray Ma has a very good chance of being a quality pro and is one of the least likely players to be a big bust. Stafford or Bradford could be good or they could be David Carrs/Tim Couch/Akili Smith/Mike Vick/Jemarcus Russell/JP Losman/Jason Campbell/Byron Leftwhich/Daunte Culpeckers.

 

[crimpride]

draft Stafford with 1st pick overall.....they need talent AND depth.....OL and DL are atrocious...keep 20th pick (from Dallas) and get front 7 help and 3 2nd rd picks u can build OL and skill positions....

1st pick - Stafford (franchisee written all over him)
20th pick- Rey Malauga or Aaron Currie or Brian Orapko(all will be there)
2nd rd picks (3)- Loadholt (Okl Ol), Brandon Pettigrew (OK st TE), Suh(NEB DT), tyson Jackson (LSU DE) Raji (BC DE) Oher (Ole MIss OL)... my 2 cents...

 

[C-Gold]

Dog-

If one team passes on 3rd downs and another team passes on every down ( Lions), of course they will give up more sacks. Last year they did draft G. Cherrilus and he will be a good starting tackle for years.

Of course the better teams in the NFL lead in rushing attempts. When you are up by a few scores later in games, you will be grinding it out running. When you are losing games, you throw. Numerous people have debunked the "run to win" myth.


Crimp- I think there is little to no chance they draft Larraniutis or Ray Ma with the Dallas pick. Both guys will be gone.

I think it is lazy and ignorant to say the Lions have no offensive line. Who don't you like? Their center? Jeff Backus? G. Cherrilus? They could sure use a nice guard, but their front 7 is historically bad.


What if they took...
365 pound DT Terrance Cody rd1 with Ray Ma or Larranitus
or
Texas DE Brian Orakpo rd 1 with the LB help with the 2nd pick.


They would still have the #1 pick of the 2rd round, #1 of the 3rd round and whatever else they got for trading down. They could draft a stud guard, a stud safety or a study tight end to go with their two front 7 play makers.

 

[ReeferMadness]

Defense wins championships. Start on that side of the ball.