Draft Talk

[ajaX82]

our last pick is Johnny Culbreath, OT from South Carolina State

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/play ... -culbreath

[motorcity15]

I would give this draft a 7.5/10. I'm liking the potential, hopefully it turns out well.

[Liqourish]

I loved this draft. We filled needs and took BPA. Another stretch WR was a need. A bigger back to run up the middle, was a need. We didn't address the positions in places people expected, but we came away with the best talent available to us and improved our team. Our two late round picks weren't bad either. We brought them both in for workouts and obviously, the team liked what they saw.

We still have free agency to address other areas, but I really like what the Lions did in this draft.

[ajaX82]

I loved this draft. We filled needs and took BPA. Another stretch WR was a need. A bigger back to run up the middle, was a need. We didn't address the positions in places people expected, but we came away with the best talent available to us and improved our team. Our two late round picks weren't bad either. We brought them both in for workouts and obviously, the team liked what they saw.

We still have free agency to address other areas, but I really like what the Lions did in this draft.

Good assessment. We may not have filled our biggest needs, but we did fill some. Failey is a gift and could help form one the nastiest DT pair in the league. Leshore is a perfect fit next to Best and could form one of the best RB combos in the league. And TY will help take pressure off CJ and give Stafford a great deep target.

Our offense on paper is really good. Our defensive line is really good. If we can grab a LB or two in FA, we will be in good shape.

I think TSE said this, but the next couple drafts we have, we only have to focus on drafting offensive line and defensive back 7. I am stoked for next season

[Icness]

Hogue will make it on special teams. Better athlete than football player but he did steadily improve. He's basically Jordon Dizon with much better size, though to Dizon's credit he's become a decent coverage guy which Hogue is not (yet). Hogue has real nice closing burst and he can fly around in space. He has some blitz potential too.

I knew of Culbreath but never saw him play. I asked around a little, he's almost unanimously regarded as "the tools are there, let's see if someone can open the toolbox" kind of prospects. Scout I respect very much that knows that region better than anyone thinks he's a practice squad guy year one and you see how much he progresses. He thinks he's better at the same point than Demetrius Bell of the Bills, and he's started at LT. Be optimistically patient and we just might have our backup tackle for a few years, which is a need.

[Lionlifer]

Well after sleeping our picks for quite some time, its starting to grow on me more and more.

I think I will reserve final judgement until after FA (if and when that happens), but assuming we get some help in the back 7, I will probably give the class a solid B+, maybe A- if Farley has a Suh-esque rookie season.

I have a feeling getting Farley will have a bit of a domino effect in the NFC north. I expect the Bears, Viks, and Pack to make a run on interior lineman once they can go after free agents

[ajaX82]

A couple draft-ish links

In reality, despite their previously noted weapons, the Lions had one of the NFL's least explosive passing games in 2010. Their team average of 6.3 yards per attempt was the fourth-worst in the NFL. They ranked in the league's bottom third in total passes of more than 20 and more than 40 yards. ESPN Stats & Information tracked totals of 30-plus yard receptions. The Lions didn't have a receiver among the top 20.

Enter Young, who averaged 17.1 yards per reception last season at Boise State and who has been compared by at least one prominent draft analyst to Philadelphia Eagles playmaker DeSean Jackson. Young isn't quite as fast as Jackson, having run an official 4.43 in the 40-yard dash, but he has a similarly shifty 174-pound frame and natural instincts for getting downfield.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcnorth/post/_ ... -for-lions

First round - NICK FAIRLEY, DT, DETROIT: The Lions had a choice between DTs Ndamukong Suh and Gerald McCoy with the second overall pick in 2010. They took Suh. Fairley is better than McCoy, and the Lions got him at 13. A dynamic pass rusher.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/nfl-dr ... t-gems.ece

Fairley better than McCoy? I am starting to really love this pick

[Manocad]

I loved this draft. We filled needs and took BPA. Another stretch WR was a need. A bigger back to run up the middle, was a need. We didn't address the positions in places people expected, but we came away with the best talent available to us and improved our team. Our two late round picks weren't bad either. We brought them both in for workouts and obviously, the team liked what they saw.

We still have free agency to address other areas, but I really like what the Lions did in this draft.

Yeah, I agree with this assessment as well. Free agency is going to be key now; gotta try to address the middle of the defensive backfield.

[TSE]

Fairley better than McCoy? I am starting to really love this pick

I didn't see McCoy as good of a prospect as Fairley even after factoring his character concerns in. There's only a little amount beyond that quantity that would have separated him from Suh's level as a prospect, so pretty close there. TB reached for McCoy and DET got a steal with Fairley, no way McCoy deserves to go ahead of him. He didn't show the talent in college.

[kellmellus50]

Missing time at training camp is especially crucial for a rookie. Even more so this year. Thanks to the NFL lockout, rookies have been thrown into the fire at training camp.


Two of the Lions five drafted rookies — DT Nick Fairley and WR Titus Young — have come up with injuries less than a week into training camp.

http://oplions.blogspot.com/