1st Round Grade

[TSE]

Suh Pick - A

I still feel strongly that it was Mayhew's obligation and responsibility to find a logical trade. His failure to do so prevents the grade from being an A+ and is reduced to an A. I would reduce it to an A-, but Suh is worth the pick and his potential makes it unfair to discredit him as an A-. So it's an A.

Best Pick - D+

I grade the pick with respect to the context of the trade. I hated moving from that 2 spot with Claussen/McCoy still on the board for bait or for a Stafford swap out and now getting a franchise QB prospect on a dirt cheap 2nd round contract. We also had fallback options for some decent CBs and LBs and OTs in the event that Best didn't still last that far which he very well could have. I am hoping with every ounce of my soul that Mayhew wakes up and realizes that NOW is the perfect time in the world to trade Stafford.

And if you want Best, then we could have all night to sift through trade offers, if no offer, then take Best. We had a chance to gain a free trade window preview, with 3 positions of player talent as great backups, just be patient and wait and hear the offers, and we just let it evaporate away for no good reason. I put a D+ for this grade simply just out of respect to Best for still being an exciting player that will add a lot to the offense. It's that potential that forces me to turn what my instincts tell me should be an F into a D+. The thought of a C- is so absurd, and I feel like I'm being soft here by giving this a D+.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE trade Stafford and pick up a 2nd rounder here and get Jimmy or Colt.

[ajaX82]

This could have been put in the draft thread....

My grades:

Suh - A+

best player in the draft and a game changer.

Best - B

Would have liked to stay at 34 and trade down. But i will give Mayhew credit for going and getting his guy. Very very exciting player that will add a ton of pizazz to the offense. I like Best alot...he could be the best RB in the draft easily. Stafford now has all the weapons in the world to work with and he will shine

[bstein14]

There is a dropoff after the top 3 RBs so the Lions had to make a move. RB is such a tough position to fill because of the beating these guys take and often times their career is so much shorter than some other positions.

And those QBs could very easily continue to fall... No one was going to give Detroit a lot to move up because they know they have no interest. I think you're going to see them go in the mid 2nd from 38-48 picks.

[Liqourish]

This draft is easily an A so far. I thought Suh and Best were our guys, and that's exactly who we got. Not only did we get guys who are high upside, arguably (with Best) BPA, but they fill big needs for us. I'm excited to see what Mayhew does in day 2. Worst case scenario... he only has our 3rd rounder... but we could still see CBs like Cox, Warren, Ghee, etc or LBs like Bowman, Angerer, Curaan, GIbson, Washington, etc.

[kellmellus50]

[quote="Liqourish"]This draft is easily an A so far. I thought Suh and Best were our guys, and that's exactly who we got. Not only did we get guys who are high upside, arguably (with Best) BPA, but they fill big needs for us. I'm excited to see what Mayhew does in day 2.

I Agree with you 100% this could be an excellant draft if the lions continue picking up players that have a lot of upside.

[ElectricMayhem]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Ndamukong-Suh-Man-of-the-World;_ylt=AtFVhrdbrHcQxdUaksAMjl5DubYF?urn=nfl,254777

Another article on Suh. No new information, but I love the guy's attitude. I'm glad he's a Lion.

[Icness]

Best has a lot to prove to me and would not have been my choice, certainly not trading up to get him. I would have preferred waiting and maneuvering into the bottom of the 2nd and taking Hardesty or Tate. But I respect that the team identified him as their guy and aggressively went after him. Nice to have a management team in place that actually has a clear plan and vision.

Suh was a slam dunk and we're going to be happy about that one for a long time.

[313 Professor]

B+

I absolutely love the Best pick, and I'm satisfied with the Suh pick. I wanted Earl Thomas at #1 because I thought he was the best player in the draft, but since we ended up with what I think were two of the Top 12 players in the draft, I must say I'm pretty happy with it. I probably was one of the highest on Best, and one of the lowest on Suh, and here were my profiles of the two:

9. RB Jahvid Best, California 5’10 199
Strengths
Jahvid Best is one of the smoothest athletes in the draft, with great speed to go along with it. His extremely fluid hips and upper body allow him to weave and change direction at full speed which will make him one of the best home-run hitters in the NFL. He changes direction with great suddenness, almost no loss of momentum, and with all his weight underneath him. In very few situations is Best limited as he changes direction naturally in almost every direction because of his amazing hips and feet. His ability to accelerate after planting his foot, and agility in a short area allow him to find and accelerate through holes at a high rate. While he’s a smaller RB, when he has good momentum, he has the active feet and motor to absorb a blow and make the most out of the play. When running inside he knows how to lower his shoulder and maneuver to protect himself while keeping his feet moving forward. As a pass catcher he’s rather versatile in the amount of ways he can get open, and catches the ball naturally. His hips, ability to cut at full speed, and overall athleticism will allow him to have success lining up at WR and running routes. He’s the most dangerous player in the draft when he has the ball in space.
Weaknesses
Jahvid Best’s size hurts him. He gives good effort in pass protection, but he doesn’t have the bulk or technique at this point to pick up blitzing NFL LB’s. If he doesn’t have much momentum at the point of contact he’s pretty much done and he’ll be stuffed his fair share of times in the NFL. Best is also guilty of occasionally losing yards trying to make a big play rather than taking what’s given to him. He has some legitimate injury concerns, and he’ll take some big hits in the NFL because he runs high in the open field.
Summary
Jahvid Best is the athlete of this years draft. Just like I had Percy Harvin in the Top 10 last year because of how gifted he was with the ball in his hands, Best falls into that same mold. He’ll be another one of those “stuff or big play” RBs, but the thing that makes Best special is that his big plays will be touchdowns. His rare hips to be able to turn laterally in the blink of an eye reminds me of a young LT, and in the open field his ability to weave and maneuver at top speed (a very fast top speed) will make him one of most dangerous RBs in the NFL once he breaks to the second level. Because of his shortcomings as a pass blocker and getting yards after contact he’d probably be more effective playing with a 1st down banger type RB who could negate his weaknesses, but that doesn’t make him any less special. It feels rather cliché to compare him to Chris Johnson after Chris’ one amazing season, but the two are very similar prospects, and I’d say Best will be even better than him if he can stay healthy and improve in pass protection (which he has the natural ability to do). The thing many people miss with Best is that he has added value with the ability to play WR. He has the skillset to develop into a very good route runner and has already flashed the ability to catch the ball naturally. If he was a little bit lighter he’d be looked at as a 1st-2nd Round WR prospect (very similarly to Percy Harvin). Best is a Top 10 pick for me simply because whether you have him in the backfield or out in the slot, defenses must pay attention to him if they don’t want to give up 6.

12. DT Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska 6’4 307
Strengths
Ndamukong Suh is one of the strongest players in the entire draft. Suh has excellent straight-line leg drive and an explosive and strong set of hands to jolt and sometimes toss opposing offensive lineman. In a short area he has the core strength, strong arms, and leverage to be very stout at the point of attack. Once Suh disengages from OL he’s special. He has as smooth of an upper body of any DT in the NFL which allows him to consistently adjust to ball-carriers/QB’s in space and he has the speed, motor, and finisher’s mentality to bring them down to make big plays in the backfield. In the pass game he has the rare timing to bat down passes at the line at a very high rate. The guy has a tireless work ethic, excellent character, and the mentality that you’d want for a Top 5 DT.
Weaknesses
While engaged with an OL, Suh is rather vulnerable laterally. When he’s engaged and has to move laterally to flow to the ball (which happens often in the NFL) he’s heavy on his feet, his amazing strength is neutralized because his feet and explosive base aren’t underneath him, and he can be pushed back as well because he’s not under control and all of his core strength isn’t functional. In head up situations, and short areas he’s as stout as ever, but on those ZBS-type stretch plays in the NFL he’ll struggle. He’ll also struggle to disengage in the NFL. While his hands are strong and explosive, they aren’t quick, and stronger/stouter NFL lineman will be able to handle his strength and neutralize him by winning battles w/Suh as far as hands are concerned. And, while his upper body is smooth as ever, when he tries to make quick changes of direction inside his feet are always a step behind where he needs to be to make the move effective. If this is evident in college it will be in the pros.
Summary
Ndamukong Suh is a special DL. He’s worth a Top 10 pick simply because of his versatility. Suh has the skillset to play every DL position rather effectively except maybe RDE, and that versatility is something that almost every team in the NFL would like to have on their roster. The reason he’s not the greatest DL prospect in decades like many are hyping him up to be is because he doesn’t have all the tools to dominate any 1 technique. As a NT he’s very stout in a short area and will be able to fare well against double-teams, as a 3-Tech he has very good leg drive to collapse the pocket and get upfield, and as a DE he’ll be playing in space more where his ability to make tackles in space will be utilized. But his vulnerability moving laterally while engaged in a league where DL are often required to do it, will prevent him from being a stud at any 1 spot on the DL. Versatility is a great thing to have on your DL, but players with the ability to dominate 1 particular position are the ones that are worthy of Top 5 picks.