Detroit Lions: We're Going to Bite a Kneecap Off
Larry Foote will be a Detroit Lion, ~100% chance of that.
Theres also talk between DET/KC that would involve Glen Dorsey coming here for our 2nd rd pick. Not sure I understand why Pioli wants to get rid of him but I'd gladly ship out our 2nd for him.
You add Dorsey/Foote and it makes our draft look that much better. Shaun Rogers also said he wants to come back to Detroit once he gets released from the Browns, which looks likely.
Biggest question going into the season is will Matt Stafford be the starter from weak 1.
fwiw they're planning on moving Manu to right guard. their idea is to have him play next to Sewell and basically demolish teams, lol.
https://www.prideofdetroit.com/2024/4/29...
this does lead to an even thinner tackle group but we still have some cap room to play with. they'll probably still bring someone in.
fwiw they're planning on moving Manu to right guard. their idea is to have him play next to Sewell and basically demolish teams, lol.
https://www.prideofdetroit.com/2024/4/29...
this does lead to an even thinner tackle group but we still have some cap room to play with. they'll probably still bring someone in.
I think they'll see if he can play guard, but if I'm predicting the future I'd say if he works out he'll end up at RT in a couple years with Sewell flipping to LT.
It'll be very interesting to see how it plays out with Decker. He's only signed through this year, during which he will be 31. He's definitely earned at least one more big contract - will it be with Detroit? He's the longest tenured Lion and has publicly said he wants to play his whole career here. Will Brad stick to strictly business and cut him for a rookie on a rookie deal? Would Decker take a short extension and retire at 32 or 33? Can the Lions pay Sewell as the highest paid lineman in the league and also give Decker an above-average 4 year contract?
My prediction is Decker gets a 3 year deal that has a team out after 2. He keeps playing at a high level, and unless they collapse or use what little remaining draft capital they have to trade up, they are very unlikely to be in position to draft a starter ready tackle. Those guys don't make it past pick 20.
this has been a specialty with this front office. the guy behind the guys, Brandon Sosna, has been great as the strategic planning contract negotiator for this team. super sharp.
Someone on reddit posted a composite of 20-25 draft grades and the Lions ranked 11th. I can say the ones I've looked at have been more positive: IIRC the Athletic had Lions #3, a couple others had them 4 or 5 I think.
A lot of analysts really didn't like either of the trade-up picks, particularly back into the 4th for taking Giovanni Manu. I saw more than one analyst saying they had a Free-Agent grade on him, so it's a huge reach to draft him in the third (much less trading away next year's 3rd
It's a slight overpay in terms of draft capital. Like we got 720 points and paid 800. But that is well worth it to get your guy
It'll be very interesting to see how it plays out with Decker. He's only signed through this year, during which he will be 31. He's definitely earned at least one more big contract - will it be with Detroit? He's the longest tenured Lion and has publicly said he wants to play his whole career here. Will Brad stick to strictly business and cut him for a rookie on a rookie deal? Would Decker take a short extension and retire at 32 or 33? Can the Lions pay Sewell as the highest paid lineman in the
We didn't sign Sewell to a billion dollars to play RT
Long write up on the future of the olin... - TLDR: who the **** knows after 2024, but damn sure better hope at least 2 of the 3 of Sorsdal, Mahogany and Manu work out!
Which, FWIW, I think is realistic to hope for given the "in Holmes we trust" sentiment.
Lastly, @Koss per your comments on not addressing oline, it seems like almost every draft analysis calls out that getting Mahogany in the 6th round was a steal; I've read over and over that people had a top-100 3rd/4th round grade on him. Now, just because most draft analysts like a guy that doesn't mean that every NFL GM kept making a mistake over and over not taking a guy, only time will tell.
Draft analysts definitely succumb to group think. So while all the analysts may think it's a steal, it's mostly just a single hivemind thing and it's clear the NFL GMs who are more immune to that all felt he's a 6th rounder. Maybe it's just the Beau Benzschawel vibes I'm getting. From like the 3rd round on in 2018 he kept being shows as Mel Kiper's best available and then went undrafted and never got off the practice squad. I'm obviously not writing Mahogany's career off at this point, but I think it's more likely than not that none of the O-Line players they drafted are ever quality starters.
His future is at left tackle, I agree with this. But as long as Decker is good to go and Brad can work him in under the cap, I'd rather have Decker at LT with overpaid Sewell at RT, than Sewell LT and some liability at RT. Brad has some tough cap decisions coming up and Decker is clearly one of them. The problem is good tackles require you to either have a top 20 (and realistically more like top 15) pick, a big cap hit, or you strike gold later in the draft.
I still think this was a rare deep O-Line draft where good tackles were falling into the 20s and maybe you could've traded up for OT and picked up Rakestraw in the 2nd too and hit both needs. I know I'm usually team lol draft for need, it just felt like this was maybe a rare opportunity to get a good player at OT later in the draft than they usually fall. Although maybe Brad is already looking ahead to next years class when deciding where to reach up for certain positions.
Long write up on the future of the olin... - TLDR: who the **** knows after 2024, but damn sure better hope at least 2 of the 3 of Sorsdal, Mahogany and Manu work out!
Which, FWIW, I think is realistic to hope for given the "in Holmes we trust" sentiment.
I think it's more likely 0 of 3 work out than 2 of 3. If I'm right, then Brad will either have to go FA shopping to keep the O-Line strong or hit it hard in next years draft.
I still think this was a rare deep O-Line draft where good tackles were falling into the 20s and maybe you could've traded up for OT and picked up Rakestraw in the 2nd too and hit both needs. I know I'm usually team lol draft for need, it just felt like this was maybe a rare opportunity to get a good player at OT later in the draft than they usually fall.
Interesting you think that, I thought the OL class was weaker than usual. After Alt and Fuaga, meh. And yeah, I wouldn't have taken either Latham or Fashanu.
The tackles that fell into the 20s were Jordan Morgan and Tyler Guyton. Morgan is probably a guard in the NFL and Guyton is something of a project. Either is fine, but neither a slam dunk. After that you have to go to the end of the 2nd round for the next guy.
One thing we can all agree on though is that the front office is going to be watching every transaction out there and if a guy gets cut that they like they'll go get him.
My uneducated impression is backup o-line play is abysmal throughout the league to the point it's almost impossible that a C- backup would hit the wire; would love to be wrong though!
The Lions podcast covered the open day of rookie mini camp, he spends a couple minutes on each rookie (including short updates on several undrafted guys). The Manu update is enough to get a kool aid drinker salivating, describing how he looked raw with terrible technique and hands placement, Haley had him work on a drill on hand placement, then he came out and showed perfect hand placement and absolutely obliterated a guy ("like a bulldozer pushing a garbage can"). Fun listen anyway.
who the **** knows after 2024, but damn sure better hope at least 2 of the 3 of Sorsdal, Mahogany and Manu work out!
The Manu update is enough to get a kool aid drinker salivating, describing how he looked raw with terrible technique and hands placement, Haley had him work on a drill on hand placement, then he came out and showed perfect hand placement and absolutely obliterated a guy ("like a bulldozer pushing a garbage can").
Maybe Manu works out, maybe he doesn't but damn it sure looks like a great gamble for the Lions as his upside is immense.
Had he played HS at Mater Dei or St John Bosco and received pro level coaching at Alabama or Michigan you probably have a 1rst round pick. Worth a 2025 3rd round pick? I dunno, but seems like a great place to roll the dice.
Ourlads 2024 depth chart (grain of salt obv since camp hasn't even started yet) has Davis/Arnold as starting CBs and Branch as NB
Which leaves Mosely, Robertson and Rakestraw as backups. I can't remember ever having 3 backup DBs that actually belonged on an NFL roster and weren't street FA or PS level players.
Ourlads 2024 depth chart (grain of salt obv since camp hasn't even started yet) has Davis/Arnold as starting CBs and Branch as NB
Which leaves Mosely, Robertson and Rakestraw as backups. I can't remember ever having 3 backup DBs that actually belonged on an NFL roster and weren't street FA or PS level players.
Lol it's hard not to be hyped af for this season. (Mostly copying this which I posted on reddit the other day: ) Last year we had a top-5 team because of an amazing offense (including OC) and a good-enough defense with great DL production from a couple of bright spots, decent LBs and a very suspect secondary, particularly CB. We've now brought in four CBs in Davis (trade), Robertson (FA), Arnold and Rakestraw; and, who knows, maybe Mosely can contribute after losing all last season to injury. We may go from having one of the very worst position groups in the league in our CBs last year, to being above-average at the position in '24. We also added one great piece to the DL in Reader. Meanwhile we brought back every single piece on offense (including OC) except for one guard, and we have a one-year rental on a pro-bowler to replace that position. Holy cow.
Goff extension done. That should be everyone, right?
Totally fine with the Manu flier. Nothing wrong with splurging on a lottery ticket here and there and he has all the potential in the world.
I don't buy that Arnold is going to begin the season as a starter, but he'll be in the rotation right away and may get there by the end.
I was wondering if the Goff extensions was going to happen. It's hard to argue with his results but he does have his weaknesses. I like where this team is. I don't have a problem with the Manu gamble, I'm just more concerned with oline depth overall. It could get ugly if injuries pile up, and Goffs weaknesses come out when the blocking struggles.
I expect Arnold to start the preseason as a second teamer but will have an opportunity to earn a starting CB role by week 1. I'm also fine with where this team is if even first round picks aren't starters right away.
McNeill is an interesting one. The DT market is on a bit of an upswing right now, and while he's clearly the best on this team, I can see them kind of going the Jonah Jackson route with him. At some point, and maybe that starts with him, they are going to run into the problem of you can't pay everyone. Some good players are going to have to walk.
The DT room was serviceable with him hurt, and they've spent some more recent draft capital on the position. My guess is they make him a hometown discount offer and he walks if he wants top $$.
I agree, there may well be a disparity between what McNeil thinks he is worth versus what the Lions are willing to pay at this point.
Nice to hear Dan Campbell say that Jamo is doing work. They're obviously counting on him taking a leap.
McNeill only signed thru 2024 and I would not be sad if they extended him too. Obviously you cant pay everybody but seems like an young, ascending DT they would want to keep and his price likely not gonna be cheaper next year.
I agree, there may well be a disparity between what McNeil thinks he is worth versus what the Lions are willing to pay at this point.
Still think McNeill should be extended but certainly not gonna say no to extending LT Taylor Decker
Nice to hear Dan Campbell say that Jamo is doing work. They're obviously counting on him taking a leap.
Training camp hype on Jamo is off the charts! I cant even imagine the excitement if he starts showing WR1B talent. Please do not let this be Dan Campbell hyperbole as a motivation tool - I wont be able to handle it.
People should not forget he was considered by many to be the WR1 coming out of college in 2022 before he got hurt, ahead of Drake London, Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave
Rake is a stud! His buddy cop side-quest with TA should be good.
Jamo might not be in the JJ/Tyreek class of wide receivers but he can be damn good. His athleticism is a real problem. The amount of weapons they have on offense right now is disgusting. I've never seen anything like this.
This roster is insanely stacked right now. Brad Holmes went absolutely ape **** fixing the defensive backfield this offseason. We went from having career practice squaders starting the NFCCG to wondering what position Brian Branch is even going to play now since they overloaded the backfield.
There is no reason to think this team can't get back to the NFCCG with a better shot to win it this time. Even if some of the aging players regress a bit like Decker, Frank, and Graham, the O-Line is likely still very good if not top 5, with best in NFL still being a real possibility.
The only position group that feels thin is on the D-Line. If Hutch goes down there is really no one else there who can step up. We shall see if Marcus Davenport and Mathieu Betts are up to the task. Supposedly Betts is looking decent in camp.
Backup QBs both looked much better in game 2. Wouldn't read too much into it, but it's there. Hooker was notably more confident standing in and going through his reads.
Scrub OL also looked better. Sione Vaki showed out as a receiving RB.
Wasted my time watching a preseason game of course but it was still nice having football to watch.
It feels good to start the season off with a win. There's some warning signs that maybe it won't just be a leisure cruise back to the NFCCG, but the sky is still the limit for this team. They took away Amon-Ra and LaPorta, so Jamo stepped up to burn them. The ground game is still highly effective, with D-Mo being one of the best power rushers I've seen, and Gibbs being as elusive as ever. The O-Line didn't play their best game but stepped up when it mattered.
On defense the run D looks good. The line was getting decent pressure but just couldn't finish sacks. The Davenport addition looks pretty good, although he was primarily to blame for getting pressure and then whiffing on a statue of a QB. Terrion Arnold was matched up with all-pro Kupp for a lot of the game and struggled like most corners would, let alone a rookie in his first game. I'm not super shook, and he wasn't a complete liability. There were a couple dropped INTs as well (Branch and I think Calrton Davis?). Defense can be high variance, and I expect you'll see that a bit this year, with some great games and some duds. But the potential is there.
