So far, I have been inexplicably optimistic in my breakdown of this year's edition of the NFL Draft. I don't know, perhaps I am being secretly dosed with lithium, but I find myself believing in what the Lions did over the draft weekend, an alien feeling that I am not quite sure how to deal with. There is a bizarre duality going on right now in my head, as the horrors of the past all still seem so fresh and when I think of the Lions, I still think of failure on an epic and unprecedented scale, but there is also this strange surge of hope that keeps coming out in my posts. It's probably completely unwarranted. There's a chance that I have just been beaten down by this infernal team so many times that my brain finally just broke and now I am like a mother who's lost all her children in a horrible accident, sitting with a blank stare on the floor holding a blanket, convinced that it's her baby. Everything will be all right baby, Mommy's here. Perhaps I have lost all objectivity and perhaps I am just blindly clinging to a fool's hope because the alternative is just so horrifically depressing. This must be what the Germans felt like after Hitler offed himself or fled to Argentina or had his brain frozen in a lab or jello wrestled with Tom Cruise or whatever the fuck happened to him.
Anyway, as gibberish goes, even I am staggered by all that nonsense. Perhaps it would just be best to get on with this thing we call a draft review.
The Lions had the first pick of the third round, but they traded it away for more picks, something they would do multiple times in this year's draft. Rather than talk about each one, I'll just address the overall strategy right here. It was a smart move. The Lions have needs everywhere, down to the gunners on special teams. Right now, more than anything, they need bodies that approach a semblance of competence. The more the better, and frankly, when you start getting into the later rounds, a shotgun style approach to finding talent is probably better than a sniper rifle approach. The odds that you hit on something are much better.
And with their first pick of the third round, the 76th overall following the trade of their original third round position, the Lions selected DeAndre Levy, a linebacker out of Wisconsin. And much puzzlement ensued. While it was clear that the Lions needed linebackers, the general feeling was that they needed middle linebackers, especially in the wake of the Jordan Dizon disaster of a year before. So, it was with more than a few head scratches, rolls of the eyes, and depressed sighs from the Lions faithful that the Lions selected an outside linebacker who was reported to be under 230 pounds.
And I was among them. It seemed a curious selection to say the least. Coach Schwartz reportedly likes someone in the middle who can be a big thumper, a run stopping beast. This didn't seem to fit the bill. Levy has excellent straight line speed and when running downhill can smash the shit out of an opposing ball carrier. Well, now, that's starting to sound better. The bad news is he did it coming from the outside at Wisconsin. Can he transition to the middle? I don't know. I have my doubts. The coaches have said that his weight is already up, and he has a 6'3" frame to pack it onto, but he seems a bit too rangy for what they're looking for in the middle. Schwartz seems to think that he can be their guy for the future, but he seems like a bit of a project for now. For a team that has nothing in the middle, that's a bit of a problem.
Fortunately, it seems like the Lions had a plan all along, as they just signed Larry Foote after he was cut by the Steelers. The idea seems to be to allow Foote to start for a year with the Lions, earn his last big paycheck somewhere else next year, and hand the reigns off to Levy. It was a hell of a gamble if it was their intent. First of all, there was the chance that the Steelers wouldn't release Foote. Sure, they were almost definitely getting rid of him, but you never know. And then the Steelers decided to sit on it for a weekend and see if they could get any decent trade offers for Foote. Luckily for the Lions, and probably for Levy, it all worked out. But that's only the first hurdle. There is a real chance that Levy won't work out in the middle. Like I said, he's kind of a project here. He's tall, physical, fast, but he's also rangy, a bit stiff, and he's switching positions. This is probably the one pick aside from Stafford where we're all just holding our breath here and hoping everything works out. I think it can, but will it? Like I said, I still have my doubts.
What they could have done differently: The later we get in the draft, the more difficult it gets to say what they could have done differently. For starters, I suppose they could have hung on to the first pick of the third round. If they did that, they could have taken someone like Michael Johnson, a pure pass rusher out of Georgia Tech. Johnson was at one time thought to be potentially a late first rounder. The talent is all there, but teams shied away from him, supposedly because of questions both about his ability to stop the run and his passion for football. Apparently, the Lions fell into that camp. Regardless, there was obviously no one available at that spot that the Lions felt they had to have and so they traded down.
What we will see this season: Foote should be the starter right away. I doubt that Levy is ready to be the man just yet - if he ever will be - and a year learning the ropes from a dude who's won two Super Bowls isn't a bad position to be in. Levy should contribute right away though on special teams, as he was one of a couple of picks that seemed like sure fire solutions to the Lions moribund coverage and return units. He's a guy who can get down the field in a hurry and smack a dude in the mouth. If he does that his rookie season, then okay, I'll take it.
Early Pick Grade: C+. I don't know. This pick sort of seemed like a little bit of a reach. The Lions needed a linebacker and they took one, even if he didn't seem to fit what everyone thought they were looking for. Then again, it's tough to say with a new regime exactly what kind of players they want. Maybe they were giddy that they could pick up Levy. This draft feels sort of weird in that sense. It's hard to quickly gauge what's going on because, really, we don't know what the coaches really want on the field. The only way to figure that out is to watch and see what happens on Sundays. Until then, it's like feeling around blindly in the dark. You hope for the best, and you just pray that you don't accidentally end up grabbing some stranger's dick in the process. Yeah, I know, that was too weird, but fuck it, you know the deal by now.
The Lions had another pick in the third round(Thanks, Jerry!), and with it, the 82nd overall, the Lions selected Derrick Williams, a wide receiver out of Penn State. Right away, Lions fans everywhere began clawing at their skin like freaked out junkies, but this was just a reaction to the past, as the words "wide receiver" and "NFL Draft" when thrown together cause hideous flashbacks and awful wailing from Detroit followers. But, as I said before, we cannot be slaves to the horrible past, and so we must look at this pick for what it is.
And what is it, exactly? Well, it's a talented, exceptionally gifted athlete who might just be kind of a shitty receiver. I watched quite a bit of Derrick Williams when he was at Penn St. I remember when he came out of high school and was anointed as the savior of Penn St. and Joe Paterno, a five star recruit who picked JoPa after years of declining fortunes in Happy Valley. And, from his freshman year on, he was always someone you had to gameplan for. He was an electric athlete who could make things happen with the ball in his hands. Unfortunately, the thing is he's not that great at getting the ball in his hands.
Williams doesn't have very good hands, and he seems like he's a little tentative going through the middle, which are pretty much the two worst qualities you can have when you're destined to be a slot receiver. Williams also didn't have a great time in the 40, but he plays faster than he times. He's a quick twitch, pure athlete type, and if he works at the receiving part of things and becomes an actual wide receiver instead of an athlete playing wide receiver, then he'll probably end up being okay. The chances of this happening? Eh. I think Williams is destined to be a frustrating player. He'll probably make a handful of big plays and then he'll do something stupid or run a lazy route or have the ball bounce off of his hands and everyone will be all up in arms. But that's why he was available in the third round instead of being snapped up in the first.
There is one other thing that Williams does bring to the table. He's a dynamite return man, and for a team that has been fucking awful in the return game since they kicked Eddie Drummond to the curb that is welcome news indeed.
What they could have done differently: Brandon Tate, a receiver out of North Carolina, went one spot after Williams. He's kind of the ultimate boom or bust player. If he hits, he'll be a star. If he fucks around, he'll probably be thrown out of the league for smoking weed or something in a couple years. Williams was the safer pick, with a little lower ceiling but probably a higher floor. Both are kind of boom or bust type guys, but Tate has the potential to be one of those dudes who really flames out. Honestly, I might have been happier had the Lions taken Deon Butler here, Williams' less heralded college teammate. He's not as explosive an athlete as Williams, but he's a lot more dependable, and I think he'll be a sure slot receiver for years. He's a terrific route runner and he showed better speed in his workouts than most people thought he had. But, he doesn't have the return game upside of Williams either, and if Williams hits as a receiver, he should end up being the better player. That's a big if though.
What we will see this season: Expect Williams to be a bit of a disappointment as a receiver - at least initially. If he works at it, and refines his route running, he can become the complement to Calvin Johnson that the team desperately needs. It just won't be this season. But, we could see Williams help right away in the return game. He will likely be battling another rookie, Aaron Brown, for playing time in that area. I like Williams here, and should he win that job - which I think he will - he could be a Desmond Howard type return man for the Lions.
Early Pick Grade: B-. I like that the Lions got themselves a guy who should be a sure fire return man. I also like Williams' upside and athleticism. He's the real deal when he gets the ball in his hands. But, I just don't know that he's ready to be an NFL wide receiver. If it works out, this could be a steal. If he never gets it together in terms of route running and his hands, this might end up being a bit of a disappointment. Either way, he should make an impact as a returner, and if that's all we get, well, it's still better than the shit pile we have had heaped on us for the last decade.
Halfway Done~ Tune in to see how many weird Nazi references I can make. Take a drink every time I name drop Hitler or whenever I descend into bizarre, twisted gibberish! Chug every time I use the word gibberish! Fun for the whole family.
No comments:
Post a Comment