Round 1, Pick 5, Ezekiel Ansah DE – BYU

At 6’5″, 271 lbs, he has the power, speed, size, and length you want in a defensive end. He’s explosive and quick and no one doubts his athletic ability. His problem is that he’s raw. He didn’t start playing football in any capacity until 2010. He can certainly be described as “boom or bust” and Mike Mayock of NFL Network was quoted as saying, “In 3 years he’s either all pro or on the street.” How comforting. Still, he seems to have good instincts as far as reading reverses and screens and finding the ball. His technique just needs work.

My first reaction was to hate this pick because of how raw he is. The Lions need help at defensive end immediately with the losses of Kyle Vanden Bosch and Cliff Avril. With the 5th overall pick, you’re not supposed to gamble. However, as I heard more about him and saw the draft come together as a whole, I began to like it more and more. Physically, he’s got everything you could want from a defensive end. His tremendous size and athleticism combo is rare in a prospect. If you were to add tremendous technique, you’d have Jadeveon Clowney (already crowned the 1st overall pick next year) and he’d be long gone by the #5 pick. In addition, the Lions coached him at the Senior Bowl and he dominated that game playing the wide 9 technique employed by the Lions, so they should have an idea of how well he takes coaching. The front office is comfortable that he could offer enough right now to start at DE and will only get better. The addition of Jim Washburn to the Lions’ coaching staff as a 2nd defensive line coach gives them plenty of coaching resources to devote to improving a guy like this. And the only guys in the draft that were demonstrably better than Ansah were Joeckel and Fisher and they were the top 2 picks. A lot of people thought the Lions should go with a cornerback or guard in this spot, but as it turns out, the Lions picked up starters that those spots later in the draft. Sure, it was a disappointment not to get an offensive tackle, seeing as how that was the strength of this draft, but with the #5 overall pick, you shouldn’t be taking the 4th best offensive tackle, and there were probably only 3 tackles in the draft better than Riley Reiff anyway.

As for fit, this pick is ideal. Ansah’s athleticism and the wide 9 are perfect for each other. He’ll be asked to do little else but rush the passer, which will help shorten his learning curve, and the wide alignment will give him space to use his athleticism to wreak havoc. And after it’s all said and done, he can’t possibly be worse than KVB and Avril were this past year. They graded out as a combined -42.8. If they were to be replaced with simply average players, the Lions overall defense would have gone from ranking 26th to 17th in PFF score.

2nd Round, Pick 4, Darius Slay CB – Mississippi State

Darius Slay is the cornerback Martin Mayhew has been looking for. For a corner, he’s got good size, at 6’0″, 192 lbs and great speed (he was timed at 4.36 seconds in his 40 yard dash at the combine). He can play on the outside and match up against the bigger receivers the Lions will face. He’s better in coverage than in run support, which will probably keep him from playing a significant amount in the slot.

Leading up to the draft, I didn’t believe that CB was as big a need as some like Mel Kiper made it out to be. This offseason, the Lions re-signed their #1 cornerback in Chris Houston, which stabilizes that position for a number of years. Additionally, last year’s draft provided the Lions with 3 cornerbacks, two of which showed enough last year to think that they’ll be a part of the Lions plans going forward. The Lions also signed Ron Bartell, a former 2nd round pick, last year. He also provides the size and speed Mayhew is looking for (he was 6’1″, 211 lbs at the 2005 NFL combine and ran a 4.37 forty). That said, I really like this pick. Slay provides a combination of size and speed that the other young guys can’t match. He can step in and immediately compete for the starting spot opposite Houston and probably win the job. And while the Lions had 4 solid guys coming into the draft, NFL offenses are tending towards more 3 and 4 WR sets with size and speed across the board. Depth at cornerback is key both in terms of matchups and injury fill-ins. And none of those guys are really proven aside from Houston, so a guy that can start on the other side was a must. To fill that #2 corner role without having to use your 1st round pick on a guy like Milliner means they got a good value here.

3rd Round, Pick 3, Larry Warford OG – Kentucky

Lary Warford is a big dude. He’s a mauler and a very good in-line blocker. He can both pass protect and run block and has nimble feet. In some of the scouting reports I’ve read, he’s been described as a good athlete, though his ability to move over large distances has been questioned.

Again, I really like this pick for the Lions. Many projected him to go in the 2nd round, so this presents good value. He’ll step in and start day 1 and I feel comfortable that he’ll be very good at protecting Stafford and opening up running lanes between the tackles. My one hesitation is in how he fits into the Lions’ scheme. Not being able to move well could cause him trouble with pulling and in the screen game. However, these concerns are fairly minor and should be something he’ll get better at as he improves his fitness with an NFL strength and conditioning coach. He replaces Stephen Peterman, who was mediocre, at best, last year. He should improve both the pass protection and inside running game immediately and the Lions rarely used Peterman as a pulling guard, so I don’t expect Warford to limit the offense at all. Surefire starter in the 3rd round? I’ll take it.

4th Round, Pick 35, Devin Taylor DE – South Carolina

If you read my Denard Robinson piece, you’ve already heard a little bit about Devin Taylor. He’s 6’7″, 266 lbs, and an incredible athlete with freakishly long arms. His combine numbers rivaled those of Ziggy Ansah. On the flip side, he wasn’t very productive across from the best pass rusher in college football and struggles with technique. His pad level can get high and he struggles to effectively use his length. Still, you can coach technique, and his potential is huge.

I love this pick for the Lions. He falls very much in line with their former 4th round picks in Sammie Lee Hill and Jason Fox. He’s a guy you bring in as depth and develop him over time. And you get a guy with great athleticism with 3 years of starting experience in the SEC in the late 4th round. I think he can step in this year as a rotational DE in a similar capacity to Lawrence Jackson and Willie Young last year and hopefully eventually develop into a starter. This offseason, the Lions lost 3 defensive ends in KVB, Avril, and LoJack, so with Jason Jones and Ansah, Taylor should round out the rotation.

5th Round, Pick 32, Sam Martin P – Appalachian State

People that bash teams for drafting punters are stupid. Here is a list of the Lions’ 5th round draft picks from the last 10 years: Terrence Holt, James Davis, Alex Lewis, Dan Orlovsky, Jonathan Scott, Johnny Baldwin, Kenneth Moore, Jerome Felton, Doug Hogue, Tahir Whitehead, and Chris Greenwood. That list is riddled with guys that were backups, failures, or fringe starters for other teams. Here’s another list: Dave Zastudil, Bryan Anger, Reggie Hodges, Donnie Jones, Dustin Colquitt, Sam Koch, Shane Lechler, Adam Podlesh, Mike Scifres, Kevin Huber, Brad Nortman, Thomas Morstead, Brandon Fields, Pat McAfee, Andy Lee, Matt Bosher, and Zoltan Mesko. These are punters that were drafted that played in all 16 of their respective teams’ games last year. So tell me this, would you rather have a guy that might fill the last spot on your roster and not make an impact on games for at least 2 years, if ever, or would you rather have a guaranteed starter that could be on your teams 20 years from now?

Sam Martin is a punter. He was apparently one of the top 2 punters on the Lions board. He’s got a big leg and can kick off. I don’t know if there’s a whole lot else you can say about punters, or at least nothing that I can speak intelligently about. He’s fairly new to punting, as he played soccer all throughout high school, tried out kicking his senior year and got scholarship offers. He’s done both kicking and punting in college and improved significantly his senior year after beginning to work with a kicking specialist to improve his technique. Because of this, he still has potential to improve. Many of you will question taking this particular guy because he wasn’t #1 or #2 on most people’s lists. But how many of those people actually scouted punters? If we’re talking RBs or QBs or pretty much any other position, the rankings might hold some value, but with punters, I think one guy looks at the big schools and sees who has the good punters and ranks them and then everyone else copies. I trust that the Lions have done their due diligence here more so than I trust a guy who reluctantly made a list of draftable punters. I mean, the guy averaged 45.9 yards per punt last year

Contrary to most, this is my favorite pick that the Lions made. You get an immediate starter at the end of the 5th round at a position where he can step in and his skills should translate directly to the NFL (Either way, you’re just going out there to kick the ball down the field). Additionally, punting was perhaps the Lions biggest weakness last year. It directly cost them 2 games and certainly lost them the field position battle (a way underrated aspect of football) in the majority of the others. It’s easy to see how high picks can be given starting spots right away and make an impact on games as long as you get talented guys that line up with needs, but it takes a little creativity to get a starter at the end of the 5th round.

6th Round, Pick 3, Corey Fuller WR – Virginia Tech

Corey Fuller is 6’2″ tall and weighs 204 lbs. He ran track for 2 years at Kentucky before transferring to VT to play football. Those physical attributes alone make him worth a 6th round pick. He’s tall, fast, makes explosive cuts and has shown the ability to catch the ball. The problem with Fuller is his inexperience. After running track for 2 years and backing up for a year, he only started one year. This shows up with inconsistency in running routes and securing the football. The other issue is that he looks rail thin, even for a wide receiver, and he must prove that he can handle press coverage.

I think this pick is great value for the Lions. The biggest thing the Lions were looking for in a wide receiver this offseason was the ability to force teams to put a safety over the top opposite CJ. It’s the reason they tried to sign Darrius Heyward-Bey. They want a guy with pure straight line speed to keep defenses honest. While Fuller doesn’t have quite the elite pure speed of DHB, he is certainly very fast and can play that role for the Lions. His inexperience will keep him from contributing a whole lot more this year, but if he makes the team, don’t be surprised to see him on the opposite side of CJ at some point running 9 routes.

6th Round, Pick 31, Theo Riddick RB – Notre Dame

Theo Riddick is a 3rd down back type. He’s good at running routes and catching passes, but lacks the athleticism to do a whole lot more. He played some wide receiver, so he can also line up in the slot.

If he makes the team, he’ll be an injury backup to Reggie Bush and can fill an important void in that respect. He won’t be nearly as fast or explosive, but can play a significant role in the passing game. He lacks upside, but his versatility will be intriguing to the Lions. I like that the Lions tend to draft more towards need in the later rounds. It allows you to target a spot on your roster that a guy can possibly slip in to. If you’re drafting a 7th string WR just because he’s the best on the board doesn’t give him a very good chance at making the roster. But if you’re looking for a guy to fill a role, you might as well draft someone that fits the profile and let him battle for that spot in camp. Maybe he’ll win the job or maybe you’ll find an undrafted free agent or veteran guy that fills the role better, but at the very least, you get a better shot at production out of him.

7th Round, Pick 5, Michael Williams TE – Alabama

Michael Williams is a 6’5″, 278 pound tight end with offensive lineman speed (5.16 second 40 yard dash at his pro day). Certainly he won’t be the type to stretch the field, but he can probably be about as productive as Will Heller in the passing game, catching short and intermediate stuff to catch the defense napping. His real value comes from his blocking, where he was one of the best blocking tight ends in the draft. He’s essentially a lean offensive tackle that can catch.

I actually don’t see any way that he doesn’t make the Lions team with a good chance of being active week in and week out. He’ll immediately step in to Will Heller’s 3rd tight end role and also fill the role that Riley Reiff played last year, coming in as a 6th o-lineman on some plays. He’s not an all-around tight end that has grown in popularity in recent years and likely never will be, but he’ll stick on NFL rosters for a while because of what he can do.

7th Round, Pick 39, Brandon Hepburn ILB – Florida A&M

Brandon Hepburn is a small school guy who is a good athlete, but a better student. He carried a full academic load in biochemistry and walked on to the FAMU football team. He put up respectable numbers at the combine and should be a solid developmental guy. He has trouble working between the tackles and finding his way through the garbage at the line, so he’ll need some work before he’s ready to contribute, but his physical tools shouldn’t hold him back.

For one of the last picks in the draft, this seems like pretty good value. He’ll start out on the practice squad or one of the last spots on the roster and develop for a few years similar to Ashlee Palmer has done. It’s hard not to like Hepburn because he’s got high hopes outside of football and seems like a very intelligent guy. This could be the first time in his life he’s focused solely on football, and carrying a full academic load while playing football isn’t easy, so you know he’s not afraid of working hard. And he was literally the only linebacker that smiled in his NFL combine photo, so I like him already. Hopefully, he can make his stamp on special teams and develop into a guy that can contribute. The Lions are a little thin a linebacker, so it’s not hard to imagine that he could fill out the depth there.

Draft Class Trends

Immediate Impact

It’s easy to see how this draft class fits into the roster and makes an immediate impact. There are 4 day 1 starters in Ansah, Slay, Warford, and Martin. Aside from them, Devin Taylor, Corey Fuller, and Michael Williams should have a rotational role from the start. Theo Riddick and Brandon Hepburn both have a shot to stick with the team and develop in time. The Lions seemed to have a very clear idea to fill their needs coming in to this draft and managed to do it while getting good value throughout the draft.

Physical Tools

Ziggy Ansah and Devin Taylor were both among the top combine performers at their position and offer prototypical height and weight. Darius Slay offers both height and speed to cover big, fast receivers on the outside. Larry Warford is a massive guy, and Corey Fuller is a track athlete with great straight line speed. Martin Mayhew has said in his press conferences that one of the Lions’ objectives was to get bigger and faster. Mission accomplished. The change will be especially noticeable at DE, where the top 4 guys on the roster are all huge and athletic. Add in a number of corners that are 6 foot plus with speed and you have yourself a scary defense.

Upside

This goes hand in hand with the physical tools. Ansah, Taylor, and Fuller all have prototypical height and speed, but need work on technique. Sam Martin is still relatively new to punting and has room to improve. And for a 7th round pick, Hepburn has all the physical attributes you’d expect from a linebacker. The only things holding him back are mental and technical. The Lions are putting the onus on the coaching staff here. Teach these athletes to play football and you’ll get production. If not, this team could easily sink back into a losing record and the coaching staff will be different a year from now.

Unreal. #Jaguars took @DenardX in the fifth round. If they hadn't taken him, #Lions would have grabbed him next. Could've stayed in Mich—
Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 28, 2013

However, Justin Rogers of Mlive.com later debunked that rumor upon speaking with Martin Mayhew.

Contrary to report, Lions GM Martin Mayhew said there was no plan to take Denard Robinson in the fifth round before Jacksonville snagged him—
Justin Rogers (@Justin_Rogers) April 28, 2013

Still, this report added fuel to the debate  over whether the Lions should have drafted him or not, given that they chose DE Devin Taylor just 3 spots before Robinson’s selection. A certain well-known Detroit-area troll indicated that this was the biggest disappointment of the Lions’ draft. I don’t think this is even an issue for discussion if Denard Robinson wasn’t from the University of Michigan. As a New Jersey native living in the Washington D. C. area, I have no ties the University of Michigan and don’t really even watch a whole lot of college football. I suppose I understand the homerism. I would love the Lions to snag a Rutgers kid (I was campaigning hard for Ray Rice back in the day) or a Maryland player (I’m sure you guys would all love to have Vernon Davis or Torrey Smith, and watch out for Stefon Diggs in a couple years). I, for one, am incredibly happy the Lions did not draft Robinson and would like to convince you that this is for the best.

First of all, what makes Denard Robinson and intriguing prospect? In a word, athleticism. Denard is an impressive athlete with tremendous college production and when in space, he can make explosive plays. But that’s the problem. You need to get him in space first. Playing most of his career as a quarterback (which he isn’t capable of doing as a pro), he didn’t see many snaps at RB or WR. As a running back prospect, Denard lacks the size to be an every-down contributor and is almost completely unproven in that role at the collegiate level. While his frame is well suited to make him a slot wide receiver, reports from the Senior Bowl indicate that he had significant trouble running routes, catching the ball, even lining up in the right spot. These struggles will also hurt his value as a RB because pass catching is a necessary skill for a third down back. As a kick returner, he is completely raw, only fielding kicks and punts starting this offseason (and dropping many of them). Ziggy Ansah looks like a polished pro next to this guy.

And then you can talk about where he would have to be selected. For the Lions to pick Robinson, they would have had to pass up Devin Taylor. Devin Taylor is a 6’7″, 266 lb defensive end with 36″ long arms (that’s freakishly long). At the combine, among defensive linemen, he ran the 8th fastest 40, had the 5th best vertical jump, best broad jump, 2nd best 3 cone drill, and 2nd best 20 yard shuttle. He is an athletic, physical freak, almost rivaling Ziggy Ansah in his athleticism. He has an ideal frame for the position and a high motor. And he has 4 years of collegiate experience in the SEC at that position. Devin Taylor can step in and contribute to the defensive line rotation immediately and develop into a starter in a short period of time. He doesn’t need to be taught the basic requirements of the position.

My point here is that while Denard Robinson is an awesome athlete, so are a lot of guys coming out of college football. But most of those other guys have a position. Picking a guy without a position in the hope that he learns to do any one of a number of things well is a luxury that the Lions don’t have. And certainly, there is better value to be found in the late 4th, where the Lions continued to select starters and guys with a specific and significant rotational role. Denard is a purely developmental prospect at this point and worth more to a team that can let him sit and develop than a team like the Lions trying to get back on track.

Aaaaaanyway. By now, you probably know that the Lions took Ziggy Ansah with the #5 overall pick last night. If you’re not familiar with him, here’s a quick rundown on him. Immediately, Lions fans took to the internet to complain or celebrate (or some mixture of the two). He’s an intriguing prospect. You can’t help but be excited by his incredible size, speed, and athletic ability, and you can’t help but be terrified by his inexperience. My immediate reaction was to hate the pick. I knew I would hate it. I always hate it. In a few days, we’ll see if I come around to it. Any other major sports media source can give you the same old pros and cons list about why it is or is not a good pick, so I won’t repeat those here. I know you come here for the hard-hitting journalism (and sweet headlines). So without further ado, here’s my alternative reasoning for why it is or is not a good pick.

Why I like him

1. I used to have a cat named Ziggy. Although that was short for Zigfried I think and not Ezekiel.
2. My favorite cartoon as a child was Ziggy.
   

   At least it’s not as bad as Cathy

3. My friend Martin is from Ghana.
4. Kyle Vanden Bosch is gone.
5. His 3D glasses are a pretty awesome satirical statement about recent draft pick fashion trends if that’s what he was going for.
   

   Ahem, Nick Fairley

6. The Lions didn’t trade up.
7. Awesome punny headline possibilities, obviously.

Why I don’t like him

1. The 3D glasses, while awesome, didn’t actually look all that good.
2. Matt Millen (I don’t know how he factors into this, but I feel like this is relevant)
3. His lack of an arrest record means he will have a hard time fitting in with the team.
4. Matt Millen.

In all seriousness, this reasoning is as good as any other that we can give as fans. The vast majority of Lions fans have never seen him play (not counting Youtube), seen him practice, coached him, scouted him, or talked with him. The Detroit Lions have done their homework. They coached him at the Senior Bowl. They have coaches that know far more about football than I could ever hope to. And even then, they don’t know if it is a good pick or not. That hasn’t been decided yet. I think we can all agree that he’s a very good scheme fit and has no physical limitations. The only question is whether or not he will live up to his potential. That’s why it’s called a “boom or bust” pick. So all we can do is guess which it is and wait and see. So in that spirit, here’s a poll for how you grade the pick.

April 2006. I say that year and it sounds like it was yesterday. But by now it’s 7 years ago. That year’s draft came a month before my high school graduation and by now I’ve slogged through the majority of grad school. That draft came 3 months after the hiring of Rod Marinelli. I remember the optimism I had back then. Marinelli showed up to his press conference with a sharp suit and a mantra of pounding the rock. He was a stark contrast to Mooch, the guy who played favorites, lost games, and looked every bit of the TV personality he has since become. Rod Marinelli looked like a football coach. He looked like the man to lead us back to prominence (did I say back? I don’t think we were ever actually there). So I channeled my optimism into the draft. I was in between high school and college. What else was there to do? I remember planning each draft pick, filling each of the Lions’ holes, one by one. I mapped out free agency too. I was big on Simeon Rice as a free agent, and in the draft, it was Michael Huff or bust. I remember just a few days before the draft, everyone started raving about Ernie Sims. He was like a guided missile. You could watch his college highlight reel all day long. As he moved up draft boards, people wondered if he could go as high as 15. I was devastated when the Raiders took Huff, but Sims was my 2nd choice and the Lions nabbed him at #9…

I would be a horrible GM. None of these players have produced a whole lot since 2006. I can look back now and laugh about them, but my picks would have been horrible. And that’s why mock drafts don’t mean anything. It’s because these picks aren’t made by guys that get their info third hand (well, maybe in 2006, a certain Lions GM probably did). Trust me, you really shouldn’t care what my draft picks would be. If you really want to know who the Lions will pick, you should think about…who the Lions will pick. By saying that, I didn’t actually tell you anything, but think about it. Do I care if Mel Kiper thinks the Lions still need a corner? Do I care if some analyst says that good teams are built from the trenches out without any proof? You should concern yourself with the Lions drafting philosophy, offensive and defensive schemes, and take a look at team needs from a long-term perspective.

If you’re a fan of this blog, you might remember that I took a more in-depth look at the Lions draft philosophy last year. The Lions draft the best guy available, without regard for short-term injuries or minor character issues. Given the state of some of the Lions’ recent draft picks (looking at you, Jahvid Best and Titus Young), you can begin to wonder whether the Lions might get a little gun-shy on this aspect of their philosophy.

You can look at their past drafts and see how they deal with need. Did they need an offensive tackle last year when they picked Riley Reiff? Not with Backus and Cherilus holding down both ends. Did they need a defensive tackle when they took Nick Fairley in 2011? Not with Suh, Corey Williams, and Sammie Lee Hill on board. Are they relying on those guys to step in and fill big roles this year? Absolutely. The draft isn’t just a short-term, one year thing. The Lions draft guys at positions that might not be a need right away and look for them to step up in the years to come.

You can look at the Lions’ schemes and see that they value guys that can rush the passer and explosive offensive weapons. They’ve already invested 2 first round picks in pass rushing defensive tackles. Last year, they spent $10.6 million to franchise Cliff Avril. On offense, they’ve sunk high picks into Stafford, Pettigrew, Best, Young, and Leshoure, signed Calvin Johnson to the biggest WR contract ever, and signed Reggie Bush to exploit the space created by CJ.

So with all of this in mind, you start to get a picture of what the Lions might do with the 5th overall pick. But do you know who the Lions will pick at #5? No. Because you don’t know who the first 4 guys will be. With that in mind, I’m going to make a big board, albeit as a guy that only reads 3rd hand accounts of the strengths and weaknesses of draft prospects. With some of these guys, I’d love to see them in a Lions uniform. With some of them, I’d be mortified. Without further ado, here’s my best approximation of Martin Mayhew’s big board.

#1 – Eric Fisher – LT

Since the Senior Bowl, there has been much ink dedicated to discussing whether Eric Fisher or Luke Joeckel is a better prospect. A lot of people have Luke Joeckel as the best player in the draft, and maybe he is. But from the Lions’ perspective, I think Eric Fisher fits what the Lions do better. These guys are both great pass blockers, but Eric Fisher has better athleticism and foot speed, which allows him to get to get to the 2nd level more easily when run blocking. The Lions offense utilizes a lot of screens, traps, draws, and misdirection-type plays. They’re putting a renewed emphasis on getting big plays this year. So it would make sense that they’ll need guys who can get downfield and block linebackers and safeties. This offseason, they brought in Curtis Modkins from the Buffalo Bills as their running backs coach and run game coordinator. Buffalo Rumblings (SB Nation Buffalo Bills blog) had a nice breakdown of the Bills running game under Modkins. Essentially, they try to take advantage of the space created by their passing game to use a lot of zone blocking and misdirection plays that require their linemen to get out and move. Sound familiar?

#2 – Luke Joeckel – LT

Let’s be honest. Putting Eric Fisher 1st was nitpicky. These guys are both great. I would say that they’re 1A and 1B, but I really hate it when people say that because B comes after A and is therefore just a nicer and dumber way of saying 2. Luke Joeckel is a prototypical left tackle and a better pass blocker than Fisher. Considering the Lions pass 90% of the time (I didn’t look this stat up, but I’m 90% sure it’s true), they could use a guy that will keep Stafford from separating his shoulder for the rest of his career. If either of these guys is still there at #5, the Lions will be glad they sacrificed Titus Young and Jahvid Best to the draft gods for their consideration.

#3 – Tavon Austin – WR

Whaaaaaaaaaat?!?! Yep, I went there. I tried to put other guys in this spot. I really did. I wrote down 3 other names before I settled on Austin. Get this straight. The Lions are not afraid to draft a wide receiver. If he is the best guy on their board, he’ll be the pick, without a doubt. I’ve been reading scouting reports on these guys for days, weeks. The one that keeps getting me excited is Tavon Austin because he’s a perfect fit for what the Lions like to do. He has elite speed (4.34 official 40 time), but also elite quickness. He can be guys over the top or absolutely eviscerate defenses when he gets in space. He’s small, so he’s not going to be a guy that you throw jump balls to. But why would you even bother with that when you have CJ on the other side. The biggest thing missing from the Lions last year were impact offensive weapons outside of CJ and impact plays on defense. Imagine Tavon Austin alongside Reggie Bush and Ryan Broyles. That’s almost scarier than having to deal with CJ. Almost. I’d have to think that no matter what happens with the offensive line or running game, this would put the offense over the top.

#4 – Sharrif Floyd – DT

I know. This one hurts. This is not a pick that I would like to see. I told you that this is not a mock draft of what I would do, but what I believe Mayhew would do. I’m being serious with this. The guys that I considered here all have big question marks when it comes to their fit within the Lions scheme, their level of polish (like the stuff you put on shoes or furniture, not people from Poland. Although, there are a severe lack of Polish people in this draft), or their value at #5. Sharrif Floyd is a high-motor, disruptive pass-rushing defensive tackle best suited to play the 3 technique in a 4-3 defense. Sound familiar? That’s because it’s the exact same profile that fits both Ndamukong Suh ( I still have to look up how to spell this) and Nick Fairley. There’s no doubting that Floyd fits what the Lions look for in a tackle. There’s also no doubting that the position is currently filled. But that’s not to say that there will never again be a vacancy at DT. Justin Rogers at Mlive.com broke down the contract situation the Lions and Suh are now facing heading into 2014 and 2015. The Lions owe Suh $21.41 million dollars in 2014 if he doesn’t sign a restructured extension. If they want to franchise him in 2015, it would cost $25.7 million. That’s an obscene amount of money. The Lions salary cap troubles in recent years have brought the issue to the forefront that most of the Lions’ cap money is tied up in Stafford, CJ, and Suh. I hate to say it, but only one of those players has a penchant for stomping players on national television. Sharrif Floyd would be able to step into the rotation immediately, just as Nick Fairley did in 2011 and be able to take the reigns in 2015. This would not be a popular pick, especially with me, but I don’t think the Lions would be afraid to do it.

#5 – Dion Jordan – LB/DE

Another unpopular pick, I know. He’s simply not a 4-3 DE at this point. He stands at 6’6″ and weighs 248 lbs. He’ll need to add 20-30 lbs before he can become an effective 4-3 DE. But here’s the thing. He’s an incredible pass rusher. There’s a reason 3-4 teams are salivating over him. He makes plays. He has incredible athleticism. He can even cover slot receivers. He is a defensive playmaker, first and foremost. Here’s a quote from Martin Mayhew entering this offseason:

“We have a lot of guys, who are good guys, that line up right, they know what their job is, but they don’t impact the game. We need interceptors, guys that can sack the quarterback, we need guys that cause fumbles, that make plays on third down. Those are the kinds of guys that can change the game for us.”

The Lions defense played admirably this year. They held their own, played better than expected, and allowed a lot of points. You look at the Lions defense and it’s easy to say they should have been better against the run or better in coverage, but what they really needed was to get off the field. Dion Jordan is a rare athlete that knows how to get after the QB, functions very well in space, and has about as much upside as anyone in the draft. I’m of the opinion that he’d fare better in the wide 9 than in a traditional 6 or 7 technique. The wide 9 is predicated on getting the pass rushers out in space. They need to be able to beat the tackle to the corner or use their quickness to beat their man with a counter move to the inside. From what I’ve read, these sound like by far the biggest strengths of Dion Jordan’s game. And while he’s spending time gaining weight, you could just go ahead and line him up at slot cornerback.

#6 – The Shocker

When do the Lions ever go by the book? Did you know who Gosder Cherilus was before his name was announced with the 17th pick in the 2008 draft? Did you expect to hear Riley Reiff or Ryan Broyles or Nick Fairley or Titus Young? The Lions are never predictable. One of the 5 names I listed will be available when the Lions come up onto the clock. I fully expect that they’ll pick someone I’ve never heard of, never read about, never wanted on this team. Maybe it’ll be Star Lotulelei or maybe Tyler Eifert. Maybe it’ll be Sheldon Richardson or Jarvis Jones or Barkevious Mingo. Maybe it’ll be Tank Carradine. I know I’ll be watching. I expect I’ll be disappointed. But give me a few days and I’ll come around to the pick. I always do.

As you may know, the Lions just recently signed Reggie Bush to fill the gaping hole in their offense vacated by Jahvid Best. While a large part of this deal hinges on the pass-catching ability of both guys, the Lions could also use a big boost in their running game. Last year, the Lions had just 4 runs of 20 or more yards, tied for worst in the NFL, and less than an 8th of the total of 33 by the league leading Minnesota Vikings. The Lions could use some juice. They could use some Jahvid Best juice. So does Reggie Bush have it? Let’s go to the data.

I’ve collected the distance of every run from both Jahvid Best and Reggie Bush’s careers to this point and organized them by distance (for example, Best has had 27 runs of 0 yards in his career). I then divided these totals by the total number of carries to get a frequency (Best has a run of 0 yards on 11.2% of his carries). That way, I can compare apples to apples despite Reggie having way more carries in his career than Best. So here’s what I came up with…

We see a few interesting things here. The first is that Best has wayyy more carries of -3 to +2 yards than Reggie does. Reggie seems to fill out his distribution a little more symmetrically by dominating the +3 and +4 range. And while Bush has more -9 to -4 yard runs (2 runs of -9 yards in a career? yikes), he makes up for it by outshining Best in the 7 to 13 range. Above that, the data is pretty sporadic, but they both seem to have a similar number of explosive runs. I think it’s fair to call Reggie Bush a far better runner at this point.

By combing through the box scores, I’m also intrigued by Reggie Bush’s usage throughout his career. In his first 3 years with the Saints, Reggie Bush was used in tandem with Deuce McAllister with a little bit of Aaron Stecker and Pierre Thomas sprinkled in. Over that time span, he averaged 11.0 rushing attempt per game and 5.6 receptions per game. In 2009 and 2010, Reggie took a back seat to Mike Bell, Pierre Thomas, and Chris Ivory. His stats dropped to 4.8 rushes per game and 3.7 catches per game. Since moving on to Miami, he’s taken on a more traditional running back role, with 14.3 rushing attempts per game and 2.5 receptions per game.

Since his signing, there have been reports that the Lions offered Reggie the role of being a feature back and, of course, he was also brought in to fill Jahvid Best’s role. Considering that, I don’t think it would be out of the question for Bush to see something close to the 14.0 carries per game and 4.5 receptions per game that Best saw in 2011. Hopefully, that would combine his most successful rushing years from Miami (14.3 rushes per game at 4.7 YPC) with his most successful receiving years from New Orleans (5.6 receptions per game at 7.5 yards per catch).

Before this trade, I was all-in on the Reggie Bush bandwagon. After looking at the data, I think it’s safe to say I’m driving the bandwagon. A rich man’s Jahvid Best in an offense that never sees 8 man boxes is a recipe for plenty of offense.

Round 1

(1) Tommy Hunter vs (16) Carlos Gomez

The Matchup: This is a classic 1 vs 16 mismatch. However, that speaks more to the weakness of Carlos Gomez than to the strength of Tommy Hunter, who I believe to be a bit overseeded. First of all, let’s look at Tommy Hunter. The idea is solid, and the execution very good, but this one is made by the camera man. We see the outfielder tracking back and then all of a sudden, the reveal. Totally springs it on you. Good, quality GIF, but there are a few things that hold it back from truly being a 1 seed. First of all, it’s not a hilarious type of funny, which is alright except that it’s such an attention-seeking sort of move that it’s lack of hilarity doesn’t make it subtle humor, it just cheapens it a little. He plans this out knowing exactly what’s going to happen and he gets the result he wants. Still, kudos for not flinching. Thirdly, with so many extra characters appearing in the GIF, they really don’t add anything extra to the shot. If you want an example of what I’m looking for, here’s one of my favorite GIFs of all time, Yankee Enthusiasts. Just watch everyone in the shot there. They’re all adding something. The fathers teaching their sons how to be real yankees fans, the guy on the left that doesn’t know what to do with his hands, so he somehow just ends up forcing a high five on his girlfriend, and of course, the big guy behind the action saying to know one in particular, “F*** you, f*** you”. This is the gold standard for GIF depth and I would probably put Tommy Hunter at the other end of the spectrum. And finally, it feels like a ripoff of former GIF Tournament contestant, Dan Majerle, former NBA all-star. Still, Tommy Hunter looks like a heavyweight when compared to the 16 seed Carlos Gomez. This GIF probably shouldn’t even be in the tournament. It’s so tiny, so late in the GIF, completely not the focus of the camera man, and not even that funny. If you want to see a quality GIF of an outfielder falling down, check out Shane Victorino.

My Pick: I think it’s obvious that this one goes to Tommy Hunter.

The Result: Chalk. Tommy Hunter wins, but with just 54% of the vote. The commenters seem to think they’re in on some secret joke here with the Carlos Gomez GIF. Dude fell down in the outfield. And it was hard to see. And it wasn’t funny anyway. Whatever. I’m glad this didn’t advance.

(8) Joe Morgan vs (9) Kentucky Fan

The Matchup: Let’s start with Joe Morgan. I went into this expecting to love it because Joe Morgan the baseball broadcaster is a ridiculous moron and I would enjoy laughing at him. It would be like the baseball equivalent of a Jon Gruden GIF. I was disappointed to learn that the Joe Morgan in this GIF is actually an NFL player for the Saints. Womp womp. So getting over that disappointment was tough. But this GIF is actually pretty awesome. The two hits combine perfectly to throw him off balance and subsequently back on balance and it makes him look like a ninja master. I don’t think Bruce Lee could have pulled off this move. It’s both hilarious and impressive. On to Kentucky Fan. This is a really short GIF. It’s short, sweet, and to the point. It’s a fat guy falling on his face while trying a high five. Boom, trapdoor. But because it’s so short, it completely eliminates any chance of depth the GIF has. The very last frame of the GIF gives us a little sneak peak at the aftermath, with a look of horror on the face of the woman in the bottom left. It has potential for more, especially since it’s a bunch of middle-aged people high fiving. You know there’s going to be some awkward hand grasp high fives that old people do because shaking hands is just too ingrained for them not to grab hold when their hand meets another. But alas, this GIF is very intentionally about nothing but the dude falling. That’s fine. It’s funny. It’s certainly better than Carlos Gomez. But it had some stiff competition in this matchup.

My Pick: This was close when I first saw them both. They’re both funny and both grab your attention. But Kentucky fan has little replay value and Joe Morgan follows up the funny with just being flat out impressive. Joe Morgan it is.

The Result: Another moderately close one, with Joe Morgan winning with 54% of the vote. This margin is probably appropriate for the matchup.

(5) Clint Dempsey vs (12) Reggie Bush

The Matchup: Clint Dempsey has quickly become a star among GIFs. “Deuceface” is making appearances in sports crowds as a giant posterboard head. I knew it would be big as soon as I saw it live. It’s hilarious, with some strange context that we’ll never know, in the middle of a soccer pitch against Jamaica. And I’m not letting the fact that he just joined my favorite team, Tottenham, influence me here. Reggie Bush, on the other hand is simply impressive. Three guys on one juke is pretty good, but I think even Reggie Bush would admit he’s done better. I’m not a huge fan of GIFs that are just a usual ESPN Top 10 level of impressive and not much else and this one doesn’t have anything extra special to sauce it up. Seems a little too run of the mill to have a chance in this matchup.

My Pick:  One word (I think?): Deuceface.

The Result: Dempsey wins with a cool 66% of the vote. No contest and rightfully so.

(4) Courtney Kirkland/Kris Humphries vs (13) Ref Hit in Face

The Matchup: Immediately upon seeing the Courtney Kirkland block, it became one of my tournament favorites. It just raises so many questions. I realize it’s some kind of stoppage of play and you need to convey that to the shooter, but is it really worse to let him shoot than to sprint to the line, jump up, and reject him while coming very close to his face? You just know this ref lays in his bed at night and dreams of playing in the NBA. Sadly, his stature leaves him stuck with ref duty. I really want to know if he talked trash to the shooter after the block. Anyway, this one is underseeded. Ref Hit in Face is just a little too run of the mill for my tastes. It fits in with the early 90s Bob Saget America’s Funniest Home Videos, but wouldn’t even win that. Maybe a little more zoom on the ref’s face, a funnier expression, and this one might have separated itself from the pack.

My Pick: I think it’s obvious. The block is one of my tournament favorites. It should win in a landslide.

The Result: Courtney Kirkland wins in a walk with 74% of the vote. Not even close.

(6) Ace Sanders vs (11) Willie the Wildcat

The Matchup: Alright, NOW we have an impressive GIF. Reggie Bush, eat your heart out. This is a punt return. Everyone knows he has the ball. Everyone knows where he’s going. And this isn’t one of those one cut and go types of returns. And it isn’t like he got to the corner and turned it upfield. No, he went straight through every single guy on that kick coverage team and he made it look easy. This could easily belong in a Barry Sanders or Marshawn Lynch highlight reel. This GIF is so impressive, it made me look this guy up to see where the Lions would have to draft him. And the opponent? Willie the Wildcat…I don’t even get it. I mean, what is he even doing? Is that a dance? Why is he just wearing a cat head? How did he not realize there was a kid there? HE JUST LOOKED. I guess that all makes it kind of funny, but still, it’s just kind of weird.

My Pick: The kick returner the Lions have been waiting for. By a mile. AND he has a cool name.

The Result: Wow. Ace Sanders by the skin of his teeth. He won 501-495. That’s just a 6 vote difference. In related news, 495 people shouldn’t be allowed near a computer.

(3) Damn It, Astros vs (14) Phillip Rivers

The Matchup: Oh man, I love this matchup. Damn It, Astros and Phillip Rivers are GIF fixtures in so many different incarnations. They’re among the most failtastic sports figures. So let’s take a look at these ones in particular. Damn It, Astros is awesome, although not their best work. But this one is still pretty great. How is this even possible? I mean, this is a routine thing. You probably touch first on like 75% of your plate appearances. How do you get it this wrong? And it wasn’t even a close play. It wasn’t like he had to stretch to beat the throw. The ball got there well ahead of him. Greatness in concept and execution. And Phillip Rivers. What an underseed at 14. This is just ridiculous. This should be a top 5 seed. I guess it depends on your interpretation of Phillip Rivers’ actions. SBNation seemed to think he was telling the offensive lineman to throw it. The commenters thought he was telling the lineman to bat it down. I think he was actually trying to bat it down himself. You can see as soon as he recognizes that it was tipped up in the air, he cocks his arm back so he can swat it down. He then watches it down into the lineman’s arms and still goes for the swat, despite being 2 feet away and about a second too late. And then, for good measure, as the lineman is going to the ground, he gives it a follow-up swat, just to finish that ball off. Amazing level of stupidity and awkwardness makes this hilariously funny to me. This matchup is REALLY close for me.

My Pick: I think I’m going to have to go with Damn It, Astros because it’s both hilarious and seemingly physically impossible.

The Result: Wow. A blowout win. 78% of people went with Damn It, Astros. My confidence in the voting public has been shaken.

(7) Salute! vs (10) Lakersbro

The Matchup: Ha! These matchups just keep getting better and better. Salute! just really appeals to the part of me that still laughs when someone farts and snickers when people say Uranus. I mean, it’s not just the arm motion, but the look on his face, his open mouth, him licking his lips, that fact that he’s just barely peering out from under that hat, his little mustache. It looks like the worst attempt ever to look like you’re doing something else when everyone else can tell what you’re really doing. Moving on to Lakersbro. As instantly as I started snickering at Salute!, that’s how weary I was of Lakersbro. It was presented as the spiritual successor to Yankee Enthusiasts. And as I mentioned above, I hold that GIF in the highest regard. This one lacks the depth of Yankee Enthusiasts, but also the local flavor. Yankee Enthusiasts is a perfect microcosm of New York. Lakersbro is pulled more from Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure than from any sort of LA culture. So like I said, I was hesitant. But as I’ve watched it more, I’ve gained an appreciation for it. The arm motions, the heap flip when the glasses come off, the backwards hat. This dude came to play. He might not have known it when he entered the arena, but this man was made for GIF stardom. Now I’ve already questioned the depth. And while it’s not Yankees Enthusiasts good, it’s not Tommy Hunter bad. Check out the woman in the bottom right. Her jaw is dropped and she has no idea what to do with her face. And purple shirt. Why is he massaging his junk while celebrating? Solid, if unspectacular supporting cast.

My Pick: I have to be honest. I voted for Salute!. But as I’ve revisited the matchup, I’ve grown to believe Lakersbro is the better GIF.

The Result: Lakersbro wins with 68% of the vote. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by this result. After all, both have near flawless execution, but Lakersbro is more of a connoisseur’s GIF rather than the one that plays to your childish side.

(2) Chiefs Special Teams vs (15) Carlos Boozer

The Matchup: I don’t love the Chiefs GIF. It’s kind of funny. I tend to think it’s actually a good idea. I’ve seen the fake before, where they just do a single misdirection. Seeing that first fake has to throw the receiving team into a fit that they’re in the wrong position, sending them scrambling to the other side of the field, just to be faked again. Of course, it’s the Chiefs. They’re too bad to have the audacity to think they could pull this off. If it were the Patriots, it would have worked and we’d still be talking about it. All of that said, it’s mildly funny with the sped up, yakety sax pace. Still, not worthy of a 2 seed. Oh, Carlos Boozer. This instantly became perhaps my favorite GIF of the West Region. To say it’s underseeded is an understatement. I love the cinematography, first of all. You start with the slow zoom from profile and then switch to a front view to follow along with the action. And the topic, I mean, what is it? I start out assuming he’s incredulous. He stays still, staring at something (or someone), mouth agape. But then, he slowly starts up walking again, like he’s resuming his normal action. But the mouth is still open. And then his eyes start looking around, like he’s searching for help. Did it get stuck that way? And then a camera flash goes off. Like someone wants to document “The Night Carlos Boozer Got Stuck That Way Forever.”  And then the GIF ends, without his mouth ever closing. It forced me to look up whether or not his mouth got stuck that way (Google News reveals nothing). If he keeps it up for much longer, he’ll have bugs fly in there. This is the antithesis of Chiefs Special Teams. Its beauty is that it’s long, it’s real time, and you have no idea what it’s about. For my money, you could swap these seeds and I would ask no questions of it.

My Pick: Isn’t it obvious? Boozer by a landslide. Perhaps by a greater margin than any before it.

The Result: WHAT. The Chiefs won. Come on. The Chiefs never win. Why would you give them the satisfaction here. It’s like people forget that the Chiefs used to be good. If this were truly a move that could not possibly work, even in concept, by a team that cannot possibly execute it, then maaaaaybe. But Boozer has so much more to offer. It has a long life ahead of it. 53% of voters on this one suck.

Round 2 – Sweet 16

(1) Tommy Hunter vs (8) Joe Morgan

Analysis/My Pick: I think Joe Morgan just edges this one. Hilarious and cool and Tommy Hunter is just trying too hard.

The Result: Tommy Hunter wins with 54% of the vote. I think this is justifiable, but Tommy Hunter won’t move much further because it’s planned.

(5) Clint Dempsey vs (4) Courtney Kirkland/Kris Humphries

Analysis/My Pick: As random and funny as Dempsey is in this one, the free throw rejection is just too rare a specimen to lose in the second round. It’s like a football ref making a tackle or blocking a field goal because there was a false start. Just let it go and don’t count it.

The Result: Courtney Kirkland rejects Dempsey worse than he did to Kris Humphries. 67% of the voters made the right call. In the first point I’ve agreed with from the commentariat, someone pointed out that Deuceface is just as good as a still image. This is an excellent point and as has been proven with the head posters.

(6) Ace Sanders vs (3) Damn It, Astros

Analysis/My Pick: This is a solid round of 16 matchup. Ace Sanders is undeniably impressive and awe inspiring, but so is Damn It, Astros, in a way. Ace Sanders bounces off of defenders, while Damn It, Astros bounces off of bases. But Damn It, Astros adds the comedy element on top, which seals it for me. When in doubt go with funny over impressive. I just realized this GIF reminds me of the movie Flubber. Easy win.

The Result: Damn It, Astros wins comfortably, with 65% of the vote. I’m sad to see Ace Sanders go, but it ran into some tough competition.

(10) Lakersbro vs (2) Chiefs Special Teams

Analysis/My Pick: This feels more like a round 1 matchup. Lakersbro is much better than it’s 10th seed and Chiefs Special Teams didn’t have any business beating Carlos Boozer to get to this point. Lakersbro should destroy this one.

The Result: Lakersbro wins with 73% of the vote. I can’t help but wonder how Boozer would have fared.

Round 3 – Elite Eight

(1) Tommy Hunter vs (4) Courtney Kirkland/Kris Humphries

Analysis/My Pick: Don’t make me laugh. Tommy Hunter isn’t even in the same league as Courtney Kirkland. Tommy, you’ve had your fun. Time for your tournament exit.

The Result: The voting public rectifies their earlier mistake and sends Tommy Hunter packing. Kirkland won with 67% of the vote.

(3) Damn It, Astros vs (10) Lakersbro

Analysis/My Pick: Now we’re getting down to business. This is truly a worthy matchup in the elite 8. We’ve already covered what makes each of these great, but what factors put one over the top? They’re both hilarious, both unexpected, but what I keep coming back to is that Damn It, Astros is a once in a lifetime thing. I’ve seen a lot of baseball in my days, but I’ve never seen anything close to this move. He couldn’t do it again if he tried. He probably blacked out for 5 seconds before and after the incident, so there’s not even a way to figure out what he was thinking during this time. Lakersbro is fun, but it’s not that original. Any one of you could do this if you wanted to. The only difference is getting the camera to capture it. This isn’t some special moment in time that must be savored. It’s just some dude (clearly, he’s a dude) doing probably what he’s been doing his whole life. After much deliberation, my vote goes to Damn It, Astros.

The Result: Lakersbro wins narrowly over Damn It, Astros with 52% of the vote.

Round 4 – Final Four

(4) Courtney Kirkland/Kris Humphries vs (10) Lakersbro

Analysis/My Pick: A 10 seed vs a 4 seed in the final four isn’t exactly how you draw it up, but here we are. Courtney Kirkland hasn’t really faced a tough challenge to this point, while Lakersbro has had to go through many of the tougher competitors in the tournament. My initial reaction is to go with Courtney Kirkland because when are you ever going to see that again? But my heart tells me to go with Lakersbro. The deciding factor here I think is replayability. The best part of Courtney Kirkland is that it’s so unique and I’ve never seen it before. But here’s the thing: to put it in a GIF and have it loop for infinity takes away from that uniqueness factor. The entire point is that you see it over and over for as long as you want. And on that point, Lakersbro is infinitely watchable over and over. That HWAAAAAAAAA face as he whips off his glasses is what GIFs are all about. So in the end, I would send Lakersbro on to the championship.

The Result: Lakersbro with a resounding win: 65% of the vote to become the West Region champion.

In my next post, I’ll take a look at the East Region to determine who will face Lakersbro in the final.

For now, I’ll just leave this post short. I’ll let you familiarize yourself with these GIFs, and please do because there are some real greats. In future posts, I hope to provide analysis of how the matchups went down, who should have won, and perhaps an alternate reality with proper seeding (seriously, Carlos Boozer is a 15 seed?). Please, stay tuned, because there’s a lot to cover and it’ll be a whole lot of fun.

Still, this team has been surprising, no doubt. It almost seems like the Lions tried so hard to shed its stereotypes that it ruined the one great thing it had going. What this situation reminds me of is one of the most famous sports movies of all time: Jerry Maguire. The very basic storyline of this movie begins when Jerry Maguire, a sports agent, writes a manifesto about all that is wrong with his business. What he writes is an idealistic vision of the future, with more personal attention, less money, and a return to the roots of the business that he loved.

What it feels like here is that Jim Schwartz and the Lions coaching staff are trying to change their philosophy. They’re trying to implement a running game, play strong defense, and shun the evils of the deep passing game. They know that the old ways are unsustainable. Jerry Maguire couldn’t continue on doing what he was doing or it would eventually destroy him. So Jim Schwartz is doing an overhaul. And just like Jerry Maguire, it isn’t a smooth transition. He lost his job, lost all but one of his clients, and nearly lost his way. And the Lions aren’t doing a whole lot better than that.

And before this gets fixed, he’s going to have to go back on that change of heart. He’s going to have to scream throughout his office SHOW ME THE MONEY, in direct conflict with everything he’s trying to change. Because we, the fans, are Rod Tidwell. We don’t care how he does it. There is no right or wrong way. What we care about is results, above all else.

It’s a very personal, very important thing. Hell, it’s a family motto. Are you ready [Jim]? Just want to make sure you’re ready. Here it is. Show me the money.

SHOW

ME

THE

MONEY

Jim Schwartz, you are hanging on by a very thin thread, and I DIG that about you.

The important part of this play is the left side. Calvin Johnson runs a deep in to get in between the linebackers and safeties. If the linebackers get deep to cut off that route, Pettigrew should be open underneath on the curl.

It unfolds pretty much like you’d expect—the linebackers get deep and Stafford takes the underneath route, which is wide open. The thing that surprised me though (and I believe Pettigrew) is that the corner left CJ so quickly. He breaks on Pettigrew’s route immediately, even before the LB can react. As Pettigrew caught the ball, he glanced over his left shoulder to gauge where the linebacker was. He then spun to his right to try and beat the linebacker to get some yards after the catch.

As he spun, he seems surprised to see the cornerback right in his face. Considering his route broke to the inside and he only checked over his left shoulder, he probably never saw the cornerback until this exact moment.

This looks just like when you round a corner and someone is unexpectedly right in your path. Deer in the headlights. Titans CB Alterraun Verner confirmed this in his postgame press conference:

The tight end didn’t see me when he turned, so when I hit him I felt like he was shocked, so I was like ‘might as well give it a try’.  If worse comes to worse, I’m going to make the tackle. Somehow I was able to get the ball out and help this team win.

It also looks like he tucks the ball under his left arm as soon as he makes the catch and begins to bring his right arm up to stiff arm the linebacker. Being surprised by the corner, Pettigrew was stuck with one arm on the ball against the DB’s two arms, a matchup he wasn’t going to win. Also, credit the cornerback for going for the strip rather than the big “Jacked Up” hit we’ve become accustomed to seeing in the NFL. Heads up play.

So while this ultimately falls on Pettigrew to be more aware of the positioning of the defenders, it seems like a freak play where he tried to do too much and got caught.

But yesterday I watched the game again. I had to see for myself how Shaun Hill (go UMD!) led the Lions to two touchdowns in 18 seconds after throwing what I thought was the game ending interception (By the way, if this can happen, so can a fumbled snap in kneel down formation, fellas). And I had to figure out why the hell Linehan thought the Lions could run the ball. When was the last time that happened? And I had to see what allowed a cornerback to tear a completed pass out of Pettigrew’s arms and bring it all the way back. I had to see the Music City Miracle: Part II (This time with holding!). Forget that wildcard game freak trick play. This was a game of miracles. If this football game was a movie, everyone would have said, “Okay, we get it. Big plays are fun to watch. Just tell us who wins.”

But when I watched the game again, I saw something that really surprised me. What I saw was a consistent, methodical offense. And a capable running game. Like, not just adequate, but at times good. I mean, they were getting good running looks—they rushed against an average 6.13 men in the box per rushing play. Overall, Mikel Leshoure and Joique Bell combined to rush for 3.97 yards per carry. Let’s break that down. On 1st down, they ran for an average of 4.36 yards per carry, considerably better than what they did last week. On 2nd down, they rushed for 4.2 ypc, also much better than last week. And they also got rushing first downs (!), my biggest concern with their running performance last week. They rushed for 10 first downs (excluding a Stafford scramble). That’s one first down per 3.1 carries. Every one of their first down carries came on 2nd down, keeping them out of do-or-die situations. That means that out of 15 2nd down carries, they converted the first down 66.6% of the time. That’s quite efficient if I do say so myself. Their average distance to the sticks when they rushed the ball on 2nd down was 4.4 yards. So their 4.2 ypc with an average 4.4 yards to go for a first means they were at least getting to 3rd and short, if not converting. The average distance on the 2nd downs that they did successfully convert into 1st downs was 3.3 yards. However, you’ll notice there is one thing I’m missing: third downs.

On Sunday, the Lions took 96 offensive snaps. Of those 96 plays, they only faced 12 3rd downs. The problem with those 3rd downs was that their average distance was 5.25 yards. This is similar to what we saw last week. Still not getting into 3rd and short. 3rd and short is important, not because it helps the passing game so significantly, but because it gives you the option to run for the first down. It keeps the defense honest and opens things up. However, because they were being forced into 3rd and long, the Lions only ran the ball twice on 3rd down (both from 3rd and 2), but converted neither of those. The first came in the 2nd quarter with the Lions down by 8 on the Tennessee 14 yard line. Here’s a schematic of the play:

This run is supposed to go between the left tackle and left guard. On the play, Backus and Pettigrew seal their guys to the outside. The left DT is supposed to be chipped by Sims while Raiola comes around to seal him off to the right, at which point Sims moves to the 2nd level and takes out a linebacker. A similar thing is going on with Peterman and Cherilus. Peterman gets a chip and then heads to the 2nd level.

The problems with this play come from the chips. Peterman had the bigger problem: he didn’t actually chip the guy. He more or less just slipped past him to go to the 2nd level. By the time Cherilus went to punch, he was swinging at thin air. As you can see, that DT crashed to the inside to disrupt the play before it really even got started. The other problem is with Sims at the 2nd level. He took too long on the chip, so the linebacker he was looking to block just kind of went around him instead. Still, I think if only one of these two mistakes happen, Leshoure can either outrun the DT to the lane or cut back behind sims to get the first down. As it was, it resulted in a 1 yard loss. Clearly, Cherilus was upset by Peterman’s performance there.

What the hell, Peterman?

On the second 3rd down run, it was less about execution and more about poor play design.

This play starts out looking just like some of the Lions’ most successful runs. They pull Sims from left guard into the hole between the right guard and right tackle and he puts a big block on someone to spring the running back free. On this particular play, Linehan decided to get cute. Instead of doing that run that was successful all game (4.5 ypc in 6 tries), they decided to fake a handoff to the right and pitch the ball to Leshoure on the counter to the left. Instead of Backus sealing off the left DE, he goes to the 2nd level to seal the linebacker to the inside. Sims still pulls and pretty much doesn’t have to do anything because the play goes to the opposite side of the field. Raiola does a nice little move to the effect of, “My goodness how you’ve evaded my block!…oh wait, I’m sealing you to the right.” Since the left DE is left unblocked, he’s supposed to bite on the fake and get exposed for being over-committed. I can imagine a scenario where they try this in practice and Linehan loves it because KVB bites on these fakes so hard that he always looks like a fool (KVB is quickly becoming my least favorite defensive player. And yes, I’ve seen the safeties). All the execution here is fine. The problem is that the other team doesn’t have Kyle Vanden Bosch (any more) to bite on the fake. Instead, the DE holds his ground pretty well and chases Leshoure to the outside, forcing him wide. Leshoure actually uses a nice little fake cutback to the inside to freeze the defender and get past him.

I’m not sure if Titus is intentionally blocking the defender to the outside (I assume this is the case) or if the corner just fights through the block, but either way, the cornerback is able to force Leshoure to the sideline and out of bounds for no gain.

Still, removing these two hiccups, Leshoure and Bell ran for 4.28 ypc in what was a largely successful day running the ball. A lot of Lions fans asked for a running game over the summer, thinking offensive balance would be the holy grail to NFL domination. Last week, I was among the most vocal about why running the ball was idiotic. But seeing what I’ve seen from this game against the Titans, I’ll now welcome any carries they decide to give Leshoure. He’s only going to get better from here. And now that the Lions have a running game, don’t be surprised if they decide to go ahead and use it.

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