Detroit Lions Weblog

Allen Park Holding Pattern, Re-Sign DE Smith

The Lions are caught in a bit of a holding pattern after the strange turn of events in their quest to sign WR Kevin Curtis.  Curtis, who was in town to negotiate a deal, fired his agent Tom Condon amidst speculation that Curtis was unhappy with Condon’s lack of attention to representing Curtis while Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn (also represented by Condon) had his pro day in South Bend.  NFL rules state that a player must wait 5 days to hire a new agent and it appears that Curtis has delayed all future decisions until he hires an agent. 

The Lions also visited with RB T.J. Duckett and WR Shaun McDonald, but each left town without contracts.  It appears that signing each player is on hold until the Lions resolve the Curtis situation.  I fully expect that the Lions will sign Curtis, but I also don’t expect either Duckett or McDonald to wait too long to garner contracts, considering the crazy over-spending that continues to be occurring during free agency.

In regards to Quinn, the Lions took a lot of heat after it was reported by both John Clayton and Len Pasquarelli that the Lions were conspicuous in their absence during Quinn’s pro day.   Not only would their absence indicate that they have no interest in Quinn, but it would also allow potential trade partners to back off a bit in their attempts to strike a deal with the Lions.   That being said, these reports appear to be false.   The Lions had seven representatives on hand to watch Quinn, but Team President Matt Millen wasn’t present.  I am still inclined to believe that Quinn is not high on the Lions draft board, but they could also be being very effective in their attempt to deceive the rest of the league.

The Lion’s re-signed DE Corey Smith, who clearly fits the mold of the type of player that Coach Rod Marinelli desires.  Smith did quite well in his half season with the Lions, hopefully his performance is a sign of things to come, even if he only provides the team with quality depth and doesn’t play often.  I expect that Smith has earned the opportunity to compete for a rotation role, and gives the team some insurance if they come up empty-handed in their pursuit of help at that position.