Detroit Lions Weblog

Lions Sign TE Gaines, Warrick Dunn Next Ex-Buc to Join Lions?

The Lions have added solid, blocking TE Michael Gaines to their roster this weekend. Gaines provides the team with insurance, since Dan Campbell is unlikely to be ready at the season’s onset. Gaines provides depth and is in line with their renewed emphasis on establishing a “balanced” offense by running with the ball more frequently.

The Lions off-season haul of Leigh Bodden, Michael Gaines, Keith Smith and Dwight Smith doesn’t conjure images of a magical playoff run in the team’s near future, in my eyes. The Lions are still likely to add a MLB, R.OT, and CB in free agency, as long as the market bears it.

CB Brian Kelly is still going to visit this week. Should Warrick Dunn eventually gain his release from the Falcons, I would expect the Lions to attempt to meet with him, too. Dunn is an outstanding NFL citizen, and would create a serviceable tandem with a healthy Kevin Jones. That being said, it would be nice to see the Lions add at least one difference-maker to their roster, and for them to engage in a free agent conversation with at least one player who is not a former Buccaneer. The Lions are also still slated to meet with DT’s Chuck Darby and Ellis Wyms, with Darby likely being the preferred player in this case.

Their are potential difference makers still out there, too. DE Antwan Odom, who had eight sacks for the Titans last year, still hasn’t been signed. The Giants are living proof that depth at defensive end, especially quality depth, will always be beneficial. In other words, even if Ikaika Alama-Francis emerges as a regular contributor, Odom would be an essential component to improving the Lions near-dormant pass rush. The rub remains is Odom more of a 3-4 outside linebacker or is he a 4-3 defensive end?

The Lions also may be meeting with RB Julius Jones, who even as an underachiever in Dallas, has a great deal of talent and represents more of a “home run” threat than Dunn would at this point in his career.

With the upcoming draft being well-stocked at running back and offensive tackle, I’d like to see the Lions devote picks to these positions, along with their high draft picks which are likely to be utilized on upgrading the defensive line and secondary.

Their remaining off-season targets should be a veteran MLB who fits the Tampa-2 scheme, a defensive tackle(either Chuck Darby or Ellis Wyms, who are visiting the team this week?), and a veteran offensive linemen.

In regards to the Lions ticket price increases, the Ford’s had better be careful. 20% ticket increases coupled with another lost season in ‘08, in a string of so many, may send the organization reeling, given the current economic situation in Michigan.

I realize that the people who attend Lions games are generally insulated from the state’s current financial hardship, and the Ford’s will still make money even if no tickets are actually purchased, but the growing perception is that the Lions will not ever provide a serviceable, competitive franchise while all of the current franchise heads are in place. Eventually, the sum of all of this negativity will hurt the franchise.

The other interesting tidbits that have emerged from this weekend are that the Lions/Bengals trade was aborted, at least in part, due to front office incompetence on both sides.

SI.com’s Reuben Frank has also provided a chart indicating that the Lions grossly mismanaged their salary cap in ‘07, which lead to them leading the league in “dead money” in ‘08, or money which applies to the ‘08 cap but is not being utilized for ‘08 personnel moves.

The bumbling, moronic incompetence of Matt Millen, and in the latter case, Tom Lewand, compounds by the second.   I don’t think we will fully understand the harm that will have been inflicted upon the Lions franchise until these two parties are finally gone.  Gauging by the current state of affairs, both will be in Detroit for the foreseeable future, we could be in for a long hard ride.