Detroit Lions Weblog

Lions ‘08 Draft Adds to Skepticism About Upcoming Campaign

The selection of OT Gosder Cherilus by the Lions in the first round of their 2008 draft should come as no surprise to Lions observers. Cherilus fills a major need position, and the Lions didn’t disguise their interest in Cherilus (or players like Jordan Dizon and Kevin Smith for that matter) entering the draft.

The clamorous hue and cry in the local media about Cherilus, and his being a “reach” pick, is not a surprise. The Lions track record of blowing first round draft picks out of necessity should coerce a reflexive sense of consternation and skepticism among both observers and fans.

Add the fact that the Lions chose WR Calvin Johnson over players like Joe Thomas and Adrian Peterson, both ‘07 Pro Bowlers, who play at need positions entering this draft, fuels that doubt significantly. Who wouldn’t choose Joe Thomas over Calvin Johnson at this point?

Had they selected Thomas in ‘07, re-upping Roy Williams and adding RB Rashard Mendenhall in the draft would have made infinitely more sense. Instead, the Lions had to take a safer, more pragmatic approach to their ‘08 draft by addressing their glaring needs, at a time when fan patience may be at an all-time low with the organization.

The Lions are no closer to being legitimate playoff contenders today, than they were when Matt Millen was hired as Team President seven seasons ago. That being said, I fully support this draft, and if their picks from the first three rounds all pan out(or nearly?), this draft will constitute a major step in the right direction for the organization.

The 900 lb elephant in the room remains that a consistent pass rusher still needs to be found. Many observers believed that Lions DE Cliff Avril, taken with pick #92, was more of a 3-4 OLB who could occasionally play with his hand down, rather than an undersized edge-rushing specialist at defensive end(which was coincidentally, the pre-draft determination that scouts made about Kalimba “The Ghost” Edwards when the Lions selected him).

If Avril fails, and Ikaika Alama-Francis doesn’t improve his production significantly, the Lions defense will remain very vulnerable. The Lions absolutely need to develop a disruptive pass rush, the Tampa-2 is fundamentally dependent upon it.

The Lions front office, and by proxy the fans, will have to remain faithful to Head Coach Rod Marinelli, and his ability to find productive players, when assessing the ‘08 draft. All of these players have been acknowledged as possessors of high character, a Marinelli maxim, and should provide a solid organizational base to build upon.

If you doubt Marinelli, and refuse to subscribe to his emphasis on the pre-eminence of “football” character and desire, then this draft has amounted to a major disappointment. Considering how bad the Lions have been in recent seasons, who can blame anyone for second guessing most of these picks.

In some quarters, a hypothesis could be tendered that if the Lions fail this season, which many believe is a near certainty, that Matt Millen has conveniently positioned himself so that he can eventually blame the failure of the ‘08 draft on Marinelli, who eventually would serve as a convenient “fall guy” for the organization after the season.

At this point, I will remain upbeat about the first three rounds of this year’s draft, but only with this caveat, I truly believe that the Lions should have traded Roy Williams for a first round draft pick. Williams will have no higher value to other organizations than he would have had in trade during this draft.

I also believe that they should have strategically packaged their draft picks sooner, so that they could have eventually moved up to take DE Derrick Harvey, rather than twice swapping picks to move up in the third round. I think that the Lions desperately needed to add two first round quality players with this draft, which obviously, they failed to do.

Draft:

1. pick #17 OT Gosder Cherilus Boston College
Cherilus will be a mauling, aggressive right tackle, who may be able to move to the left side in an emergency. Likely spells the end of George Foster or Jonathan Scott being on the roster in ‘08.

2. pick#45 MLB Jordan Dizon Colorado
Dizon finished second in the Butkus award voting and should be a solid fit in the Tampa-2. In college, Dizon was a tackling machine, albeit an undersized one. In the NFL, he will be quick enough to fill his gap responsibility, but may be too small to deal with the contact of NFL guards. If Dizon becomes a special teamer, rather than developing into a solid run stopper who can drop and cover the vulnerable area in the middle of the Tampa-2 zone, Rod Marinelli’s days will be numbered. Dizon has to be a first season upgrade over Paris Lenon.

3. pick #64 RB Kevin Smith Central Florida
Smith’s performance in college, even if it was against lesser competition at Central Florida, should indicate that he will be a solid, if unspectacular NFL contributor. He will split carries with Tatum Bell and won’t likely ever be a workhorse, featured back.

3. pick #87 DT Andre Fluellen Florida State
Fluellen is a high-potential, low performance type of player who will either flourish, or not make it out of training camp. He is a quicker, undersized player who needs to be an immediate contributor, even if it is as a role player in the defensive line rotation.

3. pick# 92 DE Cliff Avril Purdue

Avril is a very important selection for the Lions. He will be tabbed to be their undersized, edge rushing specialist. If Avril doesn’t quickly pick up on the techniques of the position, and possess a true tenacity, he will be another failed pick, like his predecessor, Kalimba “The Ghost” Edwards.

5. pick# 136 WR/RS Kenneth Moore Wake Forest

Moore is more of a possession receiver than a down field threat.  Apparently, the Lions drafted him to compete for kick return duties as well.  He was a productive receiver at Wake Forest, so it would be no surprise if he eventually enters into the slot receiver mix with Mike Furrey and Shaun McDonald at some point.

5. pick #146 FB Jerome Felton Furman

a small college, combo blocking/running back who could eventually be used in short yardage and goal-line situations by the Lions, along with competing for a role as the team’s primary blocking back with FB Jon Bradley and TE/H-Backs Casey FitzSimmons and Sean McHugh.

7. Pick#216 DT Landon Cohen Ohio

Cohen is the Lions most anonymous pick, especially after the exposure S Caleb Campbell received on ESPN after he was drafted.   The Lions are searching for depth on the defensive line, and taking a flyer on a guy that Rod Marinelli likes shouldn’t be a bad thing, if he makes the teams.

7. pick#218 S Caleb Campbell Army

The Lions have taken a surprising amount of heat, as well as Campbell, too, for making this pick.  The Lions envision Campbell moving to OLB and he is likely a long shot to make the roster. If Campbell makes the roster and helps out on special teams, I certainly will not question his release from Army service.