Lions draft has ups, downs

But the important thing is that they seem to know what they're doing

Sure, they surprised us with a few of their picks but for the most part, the Lions did fairly well in the NFL draft.


Some would question taking tight end Brandon Pettigrew 20th overall with Ray Mauluga still on the board. Same goes for taking Louis Delmas with the first second round pick with Mauluga still there. But Mauluga slipped all the way to 38th. Maybe the 32 NFL owners knew something we didn't.

Consider this: The Lions managed to draft the best quarterback, the best tight end, and the best safety in the draft. When you're coming off an 0-16 season, it comes in handy to add the most talented players availible.

Stafford has a lot of upside, but also a great deal of downside. The Georgia QB went to the same high school as former Lions quarterback Bobby Layne, who, fifty-one years ago, supposedly said that the Lions would not win for fifty years.

It's chilling.

The important thing here is that Stafford is basically hit-or-miss, but I personally feel that there is a higher chance of the hit. He has a good arm. He would do well with deep threat Calvin Johnson.

Pettigrew can help with the mediocre blocking that the offensive line has been providing. His ability to catch passes will help draw the double teams off Calvin Johnson. I know it sounds crazy, but in two years, with Pettigrew and Stafford devoloped, the Lions might have a fairly explosive offense. Calvin can catch Stafford's deep passes, while Pettigrew can catch the short ones.

Delmas has been criticized for his size disadvantage. Forget that. He was still the best safety in the entire draft, hands down. Delmas can help with the long-term project of restoring the defense. Unfortunatley, this project may take a lot longer than improving the offense will. The main negative side to this pick is that it was a bit of a reach.

Considering the way the Lions drafted during the Dark Ages (formerly known as the Matt Millen era), we should be grateful for the way they handled things Saturday and Sunday. Unlike Millen, Mayhew and Lewand seemed to have a good idea as to what they were doing (note: not counting Jason Hanson field goals, this is the first time in several years that the Lions have received that compliment).

Will it work? We don't know. Don't tell me it will. Don't tell me it won't. Because you don't know. But if one thing's for sure it is this: The Lions seem to finally be competing on the same level as the other 31 teams in the NFL (no asterisks).