TAMPA, Fla. -- In talking to a cross-section of the National Football League intelligentsia over the last couple of days, one thing is clear: Almost everyone believes the Detroit Lions are planning to select Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford with the first pick in the NFL draft.That doesn't necessarily mean it's going to happen – remember when everyone thought the Texans would draft Reggie Bush? – but it does mean that other teams are getting prepared for the draft with the thought that the only way they can get Stafford is by trading up for the Lions' pick, something that few teams seem inclined to do.
The thinking of the people I've talked to basically goes like this:
-- Lions coach Jim Schwartz, general manager Martin Mayhew and team president Tom Lewand are not under pressure from owner William Clay Ford to turn the Lions into winners right away. They think they have time to draft a quarterback and develop him.
-- The Lions have two first-round picks, the first overall and the 20th overall. They'd be more likely to take a quarterback first and a player at another position 20th than to take a player at another position first and hope there's a good quarterback around at No. 20.
-- No one has much confidence in the quarterbacks under contract to the Lions for 2009: Jon Kitna, Drew Stanton, Drew Henson, Daunte Culpepper.
-- Of the quarterbacks in the 2009 draft, Stafford has the best physical tools for the kind of offense that new coordinator Scott Linehan wants to run. In Linehan's ideal world, he'll build an offense around a quarterback throwing deep balls to Calvin Johnson, and Stafford can definitely do that.
Add it all up, and we get the conventional wisdom that Matthew Stafford is going to be the franchise savior of the 0-16 Detroit Lions.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-28-2009 @ 9:29AM
Skrying said...
I smell a Joey Harrington coming Detroit's way in T-minus 5...4...3...
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1-28-2009 @ 9:37AM
Mike said...
The difference between Stafford and Joey Harrington is that with Matt Millen gone, Stafford has a chance of having some actual talent around him in Detroit.
1-28-2009 @ 10:48AM
James said...
Did I miss something? How come you left Orlovsky off the list?
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1-28-2009 @ 11:19AM
Michael David Smith said...
Orlovsky's contract is expiring, so he'll be a free agent.
1-28-2009 @ 11:04AM
nbasowhat said...
I think it's a mistake. The Lions are not going to be very good next year. Probably end up with a top three pick. There are some great QB's coming out next year. Shore up th off. line this year and take a QB next year.
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1-28-2009 @ 12:05PM
Redskins0492 said...
As a Bears fan, I really hope the Lions take him. They have spent countless picks trying to find a QB, and I think they have a good one already on their roster. If I had to bet, I would say the either Stanton or Orlovsky will be a star in the future. Instead, with their first pick they should take a LT.
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1-28-2009 @ 12:33PM
A.J. said...
Just make darn sure that second pick is a lineman - no matter what happens. Otherwise, it won't matter who you throw behind center, they won't last very long. There are pretty good linemen that will still be available at that spot, plus having a pick like #20 would give them leverage to trade down for something like a 2nd and a 4th.
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1-28-2009 @ 12:34PM
Husereau Gang said...
No QB's! Build the Defense 1st! Detroit's D is a sieve! Invest in the D and next year will be a lot more respectable. They may not beat some of the elite teams but at least they won't be surrendering 21 points in the 1st half of every game.
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1-28-2009 @ 2:29PM
juan said...
I gotta agree with beefing up the Oline, then the Defense. Their defense has a zero threat level. A "HEALTY" Jon Kitna and a "better prepared" Dante Culpepper can squeeze out a few wins next year.
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1-28-2009 @ 4:26PM
Bob said...
I just hope they don't end up ruining the chances of yet another promising QB who's put on a team that can't protect him. Too much talent gets wasted in the NFL because they can't develop while running for their lives every Sunday.
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1-28-2009 @ 8:24PM
TGRiffRaff said...
Stafford would be a good quarterback of the future pick. Throwing him in immediately will be a disaster (look at what the Chargers did with Ryan Leaf, notwithstanding $16's penchant for self-destruction).
I'd say re-sign Orlovsky (he showed spirit at the very least) and make him the starter in training camp, keep Kitna as a veteran backup and let Stafford sit and learn. Use the 20th pick for a solid position player, possibly an offensive lineman to help protect the QB.
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1-28-2009 @ 9:46PM
wakeos1962 said...
Defence wins championships, like Schwartz says "were going to build this team from the inside out not from the wide receiver's in". That's all I needed to hear. The best offensive lineman or DE to rush the passer. When was the last time the Lions had a pass rush? Bubba Baker
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2-05-2009 @ 12:17AM
yungyung said...
Oh my God, they dont need a qb, sure they were bad but the offense kept it going while running for their lives (no offensive line). Get an OL with the first pick and a defensive player with the second and resign Orlovsky to a minimum deal, he wont get much anywhere else, not that he's that bad. If their OL was a tampon they couldnt even block a period.
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1-29-2009 @ 1:16PM
ty@thelionsinwinter said...
MDS--
Loved your work at PFT. Anyway, this is intriguing to me because it seems like far more late-first/early-second round QBs find success than #1/#2/#3 picks. If the NFL is a copycat league, aren't more teams going to be looking for Aaron Rodgerses and Joe Flaccos, rather than breaking the bank on the next Joey Harrington? I would think the Lions would want to emulate the Browns, who took Joe Thomas with the 1.3 and then followed up with Brady Quinn at the 1.22. Just a thought.
Peace
Ty
http://thelionsinwinter.blogspot.com
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1-29-2009 @ 4:21PM
Bob said...
To ty: you bring up a great point, but it would seem to me that the leap from college to the pros is so drastic, it makes it nearly impossible to know what you're truly getting in a player. I would think that you HAVE to play the odds and go for the highest-rated player (in the position you need most) while they're available. That being said, I still think the Lions may be making a mistake looking for a QB right now--build a better foundation first, like linemen and defense.
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1-29-2009 @ 5:03PM
wvictorson said...
Who they SHOULD select is Pat White
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1-30-2009 @ 2:07PM
toddsworld05 said...
draft STAFFORD, then an offensive tackle, after that use the rest of pick on defense, TADA!!! super bowl in 2012 : )
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2-04-2009 @ 2:16PM
jdlaufer said...
As a Lions fan I will go out on a limb and make a bold prediction: whoever they pick will be out of the league or on another team within 4 years
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2-08-2009 @ 12:02AM
jvondo1686 said...
Learn from Parcells: draft O line using a journeyman QB (i.e. Testaverde and Pennington) while developing replacement. C-Pep or Kitna define journeyman while Stanton or next year draft QB develops. Hard to judge a QB when the D line beats him to the pocket and you can't run block either.
With that said O line is a must. Monroe appears to be the best all around. That allows Backus to move to G his original position. Two for one. Otherwise Curry.
Next is middle linebacker with #20. Either Malealuga or Laurinitus.
2nd round - best CB available.
3rd round - I like nate davis. Could be the sleeper of the draft from the MAC.
3rd Round - O or D line
Free Agent - CB and D Line. Haynesworth and Asomugh from Raiders puts us in playoffs.
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