Rematch with Dallas lies ahead...

I couldn't bring myself to add a picture of Jon Kitna running in the endzone so I added one of him running where it looks like we tackle him in the end...
Yes of all the losses last season this one stung me the most. Not just because of my severe hatred of Dallas but because of how stupidly the momentum swung. We had them right where we wanted them. We had the lead. we forced a dallas safety, we were in control. We punted and John Wendling does an incredible job of stopping the ball at the Dallas 1 yard line...and then WHAT???

The Schwartz does not like what he sees...and neither did I! Firstly, credit to McCann for attempting the kick return in the first place. But he CLEARLY runs out of bounds. However, the referees do not have the review available because they have gone to a commercial break! What kind of ridiculousness is that?? And for all the awesome technology in Dallas' new stadium they can't rewind and review? I never heard anything that ridiculous happen to the Lions all of last season! (oh wait..."process of the catch" oops my bad)

I was THRILLED to see we get a rematch at Dallas stadium this upcoming season. The Lions crumbled somewhat and some of the players call out members of the team after allowing the game to then slip away. Then came the thanksgiving week where again the Lions crumbled in the 4th quarter after fighting well for 3. We need to go to Dallas next year and finish the job.

Maybe it is something in the air at Dallas' beautiful new stadium but the other thing I clearly remember from that game is the 'horse-collar that wasn't' by Suh. 2 weeks later he would follow it up with the 'illegal contact on Cutler out of the pocket that wasn't illegal' Both resulted in first and goal situations that led to TDs which shouldn't have happened.
I'm just hoping by the time we roll to Dallas again the referees have got all the bad calls out of their system...

Despite them being tagged as superbowl favourites last season I never believed it. Not because I hate Dallas but they just have too many problems across their squad. Now that they pick 9th in the draft everyone has realised just how many holes their squad has. If they go 8-8 next year in their division they'll do well and I reckon they finish 3rd again ahead of the Redskins.

My first shot at a mock draft

We have 4 weeks to go until the 2011 draft, and it is happening regardless of a CBA to give us some welcome relief from the misery of potentially no football. Mock drafts always seemed a little pointless to me as so much trading happens of draft day that so few mocks end up even close. Also someone reaches and gives us a big shock on draft day changing the landscape of the first round. So I will do a simple mock of round 1 and add a few trade thoughts of my own. Here we go, I appreciate comments and feedback if you have any.


1 - Carolina Panthers - QB - Blaine Gabbert - Missouri
They have been open enough about QB needs and need a new face to suggest they need one. I think they will prefer the lower risk of Gabbert below Cam Newton.
2 - Denver Broncos - DT - Marcell Dareus - Alabama
They seem really in love with this guy and praying the Panthers leave him be.
3 - Buffalo Bills - LB - Von Miller - Texas A+M
Being last in the NFL in rush yards against makes Miller a preferable pick to Peterson. I don't think they go QB if Gabbert is gone.
4 - Cincinatti Bengals - WR - AJ Green - Georgia
I think the Bengals change their identity by turning over the receiving corps and starting over. Hopefully that makes Carson happy. If he isn't happy they may take the icon from Auburn ;)
5 - Arizona Cardinals - CB - Patrick Peterson - LSU
I think Arizona gets a veteran QB rather than a young potential guy to learn on the job. If Miller is on the board they take him otherwise Peterson is too good to pass up. There's no way he slips past 5.
6 - Cleveland Browns - DE - Da'Quan Bowers - Clemson
Last year's sacks leader lands in cleveland who need D-linemen urgently. Seeing as they let Shaun Rogers go maybe they take Fairley here?
7 - San Francisco 49ers- CB - Prince Amukamara - Nebraska
I would love the prince to slide to Detroit but he won't. Maybe they go QB here but I think they take one in round 2.
8 - Tennessee Titans - QB - Cam Newton - Auburn
The Titans find their new signal caller and identity here with the icon.
9 - Dallas Cowboys - DE - Nick Fairley - Auburn
I don't think Fairley falls any further than this. Dallas would have loved a corner and may go o-line here but Fairley rotating around their front fills a huge need.
10 - Washington Redskins - WR - Julio Jones - Alabama
Washington land the big play receiver they covet and replace Santana Moss here.
11 - Houston Texans - DE - Robert Quinn - NC
Who knows where Quinn would be if he had played last season? He could be a steal at 11 for the Texans who are reshaping their defense under Wade Phillips


*I think someone trades into spots 11-14 to grab the big name player that slides. Possibly, Quinn, Fairley or the Prince. I also think Rams maybe trade up for Julio Jones.


12- Minnesota Vikings - QB - Jake Locker - Washington
They have made no secret of targetting a QB and they rebuild here first.
13 - Detroit Lions - DE - JJ Watt - Winsconsin
To be honest I think the Lions trade down here. Otherwise for me it is JJ Watt or Anthony Castonzo. They will take the best player that slides to them regardless unless it's a QB.
14 - St Louis Rams - DE - Aldon Smith - Missouri
The Rams take the best player available to them. James Hall is getting on now and Spagnuolo will build defense first as he had with the Giants.
15 - Miami Dolphins - RB - Mark Ingram - Alabama
I think the Dolphins trade down like last year. I would have them drafting Cameron Jordan as the best player left but the took a DE in the first round last year in Odrick and why pay either Ronnie Brown or Ricky Williams to stay? Whoever plays QB needs help from the run game.
16 - Jacksonville Jaguars - DE - Ryan Kerrigan - Purdue
I think the Jags build on taking Alualu last year with some edge rush help against Payton Manning
17 - New England Patriots - OT - Tyron Smith - USC
The Pats replace Matt Light here and sure up their line to keep Brady's jersey clean
18 - San Diego Chargers - DE - Cameron Jordan - CAL
The Chargers are delighted as Cameron Jordan falls to them here and they strengthen that number 1 defense further. Can't have Darren McFadden and Jamaal Charles running over them in the AFC West
19 - New York Giants - OL - Mike Pouncey - Florida
It might be a bit high but New York need to strengthen the interior of the line rather than grab a tackle. Perhaps they go defensive line but Pouncey would be a great pick for the Giants here.
20 - Tampa Bay Bucs - DE - Adrian Clayborn - Iowa
The Bucs go pass rush and nothing else
21 - Kansas City Chiefs - OT - Gabe Carimi - Winsconsin
The Chiefs can seriously bolster their line and attack with a tackle here
22 - Indianapolis Colts - OT - Nate Solder - Colorado
The Colts go nothing but OLine, probably in round 2 as well
23 - Philadelphia Eagles - CB - Jimmy Smith - Colorado
Smith really seems to be an Eagles kind of guy: Flash, style, talent and attitude. The Eagles need a playmaker opposite Asante Samuel.
24 - New Orleans Saints - DT - Muhammed Wilkerson - Temple
The Saints did just grab Shaun Rogers but they need to be able to stuff the run and get to the QB. Maybe Justin Houston goes here.
25 - Seattle Seahawks - DE - Cameron Heyward - Ohio State
The Seahawks need strength on the edge and middle but maybe they reach for a QB here. They need a corner too, so my second guess would be Brandon Harris here.
26 - Baltimore Ravens - WR - Torrey Smith - Maryland
The Ravens should go WR here, if they don't then a speed receiver is urgent!
27 - Atlanta Falcons - CB - Brandon Harris - Miami
Green Bay tore them apart and it wasn't pretty. Secondary help required.
28 - New England Patriots - LB - Justin Houston - Georgia
The Patriots next big need is a pass rusher and playmaking linebacker
29 - Chicago Bears - OT - Derrick Sherrod - Missisippi
Protect Jay Cutler!
30 - New York Jets - DT - Phil Taylor - Baylor
The Jets need to replace Cullen Jenkins and need to get pressure up the middle
31 - Pittsburgh Steelers - CB - Aaron Williams - Texas
Time to find a regular starter opposite Ike Taylor
32 - Green Bay Packers - OL - Danny Watkins - Baylor
Time to sure up more of the interior line. The Packers are pretty set everywhere so a solid lineman will be good insurance

*

I can see a team trading into the later first round to grab one of the corners or Phil Taylor who is the real solid 3-4 DT and possibly trading up to 20-24 to grab one of the tackles left.
Let me know what you think. Who will be likely to trade up?

Schedule preview: Raiders renewing swagger or falling apart?

Poor Oakland. Nothing ever seems to quite settle for them. They finally get a non-losing season for the first time since their superbowl journey of 2002 and some stability at the top and Al Davis fires their head coach, and they have no first round pick in this year's draft.

On top of that talented veterans Nnamdi Asomugha and Robert Gallery are leaving whilst Al resigns a few players for extortionate amounts a week before the CBA expires just to make sure they have as little cap room as possible for when the chaos is over. Now that's how you just win baby...

I can't believe i'm saying this, but the Raider Nation deserves better. New DBs coach Rod Woodson will have his work cut out without Nnamdi, who made the whole defense better with his presence. The Raiders do have plenty of young exciting talent and exhibited it well last year sweeping their division which is no mean feat. However they only won 2 games outside their division and the AFC West will be much improved next year. It is difficult to judge how much of last year's success was based on Hue Jackson's playcalling, they were a stunning rushing team (2nd in the league) and they put players like Jacoby Ford in a position to succeed. They also finally got some mileage out of Darren McFadden and played several games without starter Jason Campbell under centre. Zach Miller is a pro bowl tight end who often doesn't get the plaudits he deserves.

However, Gallery's departure adds more trouble to an already poor offensive line. Bruce Campbell hopefully will show his remarkable athleticism and fill in nicely but the whole line needs addressing. They still lack a true number 1 wideout despite having speed across the receiving core. They also need to replace one CB and upgrade at safety. Tough to do in one year.

(Smile for the camera Mr Davis...)

I have fond memories of our last trip to Oakland. Fresh off the draft everyone wanted to see how CJ would do in his rookie season and he quickly flashed the talent with an opening day touchdown. We ran out clear winners and played amazing on defense setting the tone for a 6-2 start which saw us end a losing streak to the Vikings and a sweep the superbowl losing Bears. We didn't know back then it was going to spiral out of control but we looked good for a bit. I sympathise with the Raiders and it says a lot when a Lions fan sympathises with anyone. Lions win

Schedule preview: Are the Chiefs for real?

I'll start by saying I think the Lions will beat the Chiefs in Ford Field, but I don't know if i'd feel the same if they were playing at Arrowhead. That place was noisy against the Chargers in week 1 and I remember Phillip Rivers burning timeouts because of it. When the Chiefs are rolling that is a tough place to play.


The Chiefs were good last year and no-one expected anything of them. Matt Cassell divides opinion but until the wildcard debacle against the Ravens he seemed immune to throwing interceptions. He is their franchise QB and that was evident in how much the Chiefs failed against the Chargers in week 14 when they laid a goose egg.


Kansas City are young and full of potential but it has to be said that the division was there for the taking for San Diego. The Chiefs escaped with the division title while the Chargers slipped up in the end. But I do want to give the Chiefs credit where credit is due: they had the number 1 rushing attack in the NFL and if Jamaal Charles can keep up his 6+ yards a carry they will be a menace to all they play. He is the real deal but how will he fair taking the majority of the carries from Thomas Jones?

I see them as an 8-8 team that are headed in the right direction but not to the same level of success as last year.

Schedule preview: Are the Chargers still an elite team?

9-7, missing the post-season and failing to win the AFC West (hardly the most fearsome division in football) It doesn't make for tough reading when you see the 2010 Chargers on the Lion's schedule for the new season. We know this doesn't tell the full story and the question now arises: are the San Diego Chargers to be feared as a true Superbowl contender? Should they command the respect of maybe Pittsburgh or New England from the AFC?

I'll be honest I am not sure what to make of San Diego. They spent so much time beating themselves last year, and were so horrendous on Special Teams that you can't possibly see that happening again. They had the number 1 defense in the NFL allowing only 271 yards of total offense a game and 177 passing yards a game. However, with Ron Rivera leaving for Carolina it is difficult to predict how they will fare next season. They had the number 1 offense in the NFL too though, averaging nearly 400 yards a game with Phillip Rivers lighting it up for 283 yards a game. Insane! And he did that for most of the season with a no name cast of receivers, a banged up running back, several games without Gates (or with Gates triple teamed!) a hold out in Vincent Jackson and Marcus McNeil also sitting time. What will they do with a full cast!?

The Chargers need to sort themselves out, and they will be hurting from last year. If I was to face them i'd want it to be in weeks 1-5 as they always start very slowly. Whatever happens I think they will always be the ace of the pack. They can beat you bad any time and also beat themselves any time. They slaughtered the Colts, threw away the Patriots game when they controlled them easily and then lost to the Seahawks and Raiders in clumsy fashion. Here's hoping the Lions meet the right team next season. Personally I find the Chargers great to watch and hope they can return to form, if anything to shut up the Jets and disturb the balance of power in the AFC.

Preseason tournament review: Marlow Wolves Juniors/Cadets

Cadets game 1: versus Coventry Jets. Win 32-13

Marlow featured a team returning only 1 player from the 2010 championship winning campaign; receiver Jordan Barras who scored 6 touchdowns over the 2 friendlies including 2 interception returns at Cornerback. Wolves quickly took a 13-0 lead with Touchdowns from Barras on a long pass from quarterback Ben Truchard and an interception return from safety Joe Miller. Morgan Jones then had a touchdown called back for a penalty on the centre before Barras returned a pick for 6 more. Barras scored a 3rd TD on a reverse before half time and a 26-0 lead. The Jets then gained a foothold on a wonderful TD run from their pacey running back who then returned an interception for a touchdown off replacement QB Connor Crowe. Barras then put the game out of reach off a second touchdown reception from Ben Truchard.

Cadet game 2 versus Coventry Jets. Win 18-6

Joe Miller scored his 2nd of the tournament with Jordan Barras adding 2 more either side of a Jets score in a far more even game. When these 2 teams meet on April 16th it will be entertaining.

Juniors game 1 versus Coventry Jets. Win 6-0

The junior champs against the team that won 1st seed last season. This was a game where defense absolutely dominated, a very different game from their cadet counterparts. Coventry intercepted Marlow on their first possession to take great field position on the Wolves 18 yard line but failed to turn it into points. Marlow marched downfield but turned over on downs at the Jets 3. Both teams traded turnovers when the Wolves finally broke through on a TD pass from rookie QB Charlie Clymo to the very impressive Jerome Peters. Both teams then traded strong defensive performances with the highlights on offense being a 30 yard run by Jets new running back and a beautiful deep ball from Clymo agonisingly falling off the fingertips of first year junior Dan Ramsdale in the endzone, who had beaten his man on a beautiful route. It was a game as close as the scoreline.

Juniors game 2 versus the Coventry Cougars. Lost 27-7

The Cougars were tournament champions after turning over Marlow in a strong victory.

Cougars receiver and tailback Jerome is arguably the best player in the country for his age and he accounted for every touchdown except one as the Cougars rolled to a 20 point lead. Captain Daryl MacNeil also showed his veteran skill as the Cougars controlled the game against a much less experienced Wolves defense returning only 2 players from last season's 1st placed team. Jamie Ainsworth worked hard all day and reeled in a TD pass off a screen, then converted the extra point as time wound down.

Overall the Wolves were competitive and showed they can be strong this year. As the new players grow and settle in they will win plenty of games this year.

Schedule Preview: Packers unfortunately built to last

Ok so they won the superbowl, with a butt load of players on injured reserve...and lost a few guys to injury DURING the superbowl itself, against the Steelers...and still won. And even though they didn't win the NFC North they should have. They gave up a stupid defeat to Chicago in which they committed 13 penalties but showed their immense strength in overturning the Bears in week 17 when Chicago went all out to shut them out of the playoffs.

Mike McCarthy has shown himself to be one of the best coaches in the league and Ted Thompson knows how to draft and build a winning organisation based on strength in depth. And Also Aaron Rodgers is incredible and gets me a fantasy division title every year...ok enough about how great they are.

It might sound crazy but based on last year maybe the Lions can be the Kryptonite to Winsconsin's supermen.

In week 4, with Stafford down and the Lions 0-3 under the weight of huge division and road losing streaks, the Schwartz took his troops to Lambeau where the Lions haven't won since 1997. They quickly fell behind and the receivers were scarily on fire. Previous Lions may have crumbled and collapsed but with Calvin Johnson pulling in 2 TDs including one in double coverage just before half time it wasn't over. Charles Woodson returned an interception for 6 just after half time, but then that would be it for Green Bay. Detroit totally controlled the tempo of the second half but could only get 4 field goals from it and ran out of opportunities. Shaun Hill threw for over 300 yards and ran for 50 more while Brandon Pettigrew had 8 catches for 91 yards. The Lions made 4 turnovers including an insane pick by Alphonso Smith.

Then came week 14 where a 2-10 Lions team coming off disappointing weeks especially against Dallas and New England saw a Drew Stanton led team down in the dumps host a rampant Green Bay side led by a red hot Aaron Rodgers. Instead of losing horribly like many expected they shut down Rodgers eventually taking him out of the game altogether. The Lions then gained 190 rushing yards on what had preiously been the number 1 defense against the run. In a game they dominated the Lions pulled out a 7-3 win no-one expected. This led to a 4 game win streak to close out the 2010 season for Lions.

If a team can overcome the Packers in the NFC North next year it is the Lions. Their mean defense got to Aaron Rodgers relentlessly and picked off Green Bay more than anyone else did. If a tide does turn and if the Packers do have a weakness it is the Lions who will bring the pain.

Wolves look good in preseason - ready for April 16th

The Wolves concluded a good preseason with a strong showing to round off the final tournament. A team full of rookies, first year players and got valuable game experience and won 3 losong 1. Wins in preseason don't count for much but the Wolves looked pretty sharp at times and some performances were outstanding. The building blocks are in place for a great year.

Jerome Peters of the Juniors and Jordan Barras of the Cadets in particular showed amazing talent for their age and will be impact players this year. The rookie Quarterbacks showed enough poise and promise to bring success back down South this 2011 season.

It will be a great 2011 season. 3 weeks to go!

Schedule preview: Minnesota Vikings face tough transition

For a team that many thought would go all the way after their 2009 campaign a season cannot be more disappointing than the Vikings just had. Now many people see them as the most needy team in the NFC North entering a rebuilding period.
Is there any validity to this? Well for a start they are the oldest team in the NFL with an average age of over 28 years old. They have a rookie head coach and a pretty awful quarterback situation. Pat Williams has called it a career thus ending the Williams wall, and many key players have reached the end of their deals meaning some talent will be leaving the Metrodome (or what is left of it!) All this we already know. But their new coach has been with the Vikings for a while and has been sought out for numerous head coaching jobs. He nearly became the Lions head coach. Plus, as long as they have Percy Harvin and Adrian Peterson everything will work out fine for their new QB surely?

Well to be honest they did well to win 6 games last year. They overcame a cocky Eagles side who thought they could just turn up and win against Joe Webb and the Vikings. They danced around the issue of Favre's inconsistency for far too long and losing Sidney Rice was a huge blow. They got their first win against the Lions in week 3 when Shaun Hill threw 2 interceptions in the endzone and an unsettled Lions team gave the game away. Remember CC Brown allowing Adrian Peterson to have half the field rather than closing the angle of pursuit for an 80 yard TD? Against Buffalo and Washington they showed flashes of the team we thought they would be, and now they are older and in need of plenty of overhaul.

Quarterback is the obviuos hole in this organisation finding a new face. They also need offensive line help. A new left tackle would not be a bad idea and some mock drafts see them taking one in the first round. In the past few weeks however Jake Locker and Ryan Mallet have been brought in by the Vikings so QB looks the way to go. Leslie Frazier has made public his desire to bring in one early.

As much as it pains me to say it (HAHAHAHAHAHA!) I don't see a quick turnaround for the Vikings. They have too many holes to fill for one year and one of them is quarterback. Their offense flagged immensely after Sidney Rice went down and the Lions manhandled them so easily in week 17 without even using Calvin Johnson. Their secondary issues are now plunged even deeper by Cook's trouble with the law and although they have good players most of them are turning older. 7-9 at best is what I think for next year and a Lions sweep will happen for the first time in a long time!

A look ahead to a weekend of Wolves football

With the Junior Kitted guys getting preseason action last weekend we now have Marlow's youngest and freshest taking the field for the last preseason stop before kickoff weekend. The UK Champion Coventry Jets bring their junior flag team down south along with the Coventry Cougars (playoffs last season) and new team Bedford. The new cadets team will face off against both Coventry teams as well and this gives the rookies a chance for plenty of gameday experience.
Both Wolves teams will feature rookie Quarterbacks and a mix of rookies, second year players and some younger veterans.

The Coventry Jets are full of talent and experience, are well coached and have players who have been playing since Primary School. It is no surprise that they are successful at every age group and always go to the Britbowl.

The Coventry Cougars are also full of talent and beat us several times last year. After coming just touchdown away from the championship game last year we expect a great season from them this year. They have some really stunning players including the second coming of Barry Sanders!

Bedford are a new and unknown team. The Cadets will be facing off against Coventry for the 3rd time in their history but only return 2 players from last years championship winning team. It will be a great weekend of football!

Schedule preview: Should the Lions fear the Bears at all?

I will have a good look everyday at the Lions schedule prospects for next season. I know we still have the draft ahead, and we may not even get a 2011 season right now but there are enough blogs chatting lockout that I will keep this one a lockout free zone! Let's start with the Chicago Bears...

I'll come out and say it with as little bitterness as possible: I think the Bears got more than their fair share of luck last year and are kidding themselves if they think they are that good. Last year I picked the Bears as my crash and burn team of the year and instead they ran to the NFC Championship game. But wow didn't they just have the craziest ride there. Just when you think they are actually good they turn in a performance like they did against the Patriots, Giants, Seahawks and Redskins. Then while you are still laughing they go and beat the Jets and Eagles with solid defense. Will the real Bears come out and show themselves?

I will try and not be disrespectful as I do have some Bears fans I call friends, but I really don't see much reason to fear the Bears. They are simply not the division winning, NFC Championship team they think they are. They faced more backup and replacement Quarterbacks than any other team last year. They began the season with 'the catch that wasn't' (you knew that was coming) and then when they came to Ford Field later they got first and goal for the winning TD on the push to Cutler's back by Suh which again confounded us all.
En route to that they managed to destroy a flagging Minnesota and Miami in the midst of utter turmoil while labouring to victories over Buffalo and Dallas themselves in a downward spiral. They then turned in abominations against New York (sacked 9 times in the first half) Washington (6 turnovers including a TD) even while the Redskins did their best to give the game away. But in all this they could do no wrong; even with Todd Collins awful showing against the Panthers they still couldn't lose that one! Green Bay gave them an early division win by giving up 13 penalties, that shocked us all, but again the Bears got a hugely lucky ride last year. Can it happen again?

I think in many ways the Bears 2010 season is the best thing that could have happened to their NFC North rivals. Jerry Angelo, Lovie Smith and co were retained and Lovie got an extension, flaws will be masked and all will carry on. The Bears now pick 29th in the draft and since then have cut Tommie Harris from an already needy defensive interior, Hunter Hillenmayer from an aging linebacking core and Devin Aromashadu from a who's who of wide receivers in Mike Martz' system. Not a bad start to the offseason! On top of this Bears fans will all say they need an O-Lineman with their first round pick. While it is a good crop of prospects the Bears now have a lot of needs to cover and not the resources to sort them.

The Lions should have swept the Bears last year and with Stafford back should be able to make up for missed opportunity last year. I cannot in any world see the Bears repeating their 2010 success and see them finishing no higher than 3rd in the division. While their defense did well last year (4th overall and 2nd in run defense) they have a lot of needs in the middle and secondary and the age problem to deal with. The offense was 30th in yards per game and finished low in the pack on every category. They have big needs across the O-Line, at Wide Receiver as well as a competant backup QB. Too much for one year and they will need to pull out plenty of surprise victories and shock performances next year to cope. They won't surprise the Lions after last year though. They'll finish 6-10 maybe 5-11, but hey at least they are better than the Vikings :)

You've got to believe Calvin and co will be out for blood at Soldier Field.

Is there really a smart pick at #13?

At this time of year all the crazies come out of the closet calling for the Lions to draft someone totally unnecessary and usually we counter balance that with a call for drafting a cool, calm but maybe less talented head. I don't know if there is a dead safe pick at 13, but mostly because it seems harder than ever this year to predict who will go where. There are so many differing mock drafts out there, and with free agency potentially happening after the draft this year we could see an insane level of trades happening as people draft need over talent.

People have thrown up the following names on mock drafts:
Tyron Smith, Nate Solder, Jimmy Smith, Robert Quinn, JJ Watt, Anthony Costonzo and Ryan Kerrigan. I have seen one where the Prince himself slips to us at #13 but even if he did get past the Cowboys at #9 I don't see him getting past the Texans (as much as i'd love him to be the future crown prince of Michigan.)

As pretty as these selections may be they all carry some downside. A tackle doesn't seem to be high on Mayhew's hit list and may even sit for a lot of the year, DE is not our biggest need at all and according to Tom Kowalski Jimmy Smith comes with risk. Linebackers like Akeem Ayers are falling down draft boards and Bruce Carter can be taken in round 2.

Mayhew and co will take the best player available regardless and until then we may have to sit on our couches clueless as to what might happen. I like surprises but it sure does make your head spin...

Lions get lucky at 13?

To say the Lions #13 pick in the draft is sketchy to guess is a huge understatement. Most mock drafts have the Lions taking an OT there but when posed that scenario Mayhew didn't see any reason to:
http://www.freep.com/article/20110323/SPORTS01/103230393/Martin-Mayhew-open-isn-t-convinced-Lions-need-help-offensive-line?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Sports|s


So I looked up where the number 13 pick has ended up over the last 10 years and it showed some promising things. Firstly, its trade value. Only last year the Eagles coughed up a lot to move up to #13 to take Michigan's own Brandon Graham.

In recent years not only have teams moved up to 12 and 13 and given a lot to do so, but they have moved up to 14, 15 and 16 to grab huge talent slipping through the cracks or to reach for an opportunity, or fill a need about to be snatched by someone else. Just looking at the guys who slip to 13 is pretty impressive: Brian Orakpo, Jonathan Stewart, Marcus Stroud, Ty Warren and Donte Stallworth have all gone at 13. In 2007 Darrelle Revis went at 14. Troy Polamalu, Jeremy Shockey, Albert Haynesworth went later. If the Lions wanted to trade down teams jump at the chance to move to this soft zone of "less expensive" but still elite prospects. However, if they choose to stay it is a great chance to grab someone special. I think I will stop panicking at us not having a clear cut top 10 pick for once...

The Lions front office seem set on taking the best player available. With the amount of QB needy teams, and the superior talent of this D-Line class, some top 10 talent will slide to number 13. I trust the front office as they clearly know what they are doing. In 2009 at number 20 we were waiting to see who dropped and we landed another Brandon.

I am huge on this guy. He has been exemplary off the field and such a hard worker on it. He has rewarded the Lions for taking him with a pro-bowl caliber season breaking the Lion's TE receptions record as well as the last second heroics against Cleveland in 09 and impressive performances this year. Even if we trade down, who will slide into our laps this year?


So, seeing is #13 isn't so bad after all and has plenty of value in itself, do we stick or trade down?


Either way i'm so pumped for draft day!

Good showing by the Wolves last weekend

Dear UK, George Roberts has arrived! But then the run blocking by all the guys was beautiful to watch. They overturned the London Blitz with a great showing in the preseason opener with Roberts scoring 3 TDs. Coach Boughton, Coach Dawkins and Coach Josh McKee had everything running very smoothly. These Wolves will make some real noise in the BAFA South Division in 2011.

Welcome and introductions

Hello world! This is my first venture into the world of blogging and publishing my thoughts and feelings to the world, which as a Lions fan and coach of a junior football programme is often an emotional ride! So welcome to the craziness. That's me, third from the left with the grey zip up hoodie, with my junior champions, September 18th at the British Championship - the Britbowl. I love the Lions and it sucks so much that they are hundreds of miles and an ocean away and everyday is filled with getting all info I can see and watching highlights. My favourite player is Calvin and my favourite of the past is obviously Barry Sanders. I am surrounded by Patriots fans, Packers fans and Cowboys fans who laugh and scoff, but soon Mayhew and Schwartz will bring in the new decade of glory even better than what we had with Spielman, Blades, Sanders, Moore, Perriman, Gray and the perrenial pro-bowl, playoff teams of the 90s.
And when that comes I will be laughing so loud all Michigan will hear...from this side of the Atlantic!