Needs for next draft

[michiganalex]

Yes I know its early but y not.


Center
Linebacker
Cb/s

 

[jrange378]

It is early so really we have no idea yet, some groups could regress and some could perform better. Possibly:

Center
Wide receiver

 

[Mitchrapp]

In this order:

LB
WR
S
C
RT

I say S because I have no confidence in Delmas staying healthy..

 

[tetra777]

1. Center
2. WR
3. LB

 

[motown1958]

Its way to early. But at this point the pieces would be:

OLB
WR
CB
C
S


I liked what I saw sunday out of the lb core. They filled their gaps soundly and were sure handed in tackling but they still struggle when in coverage.(I was surprised that minni didnt go to Rudolph more) Getting more athletic and instinctual at both spots would be nice although I think they keep starting Levy and probably look to upgrade Palmer. (I thought both guys looked extremely good on sunday, but the instincts arent what they could be)
WR is a pretty obvious weak spot. I think Burleson is definitely back to his old form and Edwards showed flashes of quickness but struggles getting off the line. They need to work on giving him immediate separation off the line perhaps with motion, but that would take away Megatron's motion plays which allow him to get free which is obviously more important.
CB is still a weak spot on this team. Ponder worked on our secondary pretty well when not under as much pressure. Houston didnt look sharp and Slay looked like a rookie but more depth would be nice. Great pick up for Mayhew getting Mathis and great use by Schwartz calling him up to close out the game.
C is weird for me for two reasons: 1) I like Dom and think he is kind of the anchor on that line meaning he is the guy they all look to. It used to be Backus who was steady while Dom was super aggressive and in your face type of guy. He is respected by the team. 2) He has several drawbacks including his inability to move Dlinemen consistently. He bulked up this year but he isnt a guy you can run behind on short yardage and that hurts a bit. He played exceedingly well on Sunday but he has been inconsistent his whole career.
S is another place we need depth. Quinn and Delmas looked really solid together not really allowing much through the middle and really coming up and stuffing the run well. But more depth is always good since we could still use help on ST and to cover if there is an injury.
I didnt include it in the list but DT could also be a position of need. CJ Moseley and Banaan are mediocre at best and to better our rotation couldnt hurt. Another SLH or someone in the mold of Corey Williams would be great. So a gap filler or buster either way someone that wont get moved.

 

[kdp80]

No way we go cb again, people already given up on bentley and green? Gotta remember Green was thrown into the fire last year because of injuries.

 

[michiganalex]

Ranking them:

1. LB
2. C
3. CB/S
4. WR

 

[inkfreq]

LB
LB
C
DT (Suh may not be here next year and both Idonije and Mosley will be gone)
S
WR

 

[tomdalton22]

LB
LB
C
DT (Suh may not be here next year and both Idonije and Mosley will be gone)
S
WR

do you think they are going to cut him or trade him?

 

[schles192]

do you think they are going to cut him or trade him?

He's thinking 2015, same goes for fairley, both FA. Bring a DT to work behind them to take over for which ever leaves.

 

[boogerlovejoy]

In this order:

LB
WR
S
C
RT

I say S because I have no confidence in Delmas staying healthy..

This.

I might even put WR #1. It depends on how Edwards and Broyles develop this year.

 

[mhughes0021]

#2 WR
RT
C
S Im done with Delmas
OLB
OLB
DT

 

[tomdalton22]

Hopefully they are actually good this year and can mostly fill in a few holes and add depth. I think they should look at WR in FA. It seems like most rookie WRs take a lot of time to get accustomed to the NFL. I think some weaknesses are:

LB
TE
CB/S
OL Depth
RB Depth

 

[jrange378]

Given this teams philosophy I think they are much more inclined to continue to build on the line in anticipation for a Suh or Fairley leaving and keep the line a strength. They have always been keen on a great d-line pressure upfront covering up for what's behind it, with Lbs that really just have to clean up and fill gaps etc. Unless an unpassable stud at a LB position is there, de or dt is more probable for us based on that IMO.

 

[inkfreq]

do you think they are going to cut him or trade him?

My thinking is that if he doesn't extend/restructure, there is no way the Lions are paying a DT 21.5 million bones next season. His best move, and the team's best move, is to get a new deal done that brings his money down to where it should be. He won't get that much on the open market either, and he is the defensive leader.

But, if things go south, have that backup plan in place. The strength of our defense is the line, keep stacking it. Go back to the well as often as need be and keep it zipping along with good young legs and motors ready to play.

I personally have no problem with the idea of spending a 1st round pick every single year on the D-Line. It works, it's a valuable place to pick, and you build to your strength, not your weakness.

 

[Mitchrapp]

Do we want Suh? He does not think sometimes. We have Fairley who will make less, draft a DL and get rid of Suh. Do a sign and trade kind of thing..

 

[inkfreq]

http://www.nflpenalties.com/all-players.php?&year=2012

Yes, we want Suh. Check that page and see where he finished last season for penalties. Change years and look at 2011 and 2010.

The man is valuable. He had 3 penalties in 2012 resulting in 25 penalty yards. In 2011 he had 7 for 52 yards. in 2010 he had 7 for 61 yards.

While I wish he could avoid the headlines a bit more, and he would avoid the stupid penalties, the man is one of the rare players that can take over a game by himself. He's worth a hell of a lot more to a team than he is giving up in yards.

Even his suspension... he lost two games. His presence on that line every week is worth more than the two games he missed.

I'd love to see him keep his nose cleaner... but for what he brings to the field, I'll take the idiot moments too if that's the way it has to be.

 

[inkfreq]

... by the way, Fairley had 10 penalties last season. Just sayin.

 

[inkfreq]

Oh, and Calvin Johnson had 4, one more than Suh.

 

[Mitchrapp]

That's not why I said that..I didn't even think about penalties. Just saying we have a young DT that makes less and if we drafted another we could cut the cap and maybe get a deeper team, or whatever.

As I player I love Suh, he's very talented.